Public Health Standards

Protecting Communities. Preventing Pollution. Promoting Justice!

For decades, communities in west Eugene, especially in the 97402 zip code, have faced the burden of heavy industrial pollution. Many families live, work, walk their dogs, and send their children to school just steps away from polluting manufacturers. This long-standing pattern has led to increased health risks, decreased property values, and a loss of trust in land use decision-making.

In response, Beyond Toxics and community partners are advocating for public health to become a top priority in how Eugene makes land use and zoning decisions!

Our Proposed Policy Solution: Public Health Standards

The Public Health Standards (PHS) – originally called the Public Health Overlay Zone – are proposed updates to Eugene’s land use codes that will:

  • Create protective buffer zones between polluting industries and sensitive sites like homes, schools, parks, and daycare centers.

  • Require more review and community input before new industrial developments are approved.

Ultimately, we believe this policy has the potential to stop highly toxic facilities like J.H. Baxter from being placed next to residential neighborhoods in Eugene, Oregon ever again!

Recent Public Health Standards Updates

On Monday, June 8, 2026, Eugene City Council voted 7-1 to adopt Public Health Standards Version 3! Deliberations had come down to deciding between Version 3 and Version 4 of Public Health Standards. We are very excited to see these code amendments pass as they will increase transparency and accountability in the permitting process.
Click here to watch the meeting recording.

What's the Difference Between Versions 3 and 4?

The proposed land use code changes improve coordination between the City of Eugene’s building permit process and permitting done by public health regulatory agencies relating to air, land, and water quality in Eugene’s industrial areas—specifically, in land use zones E-2 Mixed-Use Employment, I-2 Light-Medium Industrial, and I-3 Heavy Industrial.

Both Versions 3 and 4 require that the City notify regulatory agencies that a development permit has been submitted in one of the specified zones.

Version 3 has an additional requirement that applicants must document and attest to the air, land, and water quality permits they need.

Version 4 does not require applicants to submit this documentation. This version was recommended by the Planning Commission.

A History of Industrial Pollution in West Eugene

Early 2000s

Listening and Responding

  • Community members and teachers in West Eugene contacted Beyond Toxics about toxic smells and children getting sick at school.

  • Reports of noxious odors, headaches, and the inability to use backyards became alarmingly frequent.

  • Beyond Toxics began organizing, investigating, and advocating for clean air and environmental justice.

2021

J.H. Baxter Contamination Confirmed

  • DEQ testing found dangerously high levels of dioxins—a cancer-causing chemical—in soil and groundwater near the J.H. Baxter wood treatment facility.

  • In March, DEQ fined J.H. Baxter over $223,000 for environmental violations, including illegal hazardous waste disposal and pollution of Amazon Creek.

  • The site is now added to the National Priorities List, slated to become a Superfund cleanup site.

September 2022

Proposal Submitted

  • Beyond Toxics formally introduced the Public Health Overlay Zone proposal to the Eugene City Council.

October 2023

A unanimous vote for Public Health

  • The Eugene City Council voted unanimously to direct staff to draft new Public Health Standards for the city’s land use code.

  • The Council’s vote reflected years of organizing and direct advocacy from West Eugene residents and environmental justice partners.

Read the vote on the City of Eugene's website.

January-May 2025

The City of Eugene launches a Community Engagement Plan

  • The City is meeting with key stakeholders and community members to develop Public Health Standards, research best practices.

  • City staff will provide an update to Council on the results in Summer 2025.

June 2025

Eugene City Councilors decide to take steps to further research and begin drafting land use code amendments

Per the City of Eugene, these actions include:

Action 1: Draft land use code amendments to require that an applicant demonstrate, prior to the issuance of City Development permits, that either:

  • the applicant has been issued all necessary licenses and permits from pollution control agencies like the Lane Regional Air Protection Agency (LRAPA) and Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ), or

  • the applicant has applied for the necessary licenses and permits, and the licenses and permits are likely to be issued.

Action 2: Upon completion of a Hazard and Risk Analysis Study, led by the City’s Sustainability Program, draft potential land use code amendments informed by the results of the study.

City staff are currently drafting code amendments. The Hazard and Risk Analysis is anticipated to be completed by summer 2026.

Click here to watch the June 18, 2025 City Council work session.View the City Council final presentation.

March 2026

Eugene City Council begins discussing Public Health Standards land use code amendments in public hearings

The City of Eugene is weighing Version 3 and Version 4 of the land use code amendments.

Version 3 includes requirements that building permit applicants in specified land use zones submit additional documentation on which air, land, and water quality permits they seek.

Version 4 does not have that requirement.

The first hearing took place on March 9, 2026.

Click here to watch the hearing recording.

What's at Stake?

For families living in West Eugene, this isn’t just about zoning codes or land use maps, it’s about survival, dignity, and holding polluters accountable for their actions.

West Eugene is home to thousands of people, including families, elders, children, and pets who have endured decades of toxic exposure from toxic industrial pollution. Many are lower-income, working-class, or people of color.

They didn’t choose to live next to chemical plants and diesel truck routes, the city zoned their neighborhoods that way and the homes in this area are some of the only affordable homes available in town.

Because of this toxic legacy, West Eugene has become a sacrifice zone, where polluting industries are allowed to set up shop right next to homes, playgrounds, dog parks, and schools. As a result, these communities are threatened by higher rates of asthma, heart disease, and cancer, along with lower property values and persistent neglect.

This isn’t theoretical, it’s real. And it’s still happening.

The Biofuels Terminal That Almost Happened

A Trainsong resident and her two children.
In 2024, a company proposed building a 16-tank biofuels terminal in the Trainsong neighborhood, a part of West Eugene already choked by train exhaust, diesel emissions, and heavy industry. The facility would’ve brought volatile fuels like ethanol and biodiesel into the neighborhood by the truckload, over 40 round-trips per day, without any guarantees for fire safety, spill prevention, or evacuation planning.

The proposal blindsided residents. There was no notice, no community input, and no accountability. People were left wondering: Why does this keep happening here?

The answer lies in our outdated land use system, a system that fails to protect the most exposed frontline communities. Thanks to fierce organizing by local residents and neighborhood groups like Active Bethel Community, we were able to band together and put a stop to the proposed biofuels facility in Trainsong.

But this won’t be the last threat to our health and land. Until we pass the Public Health Standards, there is nothing stopping another hazardous facility from moving into west Eugene.

Our Ongoing Advocacy

Beyond Toxics continues to push for the city to follow through on its commitment to protect neighborhoods from industrial harm by:

  • Pressing for the immediate adoption of Public Health Standards citywide.

  • Ensuring sensitive sites are identified and protected before industrial permits are granted.

  • Supporting impacted communities with organizing tools, testimony workshops, and legal insights.

  • Demanding that polluters, not people, bear the burden of proving their projects are safe.

A Healthier, More Just Eugene is Possible

We believe that Eugene can grow its economy without sacrificing the health and safety of its most vulnerable communities. The Public Health Standards offer a fair, science-backed path forward.

Let’s make sure our local laws reflect the values of public health, environmental protection, and community equity.