Santa Cruz County Health Officer Dr. Gail Newel has issued a revised Shelter-in-Place order that expands essential business activities, incorporates State allowances for non-essential...

While COVID-19 continues to disrupt life around us, it is important to keep focusing on the emotional wellness of our community. Now more than ever, it’s important to stay connected and create helpful ways to care for yourself and your loved ones — when it matters most!

My name is Ella Nielsen, 7th grade student at Kirby School, writing to address global warming, and how it affects us. 84 percent of the USA’s greenhouse gases are created through the production of energy, and 40% of that energy is used to make electricity. The building up of the greenhouse gases created through this process can affect the climate, and result in global warming. This can affect sea level, the severity and frequency of natural disasters, as well as harm life on this planet. Additionally, climate change can cause a huge increase in expenses. For example, the amount people spend on heating and cooling could increase by 10 percent. The EPA (United States Environmental Protection Agency) predicts that with a “6.3 to 9°F temperature increase, climate change could increase the need for additional electric generating capacity by roughly 10-20% by 2050. [Which could] require hundreds of billions of dollars in additional investment.” Most of our energy comes from coal, petroleum, and natural gases, all of which have a negative effect on the environment. Even though over the last 14 years the usage of coal has gone down by 50%, natural gases have mostly made up for that loss, by increasing their production by 200% while Renewable resources still account for only around 17.5% of the US’s energy.