Wednesday, January 27, 2021

CoViD-19: Use Your Judgment, US Records Another 4000+ Daily Deaths | Getting Tested Could Be Worse: China Introduces Anal Swabs | Biden Introduces Climate Policies; Leaves Fracking Alone |

 

A Backyard Shot To Remember Our Trees (Taken 5.2.2020)

I posted today's picture because things couldn't be more different. This is from last summer when we were always in the backyard playing games and trying to entertain the kid. On Tuesday, the fence was ripped out by the new project developers next door, and we've officially learned that by Monday, all of these trees will be slaughtered and removed.

Needless to say, I am not happy about it at all. But as renters, we have no say, and no right to object. There may be nests in the trees, but that isn't enough to stop it from happening. 

So, we will carry on. I have been in constant contact with our property managers and am at least fighting for priority to be put on reinstalling a fence, wall, or whatever they have planned, partially because we have pets that need an enclosed yard and partially because in the last month alone there have been three different police interactions involving the property. I'm working through the stages of grief about the whole thing but that process isn't linear, and the anger just makes me miserable and doesn't change anything so I'll have to learn to deal with it and plan a bigger, badder garden come spring and once we have an idea how things are moving on the project. 

In news today, I watched a little of the County Board Meeting about cannibis and it was a hoot, and we watched the Psaki briefing with John Kerry and Gina McCarthy. Things seem to be moving and also standing still so I'm gonna quit while my pendulum leans to optimistic and go join Darren in the speakeasy tonight. Stay safe, my loves. 

  • COVID-19:
  • Politics:
  • News:
    • Board Expands COVID-19 Rental Assistance Program - County News Center (1.26.2021)
    • National Terrorism Advisory System Bulletin - January 27, 2021
      ...due to a heightened threat environment across the United States, which DHS believes will persist in the weeks following the successful Presidential Inauguration.  Information suggests that some ideologically-motivated violent extremists with objections to the exercise of governmental authority and the presidential transition, as well as other perceived grievances fueled by false narratives, could continue to mobilize to incite or commit violence.
    • What the Hell Is Going On With GameStop’s Stock? How an army of Reddit users massively inflated the price of a flailing video game chain—in no small part to stick it to Wall Street. - Slate (1.26.2021) 
  • Press Secretary Psaki Media Briefing:
    • Climate Advisor Gina McCarthy
    • Climate Envoy John Kerry
      • Big agenda globally, stakes couldn't be higher 
      • Paris Agreement is not enough
      • Ambitious climate action is global in scope and scale
      • Climate central to diplomacy, foreign policy, and national security
      • Climate action coordinated across federal agencies
      • Commissions national security estimate on security implications on climate change 
      • Biden will host a Leaders Summit on April 22, Earth Day 
      • Ready for UKCOP26 
    • Media Questions:
      • National policy makes a difference, both toward climate change and by setting an example in the world
      • Bringing India and China can happen if we can compartmentalize climate change from other issues
      • Pause will take a look at what leases ought to be pursued, including coal
      • NDC/Paris Accord will be announced before Earth Day summit, will consider what options, mitigation efforts, forest management, carbon soil absorption, etc., across all agencies
      • We're not starting from zero because states and localities picked up where the federal government failed, because clean energy is actually cheap or comparable to 'dirty' energy
    • Jen Psaki:
      • No notes because the idiot reporters just keep asking the same questions every day
  • Global COVID-19 Stats (JHU 1/27/2021 9:22pm):
    • 100,866,032 Known Cases
    • 2,174,143 Known Deaths
  • US COVID-19 Stats 
    • (JHU)
      • 25,598,061 Cases
      • 429,195 Deaths
    • (COVID Tracking Project):
      • 151,675 New Cases/25,230,559 Known Cases (4.6%+ Change over 7 Days)
      • 4,077 New Deaths/419,634 Known Deaths
      • 107,444 Current COVID-19 Hospitalizations
      • 20,497 Currently COVID-19 patients in ICU
      • 6,806 COVID-19 patients currently on ventilator
  • California COVID-19 Stats:
    • State of California Safe Schools For All Hub
    • Vaccination progress dashboard
    • Aggregate California ICU Bed Availability: 0%
    • 16,728 New Cases/3,169,914 Total Cases (+0.5% increase)
    • 697 New Deaths/38,224 Total Deaths (+1.9% increase)
    • 8.8% 14-day test positivity rate
    • 17,710 COVID-19 Hospitalizations (-329 patients, -1.9% from prior day)
    • 4,375 COVID-19 ICU hospitalized in CA (-9 patients, -0.2% from prior day)
    • 1,186 ICU beds available (+20 from prior day)
  • San Diego County News:
    • Framework For Our Future: Measures to Provide Economic Access and Equity in the Cannibis Industry (Passes 4-1 with Desmond Nay)
    • San Diego Becomes Largest County in U.S. to Commit to Zero Carbon Emissions by 2035. Vote Led by Supervisors Lawson-Remer, Vargas Supports Movement to Create Green Jobs, Advance Social Justice and Environmental Equity (See end of email for full text of press release)
  • San Diego County 
    • Free Testing Sites and Schedule in San Diego
    • VaccinationSuperstationSD
    • Vaccination Dashboard
    • State Data:
      • Southern California ICU Bed Availability: 0%
      • 1,433 New Cases/230,062 Total Cases
      • 46 Deaths/2,421 Total Deaths
      • 67.7 cases/100k population (Assessed on 1/26. Unadjusted Case Rate)
      • 12.6% Test Positivity (Assessed on 1/26)
      • 16.7% Health Equity Positivity (Assessed on 1/26)
      • 1,472 COVID-19 hospitalized patients (-20 patients, -1.3% from prior day)
      • 412 COVID-19 ICU hospitalized patients (-4 patients, -1.0% from prior day)
      • 157 ICU beds available (-11 from prior day)
    • County Data:
      • San Diego County COVID-19 Update – 1-27-2021 - County News Center 
      • Influenza Watch - 27 New/662 Cases Countywide
      • 1,415 New Cases/231,481 Total Cases 
      • 44 New Daily Deaths/2,465 Total Deaths
      • 9% Daily Test Positivity/% (7-day avg after 7-day lag)/8% Test Positivity (14-day average)
      • 49.6 cases/100k population (Assessed on 1/26. Adjusted case rate per 100,000 excluding prisons.) 
      • % Case Investigation (under 70% goal)
      • % Increasing Day Over Day COVID-19 Hospitalizations (+patients. % increase over 30 days)
      • % ICU Capacity (+patients. % increase over 30 days)
      • 8 New/53 Community Outbreaks (7-day)
        • Business 29
        • Faith-based Setting 2
        • Government 5
        • Daycare/preschool 6
        • Healthcare 3
        • Construction 1
        • Emergency Services 1
        • Food/Bev Processing 3
        • tk-12 school 2
        • Comm-Based Org 1


January 27, 2021
San Diego Becomes Largest County in U.S. to Commit to Zero Carbon Emissions by 2035

Vote Led by Supervisors Lawson-Remer, Vargas Supports Movement to Create Green Jobs, Advance Social Justice and Environmental Equity

SAN DIEGO — Today the County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to move San Diego County to zero carbon emissions, making it the largest county in the U.S. to commit to achieving such a goal by 2035.

The vote comes after nearly 1,500 San Diego County residents signed a petition urging the County to take this action. “The fact is, climate crisis is an existential threat to our way of life in San Diego and around the globe,” the petition read. “We must face this historic challenge with historic ambitions to match. We must decarbonize San Diego County as quickly as possible.”
 
Introduced by Supervisor Terra Lawson-Remer and Vice Chair Nora Vargas, two of the newest members of the Board, the vote directed staff to start creating a Regional Sustainability Plan that will guide the County toward the “zero carbon” goal.
 
“Residents are demanding action to fight the climate crisis and decarbonize our region, and this is a new Board that is committed to listening to the public, and putting our children and planet first,” said Supervisor Lawson-Remer. “This is a collective endeavor, and I am proud to work with the community to build on the efforts of grassroots leaders. I thank the thousands across San Diego who have led the way, and this vote is proof that climate action, green jobs and social equity are now a priority for San Diego County.”
 
A regional approach to climate action will establish a framework to reach the goal of zero carbon focus across the county as quickly as possible, achieving greater greenhouse gas reductions than the County could achieve on its own. The plan will incorporate strategies tailored to the region to achieve zero carbon in key sectors including energy, transportation, and land use.
 
“Prioritizing a zero-carbon future for San Diego County is a commitment to invest in building healthier and stronger communities,” said Vice Chair Nora Vargas. "For decades, communities of concern have faced the largest consequences due to climate change. While progress has been made through the implementation of various cities’ Climate Action Plans, our region must do more through collaborative action, to make meaningful reductions in GHG emissions. I look forward to working together in a regional collaboration to tackle the climate crisis. Our vote today is a commitment that environmental justice and climate justice is a priority in our county.”

County staff will work in partnership with the University of California San Diego School of Global Policy and Strategy. The County is partnering with UCSD to harness its global expertise in decarbonization strategies to develop this framework for the San Diego region.
 
Adopting a zero-carbon target is expected to bring shared prosperity and new economic vitality to the region. In addition to rapidly reducing greenhouse gas emissions, climate mitigation measures and investments will bring other substantial benefits such as improving public health and quality of life, reducing the burden of transportation costs on working families, addressing the region’s affordable housing crisis, and providing San Diegans with thousands of well-paying jobs building the infrastructure that will propel the region into the future.  

The vote comes two weeks after Supervisor Lawson-Remer and Chair Nathan Fletcher secured support for a plan to begin the development, adoption, and implementation of a new and ambitious Climate Action Plan to dramatically reduce the county’s greenhouse gas emissions.
 
The Regional Sustainability Plan will be integrated with the Climate Action Plan to help align the County’s climate efforts with those of jurisdictions throughout the region.
 
Carbon dioxide, which is increased in the atmosphere by human activity like burning fossil fuels, makes up the majority of greenhouse gas emissions and is a major contributor to climate change and its dangerous effects. San Diego County is uniquely vulnerable to the impacts of climate change, such as sea level rise, coastal erosion, heat, drought, flash flooding, and wildfire.
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