April 02 2021
The Rev. Dr. Chuck Currie of Northeast Portland is a minister in the United Church of Christ.
Portland has been home most of my life. Our family moved here when I was 10. At 18, I joined the Burnside Community Council board, kicking off a life in social services and ministry that has covered three decades and six Portland mayors.
All these years, I ve been in a lover s quarrel with Portland, demanding more housing and attention to civil rights to make Portland a better home for all.
At 52, like many Portlanders, I m dismayed where we are as a city and wondering if Portland, with all the Rose City has to offer, will become the new Eden, or are we on a path to becoming the new Gotham. You might be surprised to learn I m still hopeful about our future.
There s no escape from plastic.
Look around your kitchen, walk around your favorite park or beach and you ll likely find yourself in the presence of plastic pollution.
The United States produces enough plastic waste every 15 hours to fill Cowboys Stadium, the largest football stadium in the country. We eat about a credit card s worth of plastic every week because microplastics are so omnipresent in our environment. If our waste patterns continue, by 2050 the oceans could have more plastic than fish.
How did it get this way? It s not because people have been clamoring for more plastic in our lives. In fact, it s become nearly impossible to avoid plastic in packaging and consumer products.
Case and hospitalization are also down while vaccinations continue to increase.
The Oregon Health Authority reported declining COVID-19 cases, deaths and hospitalizations on the one-year anniversary of the first death from the virus in the state.
The health authority reported 234 new cases on Sunday, March 14, bringing the state s total to 159,617. That compares to 365 new cases reported on Saturday.
No new deaths associated with the virus were reported on Sunday, leaving the death toll unchanged at 2,322. That compares to three the day before. We would like to remember the 2,322 Oregonians who lost their lives and acknowledge the immense grief felt by their families, friends, coworkers and neighbors, the health authority said in a release. Our thoughts go out to everyone who has experienced a loss to COVID-19.
March 12 2021
The Oregon Health Authority reports the newest figures the day after restrictions eased in eight counties.
The day after eight Oregon countries were allowed to ease COVID-19 restrictions, the Oregon Health Authority reported 365 new cases and three new deaths on Saturday, March 13.
On Friday, Multnomah, Yamhill, Lane, Deschutes and Klamath counties improved to the Moderate Risk category. Businesses throughout the tri-county area such as restaurants, bars, movie theaters and fitness centers will now be allowed to fill up to 50% indoor capacity. Plus, retailers and shopping centers can bump up to 75% capacity.
Benton, Jefferson and Josephine improved to the High Risk category on March 12, which allows some reopenings but carries more restrictions than the Moderate Risk category.
Good news for reopening schools March 07 2021
COVID-19 cases and deaths continue trending down after Oregon Gov. Kate Brown issues an executive order to reopen public schools.
Newly reported COVID-19 cases and deaths continued trending down two days after Oregon Gov. Kate Brown issued an executive order to reopen public schools in coming weeks.
Brown mandated on Friday, March 5, that public school students be back in classrooms before the weeks of March 29 for elementary students and April 19 for middle and high schoolers. Whether or not public schools should return kids to the classroom this spring is no longer up for discussion: the science and data is clear, schools can return to in-person instruction with a very low risk of COVID-19 transmission, particularly with a vaccinated workforce, Brown said in a letter to state health and education agencies.