Month: September 2019

Environmental Film Series at WCU

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The Third Annual Environmental Film Series at WCU sponsored by the Office of Sustainability at West Chester University, the West Chester Green Team, and member groups of the Chester County Environment Alliance, in memory of Graham Hudgings.

Sykes Student Union Theater, 110 W. Rosedale Ave., West Chester PA 19382. Door opens at 5:30 p.m., films at 6:00. Films are free!

SEPTA’s 104 and 92 buses stop on High Street, the ChesCo SCCOOT bus stops at the corner of Rosedale and New Streets, and the campus is easily accessible by bicycle and on foot. If you drive, access the lot in back of Sykes side via the streets to the east or west of Sykes.

10/17, River Blue, about wasteful and polluting clothing manufacturing.
11/7, Reinventing Power, about renewable energy, with West Chester Sustainability director Will Williams as guest speaker
12/12, Eating Animals, with a vegetarian food tasting buffet by the WC Coop

What’s this about Eastern Equine Encephalitis?

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Eastern Equine Encephalitis, like many diseases, is not a good one to have. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention:

EEE virus is a rare cause of brain infections (encephalitis). Only a few cases are reported in the United States each year. Most occur in eastern or Gulf Coast states. Approximately 30% of people with EEE die and many survivors have ongoing neurologic problems.

The good news above is that this mosquito-transmitted disease is rare. And, CDC gives more good news, especially for people who do not live in swampy areas:

…Human EEEV cases occur relatively infrequently, largely because the primary transmission cycle takes place in and around swampy areas where human populations tend to be limited. All residents of and visitors to areas where EEEV activity has been identified are at risk of infection. People who engage in outdoor work and recreational activities in endemic areas are at increased risk of infection. Persons over age 50 and under age 15 seem to be at greatest risk for developing severe disease when infected with EEEV. Overall, only about 4-5% of human EEEV infections result in EEE. EEEV infection is thought to confer life-long immunity against re-infection.

So, as with West Nile Virus, only a fraction of infected humans have serious symptoms and it seems probable that even a low-grade and often unnoticeable infection confers subsequent immunity.

And in Pennsylvania? In 2009-18, the state has had 1 (one) reported case total and none in 2019. In the entire US, 2018 saw only 6 known cases and one death.

To put those figures in perspective, Chester County alone had 118 reported opioid overdose deaths in 2018.

Author Ken Ilgunas at West Chester University

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At West Chester University on Sept. 17, a crowd of students and community members heard author Ken Ilgunas recount his hike across much of Canada and the US along the actual and proposed parts of the Keystone Excel pipeline route.

From the devastation wrought by the extraction of saleable product from the Alberta Tar Sands, the talk ranged across many themes and adventures, from winter weather and unwanted encounters with bovines to the beauty of the landscapes and the generosity of farmers faced with a tired and hungry hiker asking if they couuld spare a glass of water.

The listener couldn’t help reflecting on the underlying principle of Ilgunas’s adventure: this land is our land–the land of the people who live here–and not that of the corporate interests.

Green Team summer interns’ presentation

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On Sept. 11, the West Chester Green Team’s 3 highly effective and hard-working summer interns—from left to right Kara Thorpe, Paige Vermeulen, and Courtney Bodle—described their accomplishments since May to the audience at the West Chester University Sustainability Research and Practice Seminar. All stressed not only what they got done (much of which shows up on this web site) but also the learning experience and how it oriented them to new ideas.

Schools and parks in West Chester Borough

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Don’t Spray Me! believes pesticides and herbicides should not be sprayed on any sort of educational institution or in parks where the public, including children, may go unawares shortly after spraying. The PA School Code requires notification of families and employees of public schools before spraying occurs–but not of private, independent and religious schools. This limitation is particularly upsetting because the youngest and therefore most vulnerable children, those in day schools and pre-schools, are specifically not protected by the law.

The map below, by Paige Vermeulen, shows schools (from day cares to university) in yellow, parks in green, and a 300 foot buffer zone in orange. Why 300 feet? Because spray drifts, and Bayer says its product DeltaGard kills mosquitoes at 300 feet (see more here).