Category Archives: Stories/News

About CoronaVirus

Centers for Disease control and Prevention (CDC)

Letter from Dr. Robb at UC San Diego.

For those concerned about the coronavirus:

Subject: What I am doing for the upcoming COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic

by James Robb, MD UC San Diego

Dear Colleagues, as some of you may recall, when I was a professor of pathology at the University of California San Diego, I was one of the first molecular virologists in the world to work on coronaviruses (the 1970s). I was the first to demonstrate the number of genes the virus contained. Since then, I have kept up with the coronavirus field and its multiple clinical transfers into the human population (e.g., SARS, MERS), from different animal sources.

The current projections for its expansion in the U.S. are only probable, due to continued insufficient worldwide data, but it is most likely to be widespread in the US by mid to late March and April.

What to do, and not do

Continue reading →

Climate-related Bills in the WA State Legislature

Climate- and energy-related bills in the WA State Legislature that the League of Women Voters supports:

SHB 1110 /  SB 5412   Reduces greenhouse gas emissions with transportation fuels. 

HB 1113 Aligns Washington State’s greenhouse gas reduction goals with the 2015 Paris Agreement and current climate change science assessments. 

HB 1597 Integrates the natural gas upstream emissions rate and global warming potential rule into other environmental and energy laws.

HB 1999  Reducing emissions by making changes to the clean car standards and clean car program.

HB 2311/ SB 6272 Amending GHG emissions limits for consistency with recent climate science.  

HB 2248/ SB 6223  Expanding equitable access to benefits of renewable energy through community solar projects.Provides needed resources to enhance participation, and provide benefits lower income communities in community solar projects UPDATE: HB 2248 had Hearing Jan. 16 in House Environment and Energy. SB 6223 will have Hearing Jan. 22, 8am in Senate Environment, Energy & Technology.

HB 2287 Rail Safety. A joint transportation committee shall oversee a consultant study on rail safety governance best practices for Washington state, both for passenger and freight, and consider the national transportation safety board’s recommendations following the 2017 accident report. Bill addresses significant problem of train derailments that jeopardizes lives, and can cause fires and water pollution. UPDATE: Had hearing Jan. 15 in House Transportation.

HB 2379  Sulfur hexafluoride emission reduction

HB 2405 / SB 6222 Commercial Property Assessed Clean Energy and Resilience. 

HB 2427 / SB 6453 Tackling Climate Change as Part of Growth Management Act 

HB 2472  Incorporating GHG measurements from fossil fuels in state environmental laws

HB 2609 / SB 6335 Addressing Climate Change through Growth Management.

SB 5811 Zero Emission Vehicles. Reducing emissions by changing the clean car standards and program. Authorizes the Department of Ecology (DOE) to adopt California zero emission vehicle program regulations. Expands the types of vehicles required to meet California standards to include medium duty vehicles. Gasoline cars are the single biggest source of  carbon pollution in Washington. To make the big cuts in carbon we need, we must make the transition from fossil fuel cars to cleaner alternatives. UPDATE: Passed out of Senate Rules 26-23, referred to House Environment and Energy.

SB 5947 Establishing the sustainable farms and fields grant program.

SB 6135 System reliability under the Clean Energy Transformation Act (100%). Requires Department of Ecology submit a report regarding electrical grid reliability every four years. Good idea!

Bills the League opposes:

HB 1984 Designates food processing facilities as EIT for purposes of limiting GHG emissions

HB 1985 Regulatory relief from GHG rules for agriculture and food products.

Bills the League is watching:

HB 2415 Special district elections.

2019 State of the Sound Report

issues a Call to Action for Puget Sound Recovery

NEWS RELEASE — December 2, 2019
MEDIA CONTACT: Jon Bridgman, 206.276.5309, jon.bridgman@psp.wa.gov 

The latest biennial State of the Sound Report, released this week, stresses that “…we can still recover Puget Sound, but only if we act boldly now.” This is the scientifically informed assessment of the Puget Sound Partnership, the state agency leading the region’s collective effort to restore and protect Puget Sound.

The Report is clear that Puget Sound remains in grave trouble. The damaging effects of pollution, habitat degradation and disturbance persist. Southern Resident orcas, Chinook salmon, steelhead, and many other species are listed under the Endangered Species Act. Human wellbeing is also affected, for example, by reducing fishing opportunities and threatening human health. Climate change impacts and continued population growth stand to increase pressures on an ecosystem already in peril.

Continue reading →

OCA Supports the Sustainable Farms and Field Initiative

OCA has joined organizations around the state
who are adding their names to the
Sustainable Farm and Fields Support Sign-on Letter

From: Noa Kay
I’m excited to add Olympic Climate Action to the letter of support.
Thank you! We’ll keep folks updated as the legislative session begins so you can track the bill’s progress and take action at key moments.

In the meantime, please let me know if you have any questions and feel free to share the letter of support with local farmers and food system stakeholders who might be interested.

(We’re near the end of the letter with the CLIMATE AND ENVIRONMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS)

Open Letter Delivered at Meeting of Equator Banks

Press Release — 13 November 2019
By: BankTrack & Partners

As banks head for Singapore to decide on new Equator Principles, 300+ civil society groups call for ambition and courage

Campaigners urge banks to stop financing climate disasters and respect Indigenous’ Peoples Rights

312 Civil society organizations from 58 countries have today called upon the financial institutions that make up the Equator Principles Association (EPA) to “act with courage and ambition and not settle for business as usual” when deciding upon a new version of the banking sector’s standards for financing large-scale infrastructure projects at their annual meeting in Singapore, next week from November 18th to 20th.

Continue reading this article . . .
Equator Principles open letter

World Scientists’ Warning of a Climate Emergency

Humanity is on a collision course with Nature.
A damaged Nature will survive. We may not.
We must change course to avert an ecological disaster.
We must take action if we are to survive.

This is the warning that our scientists have been trying to deliver since 1992. It’s short and to the point:
World Scientists’ Warning of a Climate Emergency

ScientistsWarning.org also has a compelling message to deliver to the world.
Read the Summary

Scientists endorse mass civil disobedience to force climate action

Reuters — Environment October 12, 2019 — Matthew Green

LONDON (Reuters) – Almost 400 scientists have endorsed a civil disobedience campaign aimed at forcing governments to take rapid action to tackle climate change, warning that failure could inflict “incalculable human suffering.” . . .

“We believe that the continued governmental inaction over the climate and ecological crisis now justifies peaceful and non-violent protest and direct action, even if this goes beyond the bounds of the current law,” said Emily Grossman, a science broadcaster with a PhD in molecular biology. She read the declaration on behalf of the group.

“We therefore support those who are rising up peacefully against governments around the world that are failing to act proportionately to the scale of the crisis,” she said.

Read the entire article at Reuters.com . . .

The number of scientist who have signed the declaration is currently almost 1600.
Scientists’ Declaration of Support for Non-Violent Direct Action Against Government Inaction Over the Climate and Ecological Emergency at Google Docs and a list of ALL the signers.