Boone County Watchdog

Thursday, August 3, 2023

Johns Hopkins Update on COVID and other health issues 8/3/2023

Roundup and analysis of the top headlines on health security, pandemic preparedness, COVID-19, and other news from the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security

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August 3, 2023

COVID Booster received only by a few

Aug. 3, 2023, 12:53 p.m. Eastern time

Todayʼs data for your places. Edit places

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United States

DATA FROM HOSPITALS
AVG. ON JULY 22
PER 100,000
14-DAY CHANGE

Daily Covid admissions
2,233
<1
+11%

Occupied I.C.U. beds
837
<1
–8%

Hospitalized patients
5,975
2
+5%

Primary series vaccination rate

All ages

69%

65 & up

94%

Bivalent booster rate

All ages

17%

65 & up

43%

Note: The primary vaccination rate measures the share of a population that received a full vaccination series of either the one or two-dose shots. The bivalent booster rate measures the rate of those who have received the booster shot recommended by the C.D.C. since the fall of 2022.

On Dec. 9, 2021, the C.D.C. capped its vaccination rate figures at 95 percent.

Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Wednesday, July 5, 2023

Union negotiations could decide fate of Belvidere’s idled Stellantis plant

WQRF Rockford

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Union negotiations could decide fate of Belvidere’s idled Stellantis plant

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Union negotiations could decide fate of Belvidere’s idled Stellantis plant© Provided by WQRF Rockford

BELVIDERE, Ill. (WTVO) — Upcoming negotiations between the United Auto Workers union and automakers could decide whether Belvidere’s idled Stellantis plant will play a part in America’s EV future.

Detroit’s legacy automakers are set to head into meetings with the UAW in mid-July to expand an expiring four-year contract.

Read the rest of story: Union negotiations could decide fate of Belvidere’s idled Stellantis plant (msn.com)

Thursday, June 29, 2023

Local air quality is a problem?

Use the chart in yellow to gage your proper response to current conditions

The Air Quality Index and how to use it, explained

8 things you should know about the number that measures bad air.

By Rebecca Leber @rebleber rebecca.leber@vox.com Jun 28, 2023, 2:10pm EDT

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A jogger beside a lake with a smoke-blurred skyline in the background. Worsening wildfires mean everyone should have a basic understanding of how to read and respond to the Air Quality Index. It’s a good idea to reduce outdoor exercise on hazardous air days to cut down on exposure. Kamil Krzaczynski/AFP via Getty Images

Rebecca Leber is a senior reporter covering climate change for Vox. She was previously an environmental reporter at Mother Jones, Grist, and the New Republic. Rebecca also serves on the board of the Society of Environmental Journalists.

It’s not enough to trust the senses to know when it’s a bad air day. Well before you can see or smell smoke, it can start wreaking havoc on the lungs.

That haze you can see and smell on a particularly polluted day is made of ozone and fine particulate matter.

Fine particulate matter, known as PM2.5 (the 2.5 microns describes its size, 30 times smaller than the width of a human hair) can embed in the cells of the lung and the bloodstream, aggravating inflammation, asthma, heart disease, and mental health. And ozone causes similar damage. In the stratosphere, ozone blocks ultraviolet radiation from the sun, but at ground level it can cause shortness of breath and damage to respiratory tissue.

Both pollutants can affect the entire body in all stages of life: young and old, and even the developing fetus. They come from sources as varied as the tailpipe of a truck, your neighbor’s barbecue, coal plant, or an incinerator. PM2.5 is capable of traveling thousands of miles across the world on the wind — taking, for instance, about five days to reach the US from China.

Why Canada’s wildfires will affect air quality for weeks to come

The dose makes the poison; there is a difference between moderately bad air and really bad air. Public health experts recommend monitoring changes in air quality as often as you check the weather. But you should also know some basic facts to help you determine your own sensitivity to air pollution and the appropriate action to take.

What is the Air Quality Index?

The Air Quality Index, set by the Environmental Protection Agency, is your guide to how bad the air quality is outdoors. The data that goes into the Air Quality Index comes from 5,000 air monitors across the country, including local, state, tribal, and federal reporting.

There are actually two AQIs for air quality, one for particulate matter and one for ozone, but when you see just one AQI, you’re looking at whatever pollutant is the higher of the two.

You can find the latest AQI on the EPA’s AirNow website or by downloading its AirNow app. Weather apps are often using propriety data from a company called BreezoMeter to determine AQI and forecasts. These numbers are based on EPA monitoring but may not be identical to the EPA’s AQI, though they should be in the same ballpark. Outside the US, air pollution monitoring can vary widely depending on the country, so AQIs reported around the world may also be pulling from a mix of computer modeling and satellite data.

There are some important drawbacks to the AQI. It tries to distill a lot of information into one datapoint, and it depends on air monitors often placed near cities and not close to industrial polluters. Since air pollution can vary widely even over short distances — think a busy highway versus a quiet, tree-lined road — the air could be worse if you’re near a pollution source. Communities of color are systematically exposed to more pollution from industrial sources and transportation, and the AQI doesn’t do a good job capturing that disparity.

A person checking an air quality monitoring set-up outdoors. Thousands of air quality monitors pull data from around the country to calculate the Air Quality Index. While the monitoring captures an accurate high-level view of pollution levels, it doesn’t capture pollution that can vary widely block to block. Hyoung Chang/Denver Post via Getty Images

Who really needs to pay attention to the AQI?

Ideally, everyone should monitor the AQI. EPA experts liken it to understanding the weather.

People have different sensitivities to air pollutants, just as people can have different temperatures they’re comfortable at. They can even be more uncomfortable with one type of pollutant than another.

But the EPA breaks out its recommendations for a general population group and a sensitive population. The sensitive group is actually quite large. If you have asthma or COPD, you fall in this category, but so do young children (under age 5), older adults (over 65), and pregnant people.

“The younger the child is, the faster their breathing, and so pound for pound, they are breathing more air pollution,” said Lisa Patel, a Stanford professor of pediatrics and an executive director of the Medical Society Consortium on Climate and Health. “We use 5 as a cut-off for particular vulnerabilities because age 0-5 is a period of really rapid lung growth. And so exposure to those toxins so early is particularly concerning, but it’s also concerning across the entire spectrum of ages.”

Smoky air puts everyone at risk — but it’s worse for some

Even if you don’t fall into one of the sensitive categories, an EPA official explained that the public should still “know their number.” The AQI is based on large population studies, so it doesn’t necessarily help you understand your individual risk. By monitoring the AQI regularly and paying close attention to any symptoms, you can get a feel for the level at which you should take proactive action.

What are the six level of air quality? And when should I be concerned?

The EPA breaks the Air Quality Index into a few categories with different recommendations.

Green (0–50): The air is safe to breathe.
Yellow (51–100): The air quality is considered moderate, except for the most sensitive groups.
Orange (101–150): Sensitive groups should reduce heavy exertion outside or take more breaks, and people with asthma and heart disease should watch for symptoms. The rest of the population may be fine.
Red (151–200): The air is unhealthy for everyone. Sensitive groups should avoid being active outdoors, while everyone else should reduce their time outdoors.
Purple (201–300): The air is very unhealthy for everyone. Everyone should consider moving their activities inside.
Maroon (301 and above): This is the highest level — hazardous — and anyone can be at risk. Everyone should avoid physical activity outdoors, and if you’re sensitive, you should remain indoors.

Doctors and public health experts urge people to monitor any symptoms as pollution levels climb, especially once the AQI is in the orange and red range.

The symptoms to watch can vary. A surefire sign to take it easy (limiting activity outdoors and potentially seeking medical help) is shortness of breath. Coughing, discomfort, and tightness of the chest can all signal issues with breathing.

Other symptoms could be less obvious, throat irritation, fatigue, a stuffy nose or a headache. An EPA expert explained she feels a side stitch when exercising on a bad air day.

In infants, Patel suggests to look out for grunting noises, bobbing heads, and using chest muscles to breathe as warning signs. Kids who have asthma should have an asthma action plan set with a health provider on using an inhaler.

It’s important to pay attention to these symptoms in both adults and children while regularly checking the AQI level at which you start to feel discomfort. Starting this now will help you in the future when you need to decide what precautions to take and when.

What are the precautions I should take outdoors, and when should I take action?

The AQI is most confusing when it falls into the yellow, orange, and red ranges.

If you are sensitive to air pollution, then you want to reduce your exercise and heavy exertion outside once the AQI hits orange. The entire population should start taking precautions when it is in the red territory. You might even want to reconsider spending extensive time outside at these higher levels, and don an N95 or KN95 mask if you do need to be outside (cloth masks will not protect you from PM2.5).

It helps to think about reduction in terms of dosage. You can cut your time outside, your exertion level, or both. If you reduce a 30 minute walk to 15 minutes, you’re cutting your exposure to the pollution by half. If you sit on your porch instead of going for a walk or run, you’re also cutting down how much pollution you inhale.

When is air pollution at its worse?

The time of year, and even the time of day, can matter immensely for air quality.

Ozone is typically at its worst in warmer months, between April and October in the US. It needs sunlight to trigger its chemical reactions, so late afternoons and early evenings can be smoggier than the mornings. Emissions that come from the tailpipes of cars and burning fossil fuels interact to form ozone that can build up to dangerous concentrations depending on geography and weather patterns.

Particulate matter’s worst months are usually peak wildfire season, so late summer and fall. Again, though, there are no strict rules here. Wildfires are no longer contained to predictable seasons due largely to climate change, as the East Coast experienced when Canadian wildfires caused smoggy extremes in early June. Other sources of PM2.5 include barbecues and fireworks, making July Fourth and the days that follow worse for air quality.

Tracey Holloway, an atmospheric scientist at the University of Wisconsin-Madison who works with NASA, also explained that, unlike ozone, PM2.5 “comes in different flavors.” She explained, “There are some situations where PM2.5 is highest at night because it’s trapped [an inversion where the ground is cooler], and there’s some situations where PM2.5 is highest in the middle of the day because it’s cooked up by the sun.”

Though experts focus mostly on the two main pollutants of concern in air pollution, PM2.5 and ozone, there are other substances that can hitch a ride with this pollution. Patel, the pediatrician, said wildfire smoke is especially toxic. Burning trees can release more mercury in the air because of how the pollutant has settled on surfaces. And when fires hit houses and towns, they burn up plastics and petrochemicals, releasing more carcinogenic and metallic substances into the atmosphere.

Should I be concerned indoors?

Staying indoors helps, but there are some additional actions to consider.

If you have central air conditioning or can access a building with air conditioning, that helps filter out pollutants. Also, HEPA air filters cut down on particulate matter and don’t have to cost a lot. The University of Washington has a manual for building your own low-cost air filter for roughly $20, which can dramatically lower fine particles.

How to make your indoor air better when it’s smoky outside

Since you’re getting a hefty dose of air pollution from the outdoors, it’s even more important not to expose yourself unnecessarily inside. Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health co-director and pediatrician Aaron Bernstein said people do this in ways they don’t realize. They might idle their cars in attached garages, or use fragranced and ozone-forming products, or run wood- or gas-burning stoves and fireplaces that pollute indoor air.

What can my community do to reduce air pollution?

The No. 1 action we can take for better air is addressing the root cause, not just the symptoms. After all, not everyone has control over their outdoor activities, and some communities and outdoor workers face astronomically higher risk from pollution than others. White Americans contribute more to air pollution through their consumption of goods and services, yet Black and Hispanic Americans tend to live in neighborhoods with lower air quality.

One of the challenges in tackling climate change is that the carbon we’re releasing now will stick around in the atmosphere for hundreds of years. That’s fortunately not the case with particulate matter and ozone. They settle in a matter of days, so air can clear almost immediately once we address the sources of pollution. The world experienced how fast the air can improve when road and air travel came to sudden standstill early in the Covid-19 pandemic.

“A lot of air pollution comes from controllable sources,” Holloway said. “When we implement changes to our transportation, industries, energy systems, and roadways, all of those can immediately improve our air quality. Certainly, we can’t just make a policy change and have wildfires go away. But for many other sources of air pollution, there are a lot of available technologies to make the air cleaner.”

Despite worsening wildfires, air quality has on the whole grown cleaner, especially within the United States over the last 40 years, as states have reduced major industrial sources of smog. Environmental regulations have worked as intended to clean up the worst polluters.

“We have already made huge improvements in having cleaner vehicles and trucks, cleaner power plants, and cleaner industrial facilities,” said Holloway. “And these have been deliberate choices that we’ve made.” Holloway believes “this isn’t a hopeless situation” as long as society moves to tackling the sources of the problem.

Above is from: https://www.vox.com/climate/23769186/bad-air-quality-index-wildfires-pollution

Friday, June 23, 2023

US Medical Glove to open in old Motorola plant

All signs point to U.S. Medical Glove opening plant at former Motorola site in Harvard

Signs for the nitrile glove manufacturer appeared at campus this spring

By Janelle WalkerJune 10, 2023 at 5:00 am CDT

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The former old Motorola campus in Harvard on April 27, 2023. Work is being performed to prepare the campus for a new tenant. The building has been empty since 2003. Signs were haver beed placed around the property warning people to stay away. (Gregory Shaver — gshaver@shawmedia.com/Gregory Shaver for Shaw Media )

The former Motorola plant “is being prepped for occupancy,” but a nondisclosure agreement precludes city officials from providing details, Harvard City Administrator Lou Leone said.

The city also has not seen a lease nor received further documentation about who that occupant may be, Leone said.

Although city officials will not confirm if a new occupa ... [Log in or subscribe to continue reading]

Above is from: https://www.shawlocal.com/northwest-herald/news/local/2023/06/10/all-signs-point-to-us-medical-glove-opening-harvard-plant-at-former-motorola-site/?utm_source=flipboard&utm_content=other

11 of 11 Job Opportunities

All Departments

Harvard, IL

Job, Post Date , Department

Location

Welder/Fabricator
04/20/2023

Harvard, IL

Machine Maintenance Mechanic
04/20/2023

Harvard, IL

Electrician
04/20/2023

Harvard, IL

Maintenance Mechanic
04/20/2023

Harvard, IL

IT/Network Technician
04/20/2023

Harvard, IL

Chemistry Assistant
04/20/2023

Harvard, IL

Inventory Clerk
04/20/2023

Harvard, IL

Chemist
04/20/2023

Harvard, IL

Accounts Payable
04/20/2023

Harvard, IL

CAD Design Technician – Machine Design
04/20/2023

Harvard, IL

General Laborer
04/20/2023

Harvar

Thursday, June 22, 2023

Walmart Selects Belvidere for Distribution Center

Staff report from Press Release

On Tuesday, June 20, Walmart announced plans to build a 1.2 million square-foot hightech perishable goods distribution center in Belvidere. This center would handle fresh produce, eggs, dairy, flowers, and frozen goods for delivery to nearby Walmart stores. Locally, Walmart currently operates a retail Supercenter in Belvidere, which sells groceries, general merchandise, and a pharmacy at 2101 Gateway Center Drive.

The new distribution center would be located on Town Hall Road immediately north of US 20 and the sprawling Stellantis Belvidere Assembly Plant. Completion of the new facility is scheduled for 2027.

Boone County officials have been working with the Illinois Department of Transportation over relocating Illinois Route 76 from a proposed roundabout at the current junction of Route 76 and Woodstock Road along a new alignment that would follow Town Hall Road south to US 20.

Walmart is expected to invest over $1.2 billion in the distribution center, which will bring 450 permanent jobs to the area, as well as construction employment. Local taxing bodies are in the process of modifying the BelvidereBoone Enterprise Program. Under this program, this project will be eligible for 50% fee reduction for building permits, building materials sales tax exemptions, property tax abatements, and an investment tax credit. “

The City of Belvidere is excited that Walmart has decided to invest in our community and build their 1.2 million-squarefoot distribution storage facility here,” said Belvidere Mayor Clint Morris. “Walmart’s investment supports our commitment to attract business development and job opportunity and represents a huge success for Belvidere in achieving both.”

Pamela Fettes, Executive Director of Growth Dimensions states that “Growth Dimensions Economic Development is ecstatic that Walmart has chosen BelvidereBoone County for their 1.2 million-square-foot perishable distribution center. We are grateful for Walmart’s investment and the economic impact in Northern Illinois. We look forward to this partnership in years to come.”

Walmart announced its first high-tech perishable goods distribution center in 2018. The speed and efficiency of the systems used in high-tech perishable goods distribution centers, such as the one planned for Belvidere enable the facility to move double the amount of merchandise as compared to a traditional perishable distribution center. Rather than manually stacking boxes and building pallets, the new facility will allow workers to use technology to do the heavy lifting by helping them build more flexible, dense pallets and fit more products onto trucks. These technical improvements also reduce transportation costs, resulting in savings that can be passed on to customers. “

Belvidere Perishable Goods Distribution Center associates will work with cutting-edge technology to stack boxes in a way that not only makes the job less physically demanding, but also avoids damaging products by placing fragile items like eggs at the top. It also maximizes space on trucks so that we can make fewer trips,” said Prathibha Rajashekhar, senior vice president of Innovation & Automation at Walmart U.S. “The end result is getting high quality grocery items like dairy and fresh produce onto our store shelves and in the hands of our customers faster than ever before.” “

Walmart’s investment in technology and high-tech distribution centers paves the way for lasting careers,” said Maren Waggoner, senior vice president of Operations People Partner at Walmart U.S. “Associates who work at the facility will be building skillsets that reflect the modern era of retail, creating new opportunities for career development and lasting growth with Walmart.”

Full-time employees qualify for Walmart’s total rewards and benefits plans, including medical, vision and dental insurance, 401(k) matching, paid time off, stock purchase plan and access to a tuition-paid college degree.

Walmart currently operates seven distribution centers, 184 retail stores, and employs 57,800 associates in the state of Illinois. Globally, the company had fiscal year 2023 revenue of $611 billion and employed approximately 2.1 million employees worldwide with more than 10,500 stores in 20 countries.

From: June 22, 2023 The Boone County Journal Legislation from page 1 Publisher/Editor David C. Larson

Wednesday, June 14, 2023

Brace Yourself for Kevin Haas

Theater and Dance: Improv/Standup

NECKING with Kevin Haas

Rockford journalist and comedian Kevin Haas broke his neck in a snowboard crash on May 9 in Colorado. This hourlong stand-up special — delivered in neck brace for one night only — breaks down what's so funny about breaking your neck!

Opening for Haas are comedians Dan Garcia, Dame Grant and Kevin Wood.

Tickets: $20 for General Seating ; $70 for 2 person VIP table

Proceeds will go to help Kevin pay off his mounting medical bills. Donations can be made when reserving tickets or at The West Side Show Room on the night of the show.

The West Side Show Room

$20 - $70

Every week through Jun 23, 2023.
Friday: 07:00 PM - 08:30 PM
Friday: 09:00 PM - 10:30 PM