Update from Kate
THOUGHTS FROM THE SEPT. 15 BOARD OF SUPERVISORS MEETING
Please Share Widely:
A significant portion of the Board of Supervisors meeting of September 15 focused on the challenges of 2020 and what the County is doing to address them. We began by recognizing and celebrating the many County employees who have stepped into new roles as Disaster Service Workers. We then received substantive updates regarding emergency preparedness (specific to wildfire prevention/response and power shutoffs) and Marin's current COVID-19 status. More information on each of these topics is provided below:
I also wanted to share with you the comments I made at the Board of Supervisors meeting:
As our discussion this morning made clear, 2020 is throwing more challenges at us than we ever could have imagined:
COVID-19 pandemic
Financial impacts to the economy and the County budget
Racial justice and inequity issues
These seemed like more challenges than we could handle all at once – but then came:
Extreme heat
Threatened power outages
Wildfires, burning everywhere
Smokey, unhealthy air and the apocalyptic skies of September 2
Not to mention the political drama and anxiety of the presidential election in November and worries about voting, the U.S. Postal Service, political polarization, misinformation and fear-mongering.
Truly, there seems to be no end in sight to the challenges we face and the stress they engender.
When we have physical challenges – a bad knee, an aching hip, stiff and inflexible hands or feet – we may turn to physical therapy to increase our strength and flexibility. So where do we turn to enhance our strength and flexibility, our resilience, to deal with the layers of social, economic, health and climate issues that confront us now?
Sometimes a good quote or two can help redirect our thoughts. Here are two I offer for your consideration.
This is the first quote:
“No matter how bleak or menacing a situation may appear, it does not entirely own us. It can’t take away our freedom to respond, our power to take action.” (Author and digital product designer Ryder Carroll)
And here is the second, and perhaps my favorite, quote:
“My barn having burned down, I can now see the moon.” This is from a 17th century Japanese poet and samurai (Mizuto Masahide) who we can assume lived through some difficult times.
Photo courtesy of Marin County Parks
The Disaster Service Workers we celebrated this morning demonstrate the power of taking action. Now let’s remember to look for the moon and appreciate the beauty still around us.
Over the last six months during the COVID-19 pandemic, more than 1,000 Marin County employees have stepped into new roles to serve our residents. They have managed hotels for people experiencing homelessness, delivered food, assembled a robust testing machine, served as community liaisons, learned the ins and outs of effective contact tracing, responded quickly to our skilled nursing facilities, evaluated and analyzed data, supported the County Administrative and Health and Human Services Department Operations Centers, translated important information into Spanish for the Latinx community, ensured effective spending of limited County resources, and run an Emergency Operations Center 24 hours a day. Our Disaster Service Workers (DSWs) have stepped up and stepped out of their current jobs and they are heroes.
County staff provided us with an overview of current wildfire prevention efforts, including a brief update on the new Marin Wildfire Prevention Authority (MWPA), as well as preparedness efforts regarding potential Public Safety Power Shutoff (PSPS) events this summer and fall.
Additionally, we heard an update from Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) regarding its plans to mitigate the impacts of PSPS outages in Marin in 2020, including its efforts to energize a number of substations in Marin with temporary power generation during any PSPS events.
Key takeaways? Be prepared!
Watch the full discussion here (Agenda Item #2).
Marin's Public Health Officer, Dr. Matt Willis, provided an update on our COVID-19 response. It included a lot of helpful information, including how the State's Blueprint for a Safer Economy works, and what it means for Marin businesses and schools to be in Tier 2 (Red Tier) effective September 15.
The bottom line: This is not over yet!
We continue to see a disproportionate impact on the Latinx community. We also see the majority of COVID cases among essential workers, and are still concerned with cases in our Senior Care Facilities. However, an increasing proportion of positive cases are due to indoor social gatherings where people are not practicing personal safety measures, and the proportion of cases among non-Latinx people is increasing. What does this mean? We are all susceptible to contracting and spreading COVID-19.
Currently, our data shows we are closer to Tier 1 (Purple Tier, where we've been) than we are to Tier 3 (Orange Tier, where we want to be). To avoid regressing back to Tier 1, we all need to work together to maintain low community spread. And to move to Tier 3, it will require even more efforts on everyone's part to keep each other safe and healthy. Thank you for continuing to wear your mask, wash your hands, and limit contact with those outside your household.
Watch the full update and discussion here (Agenda Item #3).
|
