#wastewater — Public Fediverse posts
Live and recent posts from across the Fediverse tagged #wastewater, aggregated by home.social.
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#NYC #COVID #wastewater counts are still available on the New York State run portal, but not in the State open data repository.
In the State portal, #COVIDWastewater data is only available as one of two embedded Tableau charts - a graph or a map. The embed code is available, but it is a permalink to a snapshot of the data in time; it does not always show the most current data.
https://coronavirus.health.ny.gov/covid-19-wastewater-surveillance
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The #NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene released its July #COVIDWastewater data on August 3. It's now September 14, and there's no sign of the August data.
#Wastewater concentration is one of the most important indicators in the beginning of a #COVID wave.
The samples are tested within a few days of being collected. Something the Department of Environmental Protection or the DOHMH is doing between testing and the public repository is taking way too long.
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💁🏻♀️ TIL: 🚽🌱 #NASA is testing a mobile #wastewater system at the University of #NorthDakota that turns #astronaut #poop into water for #plants and drinking.
Three #bioreactors process different waste types and feed the treated #water into a vertical #garden – growing #lunar salad from human waste. Engineers are stress-testing the setup in a simulated moon habitat to support a planned lunar base by 2029.
👉 https://www.popsci.com/technology/nasa-wastewater-system-turns-poop-into-plant-food/
#moon #space #agriculture #recycling #science #engineering #food #nutrition
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From 2024: Locals Say #SpaceX Is #Polluting #SacredLand. This Project Aims to Preserve It.
“This wasn’t just something we wanted to do,” said 35-year-old Monica Sosa, who grew up in #BrownsvilleTX, a short drive from #BocaChica Beach. “We felt like we needed to do it.”
by Cat Cardenas October 30, 2024
"Among the #CarrizoComecrudo people of Texas, it is said that the state’s rivers are like ancestors. As they flow toward the sea, they bring their abundance, their beauty, and their knowledge with them. In South Texas, the place where these rivers meet and empty into the Gulf of Mexico is a sacred life source — the location they believe to be the birthplace of the first woman. Today, most Brownsville locals know it as #BocaChicaBeach — a public stretch of sand located at the end of #Highway4, along the southernmost edge of the Texas coast. But to many people outside of the #RioGrandeValley, that land, its name, and its history have largely been swallowed up by the operation of the #RocketLaunch facility just up the road: SpaceX’s #Starbase.
"Growing up a short drive from Boca Chica Beach in Brownsville, 35-year-old Monica Sosa told The Barbed Wire she still remembers it as an escape: a piece of unspoiled coastline that was free for everyone to enjoy. On lazy summer weekends, she and her siblings would hop into her mom’s blue Chevrolet Astro van. The back seats pulled down to make room for more passengers as they stopped to pick up more family. Once there, they’d look forward to hours and hours of endless sunshine, and a cooler packed full of ham and cheese sandwiches, sodas, Cheetos, and fruit.
"As an adult, many of those happy memories have turned bittersweet. The beach, while still free to the public, is frequently plagued by the closure of Highway 4 each time there’s a rocket launch or other 'space flight activities.' And even when it’s open, the construction has fundamentally changed the landscape: There’s a tall metal SpaceX launch and catch pad towering over the once-untouched sand dunes.
" 'Boca Chica was bliss,' Sosa said earlier this month. 'I came from a working class family, and being out there was one of the only times we would come together and play. We’d be in the water, sitting in the sun, running through the lomas (hills), or burying each other in sandcastles. You could spend the whole day out there. But now there’s someone who has the right and the ability to privatize a beach that people have used for decades and decades.'
"SpaceX’s operation in the Rio Grande Valley has been far from smooth. In recent years, they’ve been cited by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality for multiple violations of #wastewater regulations and been the subject of multiple legal complaints. The company has disputed these claims as 'factually inaccurate' and has been allowed to continue their operations.
"In April of this year, multiple Valley-based environmental groups filed a lawsuit against the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department over a proposed land swap that would grant 43 acres of #BocaChicaStatePark to #SpaceX in exchange for land near Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge. In addition to their concerns about #pollution, the groups also argued that the land proposed in the swap was sacred to the #CarrizoComecrudoTribe.
" 'SpaceX has always been polluting,' Christopher Basaldú, a member of the Carrizo/Comecrudo Tribe told the Texas Tribune, which first reported on the allegations. 'And I think people are kind of brainwashed into thinking that rockets — constructing rockets, testing rockets and blowing up rockets — that somehow that’s not causing pollution.' "
#ProtectTheSacred #Colonialism
#CorporateColonialism #OccupySpaceX #TwoHeartedPeople #GarciaPasture #EndangeredSpecies #EnvironmentalRacism #AncestralLand #ElonSucks #StarbaseCity -
From 2024: Locals Say #SpaceX Is #Polluting #SacredLand. This Project Aims to Preserve It.
“This wasn’t just something we wanted to do,” said 35-year-old Monica Sosa, who grew up in #BrownsvilleTX, a short drive from #BocaChica Beach. “We felt like we needed to do it.”
by Cat Cardenas October 30, 2024
"Among the #CarrizoComecrudo people of Texas, it is said that the state’s rivers are like ancestors. As they flow toward the sea, they bring their abundance, their beauty, and their knowledge with them. In South Texas, the place where these rivers meet and empty into the Gulf of Mexico is a sacred life source — the location they believe to be the birthplace of the first woman. Today, most Brownsville locals know it as #BocaChicaBeach — a public stretch of sand located at the end of #Highway4, along the southernmost edge of the Texas coast. But to many people outside of the #RioGrandeValley, that land, its name, and its history have largely been swallowed up by the operation of the #RocketLaunch facility just up the road: SpaceX’s #Starbase.
"Growing up a short drive from Boca Chica Beach in Brownsville, 35-year-old Monica Sosa told The Barbed Wire she still remembers it as an escape: a piece of unspoiled coastline that was free for everyone to enjoy. On lazy summer weekends, she and her siblings would hop into her mom’s blue Chevrolet Astro van. The back seats pulled down to make room for more passengers as they stopped to pick up more family. Once there, they’d look forward to hours and hours of endless sunshine, and a cooler packed full of ham and cheese sandwiches, sodas, Cheetos, and fruit.
"As an adult, many of those happy memories have turned bittersweet. The beach, while still free to the public, is frequently plagued by the closure of Highway 4 each time there’s a rocket launch or other 'space flight activities.' And even when it’s open, the construction has fundamentally changed the landscape: There’s a tall metal SpaceX launch and catch pad towering over the once-untouched sand dunes.
" 'Boca Chica was bliss,' Sosa said earlier this month. 'I came from a working class family, and being out there was one of the only times we would come together and play. We’d be in the water, sitting in the sun, running through the lomas (hills), or burying each other in sandcastles. You could spend the whole day out there. But now there’s someone who has the right and the ability to privatize a beach that people have used for decades and decades.'
"SpaceX’s operation in the Rio Grande Valley has been far from smooth. In recent years, they’ve been cited by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality for multiple violations of #wastewater regulations and been the subject of multiple legal complaints. The company has disputed these claims as 'factually inaccurate' and has been allowed to continue their operations.
"In April of this year, multiple Valley-based environmental groups filed a lawsuit against the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department over a proposed land swap that would grant 43 acres of #BocaChicaStatePark to #SpaceX in exchange for land near Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge. In addition to their concerns about #pollution, the groups also argued that the land proposed in the swap was sacred to the #CarrizoComecrudoTribe.
" 'SpaceX has always been polluting,' Christopher Basaldú, a member of the Carrizo/Comecrudo Tribe told the Texas Tribune, which first reported on the allegations. 'And I think people are kind of brainwashed into thinking that rockets — constructing rockets, testing rockets and blowing up rockets — that somehow that’s not causing pollution.' "
#ProtectTheSacred #Colonialism
#CorporateColonialism #OccupySpaceX #TwoHeartedPeople #GarciaPasture #EndangeredSpecies #EnvironmentalRacism #AncestralLand #ElonSucks #StarbaseCity -
From 2024: Locals Say #SpaceX Is #Polluting #SacredLand. This Project Aims to Preserve It.
“This wasn’t just something we wanted to do,” said 35-year-old Monica Sosa, who grew up in #BrownsvilleTX, a short drive from #BocaChica Beach. “We felt like we needed to do it.”
by Cat Cardenas October 30, 2024
"Among the #CarrizoComecrudo people of Texas, it is said that the state’s rivers are like ancestors. As they flow toward the sea, they bring their abundance, their beauty, and their knowledge with them. In South Texas, the place where these rivers meet and empty into the Gulf of Mexico is a sacred life source — the location they believe to be the birthplace of the first woman. Today, most Brownsville locals know it as #BocaChicaBeach — a public stretch of sand located at the end of #Highway4, along the southernmost edge of the Texas coast. But to many people outside of the #RioGrandeValley, that land, its name, and its history have largely been swallowed up by the operation of the #RocketLaunch facility just up the road: SpaceX’s #Starbase.
"Growing up a short drive from Boca Chica Beach in Brownsville, 35-year-old Monica Sosa told The Barbed Wire she still remembers it as an escape: a piece of unspoiled coastline that was free for everyone to enjoy. On lazy summer weekends, she and her siblings would hop into her mom’s blue Chevrolet Astro van. The back seats pulled down to make room for more passengers as they stopped to pick up more family. Once there, they’d look forward to hours and hours of endless sunshine, and a cooler packed full of ham and cheese sandwiches, sodas, Cheetos, and fruit.
"As an adult, many of those happy memories have turned bittersweet. The beach, while still free to the public, is frequently plagued by the closure of Highway 4 each time there’s a rocket launch or other 'space flight activities.' And even when it’s open, the construction has fundamentally changed the landscape: There’s a tall metal SpaceX launch and catch pad towering over the once-untouched sand dunes.
" 'Boca Chica was bliss,' Sosa said earlier this month. 'I came from a working class family, and being out there was one of the only times we would come together and play. We’d be in the water, sitting in the sun, running through the lomas (hills), or burying each other in sandcastles. You could spend the whole day out there. But now there’s someone who has the right and the ability to privatize a beach that people have used for decades and decades.'
"SpaceX’s operation in the Rio Grande Valley has been far from smooth. In recent years, they’ve been cited by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality for multiple violations of #wastewater regulations and been the subject of multiple legal complaints. The company has disputed these claims as 'factually inaccurate' and has been allowed to continue their operations.
"In April of this year, multiple Valley-based environmental groups filed a lawsuit against the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department over a proposed land swap that would grant 43 acres of #BocaChicaStatePark to #SpaceX in exchange for land near Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge. In addition to their concerns about #pollution, the groups also argued that the land proposed in the swap was sacred to the #CarrizoComecrudoTribe.
" 'SpaceX has always been polluting,' Christopher Basaldú, a member of the Carrizo/Comecrudo Tribe told the Texas Tribune, which first reported on the allegations. 'And I think people are kind of brainwashed into thinking that rockets — constructing rockets, testing rockets and blowing up rockets — that somehow that’s not causing pollution.' "
#ProtectTheSacred #Colonialism
#CorporateColonialism #OccupySpaceX #TwoHeartedPeople #GarciaPasture #EndangeredSpecies #EnvironmentalRacism #AncestralLand #ElonSucks #StarbaseCity -
From 2024: Locals Say #SpaceX Is #Polluting #SacredLand. This Project Aims to Preserve It.
“This wasn’t just something we wanted to do,” said 35-year-old Monica Sosa, who grew up in #BrownsvilleTX, a short drive from #BocaChica Beach. “We felt like we needed to do it.”
by Cat Cardenas October 30, 2024
"Among the #CarrizoComecrudo people of Texas, it is said that the state’s rivers are like ancestors. As they flow toward the sea, they bring their abundance, their beauty, and their knowledge with them. In South Texas, the place where these rivers meet and empty into the Gulf of Mexico is a sacred life source — the location they believe to be the birthplace of the first woman. Today, most Brownsville locals know it as #BocaChicaBeach — a public stretch of sand located at the end of #Highway4, along the southernmost edge of the Texas coast. But to many people outside of the #RioGrandeValley, that land, its name, and its history have largely been swallowed up by the operation of the #RocketLaunch facility just up the road: SpaceX’s #Starbase.
"Growing up a short drive from Boca Chica Beach in Brownsville, 35-year-old Monica Sosa told The Barbed Wire she still remembers it as an escape: a piece of unspoiled coastline that was free for everyone to enjoy. On lazy summer weekends, she and her siblings would hop into her mom’s blue Chevrolet Astro van. The back seats pulled down to make room for more passengers as they stopped to pick up more family. Once there, they’d look forward to hours and hours of endless sunshine, and a cooler packed full of ham and cheese sandwiches, sodas, Cheetos, and fruit.
"As an adult, many of those happy memories have turned bittersweet. The beach, while still free to the public, is frequently plagued by the closure of Highway 4 each time there’s a rocket launch or other 'space flight activities.' And even when it’s open, the construction has fundamentally changed the landscape: There’s a tall metal SpaceX launch and catch pad towering over the once-untouched sand dunes.
" 'Boca Chica was bliss,' Sosa said earlier this month. 'I came from a working class family, and being out there was one of the only times we would come together and play. We’d be in the water, sitting in the sun, running through the lomas (hills), or burying each other in sandcastles. You could spend the whole day out there. But now there’s someone who has the right and the ability to privatize a beach that people have used for decades and decades.'
"SpaceX’s operation in the Rio Grande Valley has been far from smooth. In recent years, they’ve been cited by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality for multiple violations of #wastewater regulations and been the subject of multiple legal complaints. The company has disputed these claims as 'factually inaccurate' and has been allowed to continue their operations.
"In April of this year, multiple Valley-based environmental groups filed a lawsuit against the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department over a proposed land swap that would grant 43 acres of #BocaChicaStatePark to #SpaceX in exchange for land near Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge. In addition to their concerns about #pollution, the groups also argued that the land proposed in the swap was sacred to the #CarrizoComecrudoTribe.
" 'SpaceX has always been polluting,' Christopher Basaldú, a member of the Carrizo/Comecrudo Tribe told the Texas Tribune, which first reported on the allegations. 'And I think people are kind of brainwashed into thinking that rockets — constructing rockets, testing rockets and blowing up rockets — that somehow that’s not causing pollution.' "
#ProtectTheSacred #Colonialism
#CorporateColonialism #OccupySpaceX #TwoHeartedPeople #GarciaPasture #EndangeredSpecies #EnvironmentalRacism #AncestralLand #ElonSucks #StarbaseCity -
From 2024: Locals Say #SpaceX Is #Polluting #SacredLand. This Project Aims to Preserve It.
“This wasn’t just something we wanted to do,” said 35-year-old Monica Sosa, who grew up in #BrownsvilleTX, a short drive from #BocaChica Beach. “We felt like we needed to do it.”
by Cat Cardenas October 30, 2024
"Among the #CarrizoComecrudo people of Texas, it is said that the state’s rivers are like ancestors. As they flow toward the sea, they bring their abundance, their beauty, and their knowledge with them. In South Texas, the place where these rivers meet and empty into the Gulf of Mexico is a sacred life source — the location they believe to be the birthplace of the first woman. Today, most Brownsville locals know it as #BocaChicaBeach — a public stretch of sand located at the end of #Highway4, along the southernmost edge of the Texas coast. But to many people outside of the #RioGrandeValley, that land, its name, and its history have largely been swallowed up by the operation of the #RocketLaunch facility just up the road: SpaceX’s #Starbase.
"Growing up a short drive from Boca Chica Beach in Brownsville, 35-year-old Monica Sosa told The Barbed Wire she still remembers it as an escape: a piece of unspoiled coastline that was free for everyone to enjoy. On lazy summer weekends, she and her siblings would hop into her mom’s blue Chevrolet Astro van. The back seats pulled down to make room for more passengers as they stopped to pick up more family. Once there, they’d look forward to hours and hours of endless sunshine, and a cooler packed full of ham and cheese sandwiches, sodas, Cheetos, and fruit.
"As an adult, many of those happy memories have turned bittersweet. The beach, while still free to the public, is frequently plagued by the closure of Highway 4 each time there’s a rocket launch or other 'space flight activities.' And even when it’s open, the construction has fundamentally changed the landscape: There’s a tall metal SpaceX launch and catch pad towering over the once-untouched sand dunes.
" 'Boca Chica was bliss,' Sosa said earlier this month. 'I came from a working class family, and being out there was one of the only times we would come together and play. We’d be in the water, sitting in the sun, running through the lomas (hills), or burying each other in sandcastles. You could spend the whole day out there. But now there’s someone who has the right and the ability to privatize a beach that people have used for decades and decades.'
"SpaceX’s operation in the Rio Grande Valley has been far from smooth. In recent years, they’ve been cited by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality for multiple violations of #wastewater regulations and been the subject of multiple legal complaints. The company has disputed these claims as 'factually inaccurate' and has been allowed to continue their operations.
"In April of this year, multiple Valley-based environmental groups filed a lawsuit against the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department over a proposed land swap that would grant 43 acres of #BocaChicaStatePark to #SpaceX in exchange for land near Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge. In addition to their concerns about #pollution, the groups also argued that the land proposed in the swap was sacred to the #CarrizoComecrudoTribe.
" 'SpaceX has always been polluting,' Christopher Basaldú, a member of the Carrizo/Comecrudo Tribe told the Texas Tribune, which first reported on the allegations. 'And I think people are kind of brainwashed into thinking that rockets — constructing rockets, testing rockets and blowing up rockets — that somehow that’s not causing pollution.' "
#ProtectTheSacred #Colonialism
#CorporateColonialism #OccupySpaceX #TwoHeartedPeople #GarciaPasture #EndangeredSpecies #EnvironmentalRacism #AncestralLand #ElonSucks #StarbaseCity -
Detection And Spatial Modelling Of Trends In UK Rainfall Frequency
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https://doi.org/10.1080/02626667.2026.2622458 <-- shared paper
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#GIS #spatial #mapping #extremeweather #rainfall #pluvial #frequency #trends #nonstationarity #extremevalue #model #modeling #monitoring #UnitedKingdom #UK #Britian #England #Scotland #Wales #precipitation #spatialanalysis #spatiotemporal #drainage #monitoring #planning #resilience #naturalhazards #flooding #flood #water #hydrology # #sewerage #sewage #wastewater #waterways #pollution #spills #releases #stormwater #erosion #massmovement #landslides #engineeringgeology #risk #hazard #climatic #covariates #raingauges #maximums #duration #winter #NorthernEngland #NorthAtlanticOscillation #NAO #index #metrics #annualmaximum #AMAX #seasonalmaximum #SMAX #peaksoverthreshold #POT #statistics #geostatistics #MetOffice #weather #climate -
Forever Chemicals And Medications Detected In National Park Waters
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https://www.sfgate.com/national-parks/article/forever-chemicals-detected-grand-canyon-springs-21291219.php <-- shared technical/media article
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https://doi.org/10.3133/sir20255095 <-- shared (USGS) Scientific Investigations Report 2025-5095
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[I still remember a talk that @RelaenaSindelar gave about pharmaceuticals in the waste stream; one of her examples was Sequim, WA - in the banana belt - with retirement communities' flushed medications’ and the downstream/coastal effects - NOT the Grand Canyon! :( ]
#water #hydrology #waterquality #southrim #grandcanyon #USA #PFAs #foreverchemicals #pharmaceuticals #pharmaceuticalsinthewastestream #NationalPark #waterresources #wastewater #effluent #springs #perfluoroalkyl #polyfluoroalkyl #medications #groundwater #infiltration #humanhealth #ecosystem #humanimpacts
#USGS #NPS -
Sewage Crisis At California Coastline Can Be Seen From Space [remote sensing]
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https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/sewage-crisis-california-coastline-visible-space-20384048.php <-- shared media article
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https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2025.179598 <-- shared paper
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https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.ads9476 <-- shared paper
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https://earth.jpl.nasa.gov/emit/ <-- shared NASA EMIT home page
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#GIS #spatial #mapping #remotesensing #earthobservation #sewage #sewerage #California #coast #coastline #pollution #monitoring #spatialanalysis #spatiotemporal #Tijuana #SanDiego #USA #Mexico #NASA #publichealth #publicsafety #waterquality #airquality #marine #ocean #industrialwaster #stormwater #urban #runoff #estuary #beach #closure #contamination #contaminants #ctinoxate #methamphetamine #reflectance #wastewater #EMIT -
Good Muggy Morning SARS2PAians! ☁️💐☁️
I hope you are having a safe Spring!
The top news lately are the newest variants causing country-wide summer waves including Spain: https://ibb.co/hRpvjt5
and Portugal: https://ibb.co/khTtyJX
They are KP.3.x.y and LB.x.y.
These new immune evasive variants are filling up hospitals and causing notable increases in deaths.
KP.3 is now the variant "grandfather" that is the fastest, the most immune evasive, and the most easily bound to cells. Specifically, the most watched upcoming variant is its grandchild, KP.3.1.1.
The newest variants that have a very good chance of causing a sizeable increase in numbers, if not a full blown-out wave, are variants of KP.3 that already have immune evasive mutations (FLuQE) but also have an advantageous specific spike deletion (S:S31del).
These new and fastest variants are immune evasive to BOTH current vaccinations, AND prior infections.
Nationally, KP.2 is still just barely at the top of the leaderboard. KP.2.3 is right behind it, already a variant that is being watched.: https://ibb.co/p0d8G8n
🔴KP.3.1.1 is absolutely blazing fast and burning through Spain, Portugal and other countries, and is part of KP-DEL31.
_____
NOTE: "KP-DEL31" is gonna be my nickname for it, not variant hunters or virologists. Just to call it something easily condensed and recognizeable for now. They might decide on a different nickname soon. These names are just for convenience. (You don't call your cousin Mister James Robert Smith every time, do you? You call him JimBob or Smitty. It just makes talking easier.)
_____
I've highlighted FLiRT in pink on the national screenshot but I'll drop it soon as KP-DEL31 becomes more and more relevant.
There's no specific results for PA on the Tableau site. Probably not enough testing here.
In NY/NJ, I've highlighted KP-DEL31 in green on the NY/NJ leaderboard, and as you can see, all the top 5 variants there have this very important spike deletion. But KP.3.1.1 is the variant to keep eyes on.: https://ibb.co/Jcv0rF7
KP.3.1.1 is already found (in only a few days!) in TX, NY, CA, CO, NJ, WA, and VA.
🔴If you've dropped wearing respirators for now you might want to reconsider putting them back on as KP.3.1.1 makes gains and spring moves along.
________________
Wastewater has returned to HIGH levels in the Eastern and Southern states. KP.2, KP.3 and LB.x.y variants are working together on driving this.: https://ibb.co/0nHqQPS
In our region, specifically testing in Maryland is showing a return to higher levels.: https://ibb.co/99MSpy0
The PA wastewater dashboard is showing LARGE increases in Philly, and sizeable increases in Centre and Indiana counties.: https://ibb.co/0J14Tty
MASK UP, oh my Philly ❤️️!
________________
Whoa I had a whole angry thing typed out here and juuuuuuust checked back on Twitter, and Dr. Eric Topol wrote just 2 hrs ago that the US FDA has changed its decision for the upcoming vaccine base!!: https://ibb.co/xzB6GVb
The newest mRNA vaccines will be based on KP.2 and NOT JN.1!
This is a wise decision and fantastic news!!
This will certainly better prepare us for Summer.
(NOTE: **Novavax** will have a JN.1 based booster. Novavax is completely different as it has proven effective through multiple years with ONE base so that vaccine will probably not have to be changed as often.)
_______________
🔴Even with vaccines, there are always other things we can do to practice source control!keep those windows OPEN
wear a respirator
keep the air clean
move meetings outside
work from home
build a Corsi-Rosenthal box
stay home if you are sick!
Continue to have a great and safe Spring!! 💐💐💐
#COVID19 #COVID #COVIDisNotOver #SARS2PA #Pennsylvania #PA
#FLiRT #F456L #R346T #spike_f456l #spike_r346t
#FLuQE #Q493E
#KP2 #KP3 #LB1 #Moderna #Pfizer #Novavax
#WearAMask #CleanTheAir #WashHands #VaccinesSaveLives #StayHomeIfSick ! -
Update for 5/6/2024!
Good Morning SARS2PAians!
Yes I have an update today aaaaand unfortunately that's kinda never a good thing. You DON'T want to hear from me here!
(I am asking you once again....to please make this hobby of mine obsolete 🙏😔 Filter the air, be aware of social contacts, wear a quality respirator, and wash hands for the gastro stuff.)
__________
VOCsWe are dealing with FLiRT now, but there are two groups of incoming variants that are becoming concerningly successful in other countires including right next door in Canada.: https://ibb.co/fkG3gpg
One is an earlier-new group consisting of JN.1.32 and KP.3.
Another, far off-new yet, is KW.1 and its child, KW.1.1.
All of these variants have been proven faster than FliRT in Australia, UK, etc. KP.3 is exceptionally fast.
🔴Due to antigenic drift, vaccines and previous infection are NOT as effective to protect you with these upcoming variants.
🔴This does NOT mean vaccines don't work, so do not go spreading that. (You should also be mightily shunned for spreading that.)
Again: Vaccines are safe and effective...but these incoming variants are starting to yet again DRIFT TOO FAR AWAY from the current XBB vaccines.
I've highlighted the upcoming concerning variants in teal, as opposed to the FLiRT group which is in pink. KW.1.1 isn't above the fold yet nationally at 0.16% so I made a note on the image so I remember to keep track of this number.
Nationally, JN.1.7 and JN.1 are a tthe top of the board. JN.1.32 at 2.23% and KP.3 also at 2.23%. KW.1 at a little under half a percent. These numbers might be higher in actual meatspace because there is not nearly enough labwork/sequencing available to make laser-focused predictions.: https://ibb.co/bRpvDP7
In PA, we do not have group 2 of the far-off variants yet here but we do have KP.2. Gotta watch this one.: https://ibb.co/3kPMBwM
In NY/NJ, whoa, KP.3 already clocking in at over 3%, in the top 10 of random sequencing already. I haven't been watching this one so when I have more time I'll go back and check this one out.: https://ibb.co/qM7C4CY
KP.2 already at over 10%. That's fast, and antigenic drift is absolutely not helping here as any protection we might have had against this new stuff is starting to slip away.
We might be in for a bump up in numbers this spring, as something similar last year happened too.
Just giving everyone a heads-up on what we might be in for this spring/summer.
We can keep it in control by practicing some very comon-sense, easy things!
Have a safe spring!! 💐💐💐
#covid #Covid19 #SARS2PA #CDC #CovidIsNotOver #Wastewater #Pennsylvania #PA #JN1 #FLiRT #F456L #R346T #spike_r346t #spike_f456l
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Good Morning/Afternoon SARS2PAians!!
I hope you are enjoying this GORGEOUS Spring weather 💐💐💐
1/2 Update for May 3, 2024!
__________
:all_the_things: State of the Subreddit/Fediverse posts:There's not much new to report for COVID right now except some closely watched new mutations, so basically TL;DR is that COVID levels are very very low, enjoy it but please keep source control safety always on the backburner.
So. I don't mean to only have this as a once-a-week thing but it's kind of turning into that. I also don't mean to have people waste their time checking in here if I don't post, but I'm always hesitant to call it a once-a-week-thing as COVID is so volatile and mutations can always manifest something very weird in a short amount of time.
I have no idea when info will be available so I'm keeping it a "twice-a-week thing", Monday and Friday but sometimes I just don't have enough info/anything new/time for a Monday, so Friday is always much better for a full post for me.
I hope you continue to find this informative useful and I suuuuuper apologize if you check in and I don't post. 🙏
But even better, go check out the links for yourself and follow people smarter than me for COVID stuff!
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VOCsNationally, JN.1 and JN.1.7 still at the top of the leaderboard. FLiRT variants JN.1.4 and KP.2 keeps chipping away at their lead.: https://ibb.co/JqWkBSD
KP.2 seems to be the fastest mover of the whole FLiRT mutation block and the one the virology world is keeping their eyes on.
In PA, we don't have KP.2 showing up on Rajnarayanan's Tableau site so far, whcih is good but we still have quite a few FLiRTs here.: https://ibb.co/vP5yH4G
In NY/NJ, we can see here KP.2 has climbed above all the other FLiRTs, is in 4th place at >8% and is right behind JN.1 now.: https://ibb.co/ZzLcRxJ
The WHO is now looking to JN.1 being the next mutation that will be the base of the newest COVID vaccine.: https://www.who.int/news/item/26-04-2024-statement-on-the-antigen-composition-of-covid-19-vaccines
🔴PLEASE GET VACCINATED if available. Don't be a tuff guy. Go get it.
Upcoming fast variants are KP.3 and JN.1.32👀, which are not FLiRTs but very fast. I have them highlighted in teal on the charts as they are both already up to almost 5% of national sequencing.
In PA, we have JN.1.32 in low but measurable amounts at a little over 3% of random sequencing and these two variants wil have to be watched.
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CDCCDC has stopped requiring reporting COVID hospital admissions, hospital capacity or hospital occupancy data at the beginning of May. 🙄 This plus nowhere near enough testing and sequencing makes this....hard to keep up with the virus.
"Effective May 1, 2024, hospitals are no longer required to report COVID-19 hospital admissions, hospital capacity, or hospital occupancy data to HHS through CDC’s National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN). CDC encourages ongoing, voluntary reporting of hospitalization data. Data voluntarily reported to NHSN after May 1, 2024, will be available starting May 10, 2024, at COVID Data Tracker Hospitalizations."
"The source of hospital information on the COVID Data Tracker home page will change from the National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN) to COVID-NET. Instead of displaying national counts of new hospital admissions, it will show COVID-19 hospitalization rates per 100,000 people. More information on COVID-Net is available on COVID-NET Laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 Hospitalizations."
https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#datatracker-home 🙄
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Other PathogensWastewaterSCAN now has SARS2 as LOW! YEAH! :canparrot:
Also FluB and RSV! Woohoo! :canparrot:
Still HIGH though are FluA, Human Metapneumovirus (HMPV), parainfluenza, and gastro bugs Noro and Rotavirus.: https://ibb.co/By0g9Xt
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H5N1 follows in second post......#covid #Covid19 #SARS2PA #CDC #CovidIsNotOver #Wastewater #Pennsylvania #PA #JN1 #FluB #Influenza #Norovirus #HMPV #FLiRT #F456L #R346T #spike_r346t #spike_f456l
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Good Afternoon SARS2PAians!
I hope your spring is healthy and productive! 💐💐💐
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VOCsNationally, the most concerning variants are, as I posted last week, the FLiRT variants that have specific mutations enabling fast transfer. JN.1.4 and KP.2 are already almost at 10% of variant share but remember the amount of testing and sequencing right now is dismal and it makes everything harder to evaluate.: https://ibb.co/KDt0Bh4
FLiRT variants are highlighted in pink on my screenshot. Expect these to push further and further near the top in the next few weeks (and the CDC NOWCAST confirms this prediction.)
In PA, we still have a few FLiRTs here and you can already see them starting to move toward the top of the variant chart.: https://ibb.co/kc9CQyZ
In NY/NJ, FLiRTs KP.2, JN.1.4, JN.1.16.1, and JN.1.18 already account for ~20% of random sequencing.: https://ibb.co/TrcS9rW
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WastewaterThe GOOD news is COVID is stil fairly low; we've gone below the higher level of two years ago, and are at the lower level of last year at this time!: https://ibb.co/Q83BR3k
We still must watch to see if the FLiRT crew push this metric upwards.
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CDCThe new hospital admits map has changed. High increases all through Central PA excepting Centre Co. and also over tehre in Mercer Co. Philly and Pitt looking very good!: https://ibb.co/Xp8tCJV
The Inpatient Beds Map looks pretty good, some increases in McKean, Potter, and Cameron counties and also around Somerset and Cambria Cos.: https://ibb.co/fD7JYTf
ICU beds over all showing stability, with lots of counties in Central PA and the old coal region on the decrease! Some increases from Lycoming over to McKean though.: https://ibb.co/jMTdyCT
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NOWCASTThe CDC Nowcast is now including multiple fast-moving FLiRT variants in its tracking: KP.2, KP.1.1, KQ.1, JN.1.18.: https://ibb.co/wBY45FV
According to current estimates, these variants combined account for over a third of illnesses already.
These are moving FAST.
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NonSARS2 PathogensMore good news: according to WastewaterSCAN, there are now lots of pathogens considered LOW nationally!
Just be warned that they are still showing HIGH in the Northeast, like FluB, which is LOW nationally but regionally still HIGH. Hopefully these numbers will lower even more as the Spring enables more outdoor/well ventilated activity.: https://ibb.co/vYGmTd1
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H5N1H5N1 particles have been found in dairy milk, and are assumed to be inactivated due to the pasteurization process.
We MUST demand healthy cows, testing and tracking of sick herds, and transparency from the meat and dairy insustries.
This is not necessarily to keep H5N1 out of dairy products.
The more IMMINENT concern than being found in dairy milk is letting this thing percolate until it gains new mutations, whether to infect swine or enable human-to-human transfer.: https://ibb.co/FVbNnky
Some things you can do that are obviously proactive and not panicking about this:
🔴Demand clean feed for cattle and swine.
🔴Demand transparent testing, tracing of cattle illness.
🔴Demand high levels of sampling and sequencing of sick herds.
🔴AVOID raw dairy products. Seriously, people, DO NOT contribute to this thing by consuming raw dairy products, even if your State allows its sale (and Pennsylvania DOES as far as I know!)
🔴Try ultra-pasteurized milk, it's the most common milk sold in European countries.
Here's a nifty guide that compares pasteurized/ultra-pasteurized/UHT (ultra high temperature) methods of treating dairy products:
https://www.britannica.com/technology/pasteurization
🔴Avoid undercooked or rare meats. Meats must be heated to 162 degrees for at least 15 seconds to destroy pathogens like tuberculosis.
🔴Switch to providers that are not battery farms and practice humane farming. This is NOT just to be kind to animals (although that's a huge bonus), it is PRACTICAL and keeping herds not densely packed will lessen disease transmission. So far, H5N1 has a 50% kill rate even in non-bird species and we MUST keep outbreaks of it controlled.
I hope you have a FANTASTIC, well-ventilated, healthy and fun Spring!! 💐💐💐
#covid #Covid19 #SARS2PA #CDC #CovidIsNotOver #Wastewater #Pennsylvania #PA #JN1 #FluB #Influenza #Norovirus #HMPV #FLiRT #F456L #R346T #spike_r346t #spike_f456l
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Good Afternoon SARS2PAians!
It's going to get a bit chilly the next few days , butin spite of that I hope you're haivng a great Spring! 💐💐💐
🔴Reminder: If you've built a Corsi-Rosenthal box, you can get lots of seasonal allergy relief by running it! CR boxes have many, many practical uses besides just controlling air particles that carry pathogens.
There was nothing much new to post on Monday plus I had a bunch of family things to handle (and doing this, admittedly takes time) so I apologize again for not posting. But you know the saying "no news is good news" and that defintiely applies to these updates.
I'm going to try and update the link list ASAP.
I hope you still find all this useful and informative. I hope the medical community finds these accurate and reliable.
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VOCsWhile we are experiencing a MOST welcome lull in COVID numbers right now, disease modelers are predicting a bump up in numbers at the end of this month.: https://ibb.co/YpnpfMF
This is due to a variant block that have specific mutations. Together they are nicknamed the FLiRT group and are named so because their most important mutations are located at S:F456L and S:R346T within the structure of the pathogen.
🔴Right now FLiRT mutes have an 8% advantage even over JN.1. That's fast.: https://ibb.co/NshJLK6
The most important VOCs out there right now are the variants that have the FLiRT designation, and I've highlighted these mutes on these screenshots in pink.
Remember that there is nowhere near the amount of national testing or sequencing that should be implemented, so it makes trying to predict growth activity more difficult.
Nationally, lots of FLiRT mutations out there. It is unknown whether they are fast enough to cause a wave altogether, but they're fast enough to compete with JN.1 to eventually take over quite a bit of the current leaderboard.: https://ibb.co/S7kCkpH
In PA, we have quite a few FLiRT mutation here but these mutes are in relatively low numbers, so far.: https://ibb.co/bdhJwKv
In NY/NJ, FLiRT mute JN.1.4 already in second place on the leaderboard at over 9% of random sequencing. The other FLiRT variants will undoubtedly catch up.: https://ibb.co/ZBgYP2G
Here you can see FLiRT's innate growth advantage compared to JN variants.: https://ibb.co/3swYQ4r
Here you can see JN.1's innate growth advantage compared to older variants.: https://ibb.co/DfH6j53
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WastewaterNationally we're still on the bottom of the lull. This might be the lowest point of the whole year as our numbers ongoing could match 2022/2023, where we had quite a bump up in the middle of the summer (because, reminder: COVID doesn't have a "season", it can bump those numbers up anytime it gets lucky with a new mutation!).: https://ibb.co/3mVzfx9
In PA, wastewater still low pretty much everywhere which is great. MontCo SMASHING it, going way below national levels!!: https://ibb.co/TbrQgk7
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CDCThe counties showing high increase in hospital admits has shifted around. Now the counties with the highest increases are along the NY border and down in the Southwest corner surrounding Greene Co. Adams and York also showing high end increases. Philly corner showing moderate increases.: https://ibb.co/cQRgbwM
The % inpatient beds map looks very good! stable or decreasing everywhere, except some increases in Columbia Co up going Northeast to Wayne Co.: https://ibb.co/Q8JMZvh
Staffed ICU beds in the vast majority of counties steady or going down...except Columbia, Luzerne and Wyoming in the eastern half of the State and Centre, Clearfield and Jefferson in Central PA.: https://ibb.co/5kXgcYR
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Other PathogensWe're still high in non-SARS2 respiratory pathogens according the WastewaterSCAN. FluA, FluB, and Human Metapneumovirus (HMPV) are still HIGH.
Gastro stuff is very high too, Norovirus and Roitavirus.
🔴Keep the air clean, be aware of social contacts and wear a quality respirator in crowds and in places where air filteration is suboptimal. Stay home of you are sick to beat the respiratory stuff.
🔴WASH HANDS with warm water and soap for at least 20 seconds to beat Noro and Rota. Rinse off fruits and veg before you eat them. Be aware of food handling safety in the kitchen. Don't send kids to school with this.
Mostly because...Noro and Rota are not only extremely contagious, they're also just...gross. 🤢
I hope you have a GREAT and safe Spring!! 💐💐💐
#covid #Covid19 #SARS2PA #CDC #CovidIsNotOver #Wastewater #Pennsylvania #PA #JN1 #FluA #FluB #Influenza #Norovirus #Rotavirus #HMPV #FLiRT #F456L #R346T #spike_r346t #spike_f456l
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#MaineTribes and Leading #Environmental Organizations Join Forces To Oppose Proposed #Mine in Shadow of #Katahdin
Proposed #ZincMine at #PickettMountain being pursued by virtually unknown Canadian company
June 28, 2023
"Two Tribes in Maine today joined forces with leading environmental groups and a national public interest environmental law organization to oppose a proposed mine that would be located in the shadow of #BaxterStatePark and the #KatahdinWoods & Waters National Monument.
"The proposed zinc mine at Pickett Mountain is being pursued by a virtually unknown Canadian company, #WolfdenResources, that has never operated a mine before. A previous version of Wolfden’s request was widely opposed because the region holds enormous cultural and natural significance to #Wabanaki Tribes, outdoor recreation businesses, and Maine people.
"The #HoultonBandOfMaliseets, the #PenobscotNation, and the #NaturalResourcesCouncilOfMaine [#NRCM], represented by #Earthjustice and #Brann&Isaacson, joined the #ConservationLawFoundation in petitioning to intervene in the review of Wolfden’s permit application to the Land Use Planning Commission (#LUPC) to rezone the area for #industrial uses.
"'The Penobscot Nation strongly opposes the rezoning of this #ecologically important area. We share significant concerns over impacts to the #water quality and f#isheries of the area, which our members rely upon,' said #ChiefKirkFrancis of the Penobscot Nation. 'The West Branch of the #MattawamkeagRiver contains abundant, high-quality, cold-water fish habitat and Designated #CriticalHabitat for #endangered #AtlanticSalmon, identified as necessary for the recovery of Atlantic salmon in the Penobscot River. This mine would impact our traditional territories and forever alter our ability to maintain our relationship to this place.'
"The area Wolfden wants to mine is next to three State Heritage Fish Waters and is a centerpiece of the region’s growing outdoor economy. It contains the headwaters of the West Branch of the Mattawamkeag River, which is sacred to the Penobscot Nation and provides key, federally designated critical habitat for endangered Atlantic salmon.
"'The Katahdin region’s wild beauty and clean water are extraordinary. One look at this landscape demonstrates that this is no place to put a mine,' said Nick Bennett, staff scientist at the Natural Resources Council of Maine. 'Wolfden’s claims that it will treat #wastewater more effectively than any mining company on earth are not credible. This is too big a risk for #Maine.'
"'The legacy of metallic mineral #mining in Maine is one of empty promises of economic development, acid mine drainage #polluting waters and killing fish, and multi-million dollar c#leanups funded by taxpayers and not the fly-by-night mining companies like Wolfden,' said #SeanMahoney, vice-president and senior counsel at the Conservation Law Foundation. 'Rezoning this area to allow mining would fail to recognize the cultural and spiritual importance of the land to the #WabanakiTribes and threaten the natural resources and experiences valued by generations of Maine citizens.'
"After withdrawing its initial request because it was riddled with errors, Wolfden submitted a second rezoning petition in January that sparked another review by the LUPC. Comments by Wolfden’s CEO disrespecting Maine tribes and #MininLlaws have prompted outrage from the Penobscot Nation, Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians, and #conservationists. The company has lost tens of millions of dollars over the past decade.
"'This is one of the absolute worst areas to rezone for a mine,' said Aaron Bloom, a senior attorney with Earthjustice. 'The region is known for its vast contiguous forest, pristine streams, high-quality lakes, and aquatic species like wild brook trout and landlocked salmon. Why would we risk that, along with the outdoor economy that depends on it, on a half-baked proposal from an unproven mining company? The Commission must put Maine’s unique natural resources, and the well-being of the people of Maine and Maine’s Wabanaki Tribes, before short-term industry profits.'
"More than 700 hundred Mainers and local businesses, including Bradford Camps, Chandler Lakes Camps and Lodge, and the #MaineWildernessGuidesOrganization, have spoken out against Wolfden’s plans. In May 2022, residents of #Pembroke voted overwhelmingly to ban industrial-scale metallic mineral mining in their town in response to Wolfden’s plans to develop a mine there."
#WaterIsLife #Maine #WabanakiNations #Environment #Mining #CorporateColonialism #NoMining
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Just went down the rabbit hole of #wastewater monitoring for #covid19, specifically in #Michigan.
WTF???
Looks like #BioBot (https://biobot.io/data/covid-19) is the closest thing to a national test network, but it looks like they have all of 1 county (#Leelanau, a personal fave) and only sporadic data there. Meanwhile, Michigan has SWEEP (https://www.michigan.gov/coronavirus/stats/wastewater-surveillance/dashboard/sentinel-wastewater-epidemiology-evaluation-project-sweep) which has a weird patchwork of sources. This would be tolerable except for one thing: they report wildly divergent numbers. 1/n