Council reviews environmental justice mapping; commissioners ask for more granular outreach

Consultants and staff described progress on a new environmental justice element that will identify "equity focus areas," document disproportionate exposure to pollution and hazards, and propose policies to reduce inequities. The presentation said the team identified three equity focus areas (Northwest Burlingame, East El Camino Real Corridor, East Burlingame) using census block-group data and state CalEnviroScreen metrics and that outreach included community-of-concern meetings in Spanish and a 170-response survey.

Commission members asked methodological questions about how boundaries were drawn and whether the map is a static snapshot or accounts for projected change. Commissioner Shores asked whether boundaries were census block groups; staff said yes and added that the state's CalEnviroScreen metrics informed the selection. Commissioner Zay and other council members asked for more granular outreach and for consideration of Chinese-language materials, particularly for Mills Estate, and staff said they would look into adding Chinese translations and post a survey summary on the project website.

The consultant said policy ideas are not as far along as on the safety element and that draft environmental justice policies will be developed through the summer and fall with the goal of adoption next spring. Council and commission members emphasized that while three neighborhoods were identified for focused policies, vulnerabilities exist across the city and the resulting policies should be applicable citywide.