Bay Area

Blacks Celebrate Veterans Day: Admiral J. Paul Reason, U.S. Navy

Joseph Paul Reason graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy at Annapolis, Maryland, in 1965. He retired as a U.S. Navy Admiral, the first Black American officer to become a four-star admiral in the United States Navy.

Published

2 years ago

November 4, 2023

Oakland Post

Admiral J. Paul Reason, USN. Photo courtesy US Navy

By Conway Jones

Reason’s middle-class upbringing in northeast Washington, D.C., emphasized intellectual development, education, and being culturally well-rounded.

Reason had an outstanding naval career. He was one of four Blacks admitted to the academy in 1961 and one of three to graduate.

In 1965, Reason entered the U.S. Navy’s nuclear power program. In 1968, Reason was named lieutenant and served aboard the USS Truxtun’s first deployment to Southeast Asia. From 1970 to 1973, he was assigned to the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Enterprise as an electrical officer during deployments to Southeast Asia and the Indian Ocean.

In December 1976, Reason was assigned to the White House as naval aide to President Jimmy Carter. His duties included carrying the “football,” a case containing the codes for activating the country’s nuclear weapons.

President Bill Clinton nominated him for promotion to four stars in 1996 and Reason became the first Black admiral in the U.S. Navy.

He retired from active duty in 1999.

“I totally attribute my success to those who have gone before me — all minorities,” Reason said. “People who have broken down barriers by showing others they’re capable of doing the expected task, that they can perform, and it has nothing to do with color of skin or ethnicity — nothing to do with anything other than a person’s capabilities.”

About his service on the aircraft carrier USS Enterprise, he said the deployments were long and arduous, but the Bay Area always welcomed Navy ships and their sailors to the Naval Air Station Alameda homeport.

“Alameda will always be a safe harbor,” said Reason. “I am glad that the USS Hornet Sea, Air & Space Museum maintains that tradition.as she celebrates the 80^th anniversary as a carrier and its 25^th anniversary as a museum this Veterans Day weekend.”

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Chevron Richmond Installs Baker Hughes Flare.IQ, Real-time Flare Monitoring, Control and Reduction System

While the sight of flaring can cause concern in the community, flares are essential safety systems that burn pollutants to prevent them from being released directly into the atmosphere. They activate during startup and shut-down of facility units or during upsets or equipment malfunctions. The typical flare stack is about 200 feet high so that vapors are well above street levels.

Published

2 weeks ago

May 19, 2025

Oakland Post

Image courtesy The Richmond Standard.

The Richmond Standard

Chevron Richmond recently installed flare.IQ, a real-time, automated system that will improve the facility’s flaring performance.

The technology, developed by Panametrics, a Baker Hughes business, uses sensors to monitor, reduce and control flaring in real time. It collects and assesses data on refinery processes, such as temperature, pressure, gas flow and gas composition, and adjusts accordingly to ensure flares burn more efficiently and cleanly, leading to fewer emissions.

“The cleaner the flare, the brighter the flame can look,” said Duy Nguyen, a Chevron Richmond flaring specialist. “If you see a brighter flame than usual on a flare, that actually means flare.IQ is operating as intended.”

“A key element in Baker Hughes’ emissions abatement portfolio, flare.IQ has a proven track record in optimizing flare operations and significantly reducing emissions,” said Colin Hehir, vice president of Panametrics, a Baker Hughes business. “By partnering with Chevron Richmond, one of the first operators in North America to adopt flare.IQ, we are looking forward to enhancing the plant’s flaring operations.”

The installation of flare.IQ is part of a broader and ongoing effort by Chevron Richmond to improve flare performance, particularly in response to increased events after the new, more efficient hydrogen plant was brought online in 2019.

Since then, the company has invested $25 million — and counting — into flare minimization. As part of the effort, a multidisciplinary refinery team was formed to find and implement ways to improve operational reliability and ultimately reduce flaring. Operators and other employees involved in management of flares and flare gas recovery systems undergo new training.

“It is important to me that the community knows we are working hard to lower emissions and improve our flaring performance,” Nguyen said.

Also evolving is the process by which community members are notified of flaring incidents. The Community Warning System (CWS), operated by Contra Costa County is an “all-hazard” public warning system.

Residents can opt-in to receive alerts via text, e-mail and landline. The CWS was recently expanded to enable residents to receive notifications for “Level 1” incidents, which are considered informational as they do not require any community action.

For more information related to these topics, check out the resources included on the Chevron Richmond, CAER and Contra Costa Health websites. Residents are also encouraged to follow @chevronrichmond and @RFDCAOnline on Facebook and X (formerly Twitter), where additional information may be posted during an incident.