SEATTLE - La iniciativa "Libre de Carbono" (I-163) que será votada este año está diseñada para combatir el cambio climático. Los profesionales de la medicina en el estado dicen que además mejorará la salud pública. Comentan el Dr. Thomas Schaaf ("shawf"), presidente de la Asociación Médica del Estado de Washington ("Washngton State Medical Association"); Patricia Brown, enfermera titulada del Hospital General de Tacoma; y Carrie Nyssen (NEE-sin), directora de defensoría en la Asociación Pulmonar Americana ("American Lung Association").

Los profesionales de la medicina de todo Washington manifiestan su apoyo a la iniciativa libre de la contaminación por carbono, no sólo porque combate el cambio climático, sino también porque mejorará la salud de la población. La iniciativa 1631 impondría una cuota límite a los principales contaminadores del estado, como empresas petroleras, y usaría ese dinero para invertir por ejemplo en una infraestructura de energía limpia, y ayudar a las comunidades a prepararse y recuperarse de los incendios forestales. La semana pasada la Asociación Médica del Estado de Washington ("Washngton State Medical Association"), la mayor en el estado, anunció su apoyo a la iniciativa. El presidente de la agrupación, Dr. Thomas Schaaf, dice que él y otros médicos han atestiguado los efectos de los incendios forestales por cambio climático, sobre la salud de la población.

"Mis colegas medicos familiares estan hallando mas problemas cardiacos, de asma, enfisema y mas hospitalizaciones por esas causas. Vemos un aumento significativo de muertes en nuestros pacientes de cuidados paliativos."

Se estima que la cuota juntará más de dos billones de dólares en los primeros cinco años. Está diseñada para reducir la polución por carbón en 25 millones de toneladas anuales para 2035. Los detractores dicen que la medida no será efectiva para reducir la polución por carbono.

La organización U-F-C-W 21 representa a trabajadores de enfermería y de la salud. Este que es el mayor sindicato laboral del sector privado en el Estado, también apoya la iniciativa. Patricia Brown, enfermera en el Hospital General de Tacoma, tiene a su cargo la atención de los recién nacidos. Dice que los bebés son sensibles a la contaminación y que el estado necesita esta iniciativa para limpiar el aire.

"Estan en peligro, porque son nuevos y recien comienzan a respirar y tomar aire, y si esta contaminado, no ayudara a su condicion.
"

Carrie Nyssen, de la Asociación Pulmonar Americana ("American Lung Association"), dice que el cambio climático es una de las principales amenazas a la salud pública. Y que el estado debe actuar ya, para enfrentar sus efectos.

"Profesionales de la medicina en todo el Estado de Washington dicen que apoyan la iniciativa "libres de contaminacion por carbono" ("carbon pollution - free") no solo porque combate el cambio climatico, sino que tambien mejorara la salud de la poblacion. Un reporte de Eric Tagethoff (TEG-it-off)."

Profesionales de la medicina en todo el Estado de Washington dicen que apoyan la iniciativa "libres de contaminacion por carbono" ("carbon pollution - free") no solo porque combate el cambio climatico, sino que tambien mejorara la salud de la poblacion. Un reporte de Eric Tagethoff (TEG-it-off).

...efectiva para reducir la polucion por carbon.




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School buses are getting cleaner in Washington state after this year's legislative session.

Lawmakers in Olympia passed House Bill 1368, which will fund the purchase of zero emission school buses.

Rep. Tana Senn, D-Mercer Island, said the program is getting off the ground quickly.

"As we work towards that long-term goal of all new school buses being zero emission, we're kick-starting this year with $40 million in grants to school districts in overburdened communities," Senn explained.

Going forward, Senn noted school districts will have to purchase zero-emission vehicles once the total cost of ownership is equal to or lower than the cost of diesel vehicles. The state is leveraging the state's Climate Commitment Act resources to fund the transition of its 10,000 school buses.

Devin Denney, director of transportation for Highline Public Schools in King County, which already has electric school buses in its fleet, said he has driven the electric buses and talked about some of their benefits from a driver's perspective.

"You're not competing against that engine noise, the kids aren't competing against the engine noise," Denney observed. "It's a much quieter bus all the way around. The major advantage, of course, is that there's no tailpipe emissions with an electric bus, so our kids' health is better protected."

Senn emphasized health studies have shown there are negative health effects from diesel vehicles for kids, and it is easy to understand why.

"If you think about kids waiting to get on their bus in front of an elementary school and you have this line of buses idling, letting out diesel fumes right at the height of a little child, it becomes obvious that this is probably not the most healthy thing for our children," Senn added.


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Today, in honor of Earth Day, climate advocates are asking California lawmakers and Gov. Gavin Newsom to rally around a plan to put a $15 billion bond measure on the November ballot.

If passed, the bond measure would fund a range of climate resiliency measures.

Sam Hodder, president and CEO of the Save the Redwoods League, said March was the tenth month in a row to break monthly heat records.

"I think Earth Day is a terrific opportunity for the broader public to recognize how nature is critical for resilience, for our quality of life, for our mental and physical health, and for our communities more broadly," Hodder outlined.

Two similar bills to put a bond measure on the ballot are under consideration in Sacramento, Assembly Bill 1567 and Senate Bill 867, but they have been stalled since last summer. The bond would finance many programs, including some to restore wetlands that guard against sea-level rise, and to remove dead wood in forests to guard against mega-fires, which Hodder noted have killed 20% of the giant sequoias in recent years.

Opponents pointed out the state already faces a budget deficit and cannot afford to take on more debt. But only 5% of California's old-growth coastal redwoods remain, mostly due to aggressive logging many decades ago.

Hodder argued the giant trees can be critical ingredients in the fight against climate change because they trap so much carbon.

"Redwood forests sequester more carbon per acre than any other forest system in the world," Hodder emphasized. "We have the opportunity to transition the redwood forest from something that is vulnerable to climate change to something that is helping to solve and address the climate crisis."

Experts blame climate change for California's wild weather over the past few years, which has been marked by extreme drought, devastating fires and flooding rain.

A new report from the National Wildlife Federation warns that the effects of climate change in the Quad Cities, along the Iowa-Illinois border, will be severe.

But researchers got the public involved in studying to find ways to head off some of the most pressing concerns.

The report says climate change means a warmer, wetter future for the Quad Cities, which straddle the Mississippi River in Iowa and Illinois.

But rather than repeat what experts have already been saying about drastic flooding along the Big Muddy, Prairie Rivers Network River Health and Resiliency Organizer Nina Struss said researchers and Quad Cities residents brainstormed solutions to tackle the effects of climate change.

"Flooding and flash flooding were the top concerns," said Struss. "Extreme heat was also a big concern, as well as drought and other extreme weather events."

Researchers combined that information with hard science at the University of Illinois to create 3D models depicting what climate-induced flooding along the Mississippi could look like in the future.

The survey also asked people to identify which geographical areas and populations are most at risk from the effects of climate change, and worked with the community on solutions to mitigate some of them.

Struss said this research proposes what are known as nature-based solutions to combat the effects of climate change - restoring, preserving and even expanding existing ecosystems, like wetlands and tree canopies. But creating more eco-friendly infrastructure, too.

"Can we work to maybe have our pavements that we're putting in be more permeable, so that they can absorb that water and have that higher water-holding capacity?" said Struss. "Can we focus on areas to plant more native plants that have stronger root systems, versus ones that have shorter root systems, to help with that water-holding capacity?"

Struss said this research isn't a one-off. It will continue to change, she said, as the climate changes, the needs become more clear, and the effects more drastic.

She said progress in addressing climate change relies on more research, education and funding.




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