Inside Bay Area, the news web site of the Oakland Tribune and the Alameda Journal of the Contra Costa Times, reported on efforts by Saint Mary's students to figure out if the soil on a 22-acre abandoned railway property is suitable to grow food for the Alameda food bank, which serves more than 4,000 people per year. 

The article "St. Mary's class works with Alameda Point Collaborative on Belt Line land use" chronicles how students enrolled in the spring science course Urban Environmental Issues, taught by Chemistry Professor Steve Bachofer, screened soil samples for lead and other contaminants in an area called the Alameda Belt Line. Test results from the class will be turned over to the city of Alameda which will make a determination about the suitability of the Belt Line in about six months.

Read the Alameda Journal article.