Welcome to Monitor Notes, a weekly roundup of news items, event announcements, and updates on past Bay Area Monitor articles.
In the Line of Fire
A free presentation at the San Francisco Public Library entitled “Wildfires and Climate Change: What We Know and What’s Next” will focus on the science behind the problem and the economic policies related to proposed solutions. Sponsored by the non-profit group Citizens’ Climate Education, the event on the evening of Thursday, February 21 will include consideration of recently introduced bipartisan Congressional legislation that seeks to address the situation. Click here for details.
Food for Thought
The ways in which we think about food systems are a core theme of a League-conducted Q&A with Liz Carlisle, Stanford University lecturer and co-author of the forthcoming book Grain by Grain. She spoke with the natural resources/climate team chair for the Palo Alto League of Women Voters to explain the environmental and social impact of what’s on our plate, including her research on ancient grains and gluten-free trends. Chew on the interview and then take in a Bay Area Monitor article about urban agriculture, a movement cropping up in social activism circles to support low-income families wishing to grow organic food.
Housing by the Yard
At a time when many city officials across the Bay Area are digesting CASA’s recent housing reform policy recommendations, a related idea is emerging from the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA). The agency is proposing a plan to build housing units above the Potrero Yard, which is located at 17th and Mariposa streets. The facility is in need of a rebuild to become seismically safe and to create space for supporting maintenance of SFMTA’s newer fleet. Upcoming workshops will focus on the potential to create housing above the planned three-story bus yard. Attend one this Thursday, February 21 or Saturday, February 23.
Direct Route to Offer Feedback
The Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) is rethinking its previous transit service plan and it wants to know whether residents are on board. The 2019 New Transit Plan is VTA’s staff proposal and follows the board’s recent direction to emphasize increasing ridership within a fixed budget. One measure calls for ending late-night service on Route 22 between 1 a.m. and 4 a.m. to save roughly $500,000 annually. Read more about the plan, or watch a replay of VTA’s online virtual meeting on the matter. Comment here by February 28.
Take out the Trash
The San Francisco Bay Regional Water Quality Control Board has ordered Caltrans to speed up freeway and state road trash removal to stop it from polluting creeks and the Bay, according to a San Francisco Chronicle article. Caltrans’ failure to comply would result in $25,000-a-day fines. David Lewis, executive director of the environmental non-profit Save the Bay, recently explained his group’s role in the campaign and the timeline of events leading up to the board’s cease-and-desist decision.
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