Below the Fold - America’s buildings are dangerously old

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You may remember former President Trump’s words: “Media are the enemy of the people.” A new report finds that 58% of likely voters agree with this statement and roughly a third of them strongly agree. Digging deeper, it’s no surprise to see Democrats were more trusting than Republicans — though both sides of the aisle overwhelmingly agree that fake news is a problem. In fact, we often get asked where we source our information for this very reason, so we wanted to remind everyone that we’ll continue to include our sources at the end of each story. Explore further as you choose!

HOUSING

Aging buildings pose major safety threats to millions of Americans
Thu Jul 22

America’s buildings are old. An estimated 42% of public housing properties were constructed before 1975 — three years before lead-based paint was banned. Aside from dangerous paint, millions of low-income families live in federally assisted housing that fall short of basic health and safety standards (dry, well ventilated, pest-free, hazard-free, and protective against extreme temperatures). This puts occupants at risk for a number of illnesses including lead poisoning, respiratory illnesses, asthma, and more. In fact, 40% of asthma episodes are caused by preventable triggers in the home.

Okay, so let’s just update these homes? It’s easier said than done.

First off, decades of underinvestment (meaning money wasn’t set aside for maintenance or upgrades) has created a backlog of expensive work to be done.
The magnitude of this backlog means even basic, life-saving upgrades can take a while. After a fire killed five in Minneapolis due to lacking sprinklers and an outdated stairwell design, the city is finally installing sprinklers in public housing units, but says it will take a decade even with secure funding. Minneapolis has a $150M backlog of essential repairs, and so far has $15M coming annually from Congress.
And while Biden’s administration has called for $40B towards public housing improvement (the largest in recent years), the actual cost to update housing far exceeds it. In fact, $40B would only cover New York’s needs.
But money alone isn’t enough either. Updates to housing standards (for both public and private housing) face fierce opposition from industry groups and landlords who feel it’s too burdensome to enforce. On top of that, empowered homeowners use zoning regulations to prevent new construction of affordable housing.

Want to help tackle this critical problem? The National Low Income Housing Coalition has a campaign dedicated to ensuring even those with the lowest income have affordable and safe housing. Visit their website to sign their letter to Congress, contact your local representatives, and more.

Our Sources:

→ Initial coverage: Vox
→ Biden’s plan: The White House
→ Health risks for low income families: Center for American Progress
→ HUD backs away from new safety requirements: NBC News
→ How zoning hurts housing affordability: Brookings

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ENERGY

Renewable energy developers are taking over retired coal plants
Thu Jul 22

With demand for renewable energy surging, developers have struggled to supply it. The main obstacle is finding enough transmission lines to actually get that energy to wherever people want it. Permits to build new lines are not easy to obtain and often met with opposition from local communities. Now, developers are investing in a new approach that removes these barriers: repurposing retired coal plants.

In fact, making use of the over 500 retired plants sitting idle nationwide reduces total project cost by 20%. Specifically, these plants allow renewable energy developers to:

Make use of an already built substation, which includes power lines that can be repurposed for transferring renewable energy.
Use existing water infrastructure. Previously used to cool coal-fired power equipment, the same setup can be used to cool nuclear reactors.
Often get access to a skilled workforce who can be easily retrained for renewable energy jobs.

One problem lurking in the background, though, is if America’s aging grid is even able to handle a mix of traditional and renewable energy. Updating the entire system is also complicated, given all electricity is run by private companies. To ensure our growing power needs are not sacrificed, President Biden hopes to build thousands of miles of power lines and move wind turbines and solar farms closer to cities and suburbs. Environmentalists, though, would prefer an investment in rooftop solar panels, batteries, and local wind turbines, which requires less new construction into pristine areas.

Our Sources:

→ Initial coverage: Bloomberg
→ Growing number of retired coal plants: U.S. Energy Information
→ Grid handling diverse power types: Casper Star Tribune
→ Biden embracing power lines: New York Times

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ASCII OF THE WEEK

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         /|\

         | |
    _____| |____
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  ////////#////  \
  |    ##     |- |
  | [x]   [ ] |  ;
  }     _     | -|
  |    | |  # {  |
  |_.,_| |____|,.’ btf

Happy housewarming!

Aw thank you but I’ve been here a while.

No, I mean literally, there’s a heat wave and this place is too old to protect you.



Art Credit: Below the Fold

Below the Fold

2261 Market St # 4135

San Francisco, CA 94114-1612

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Below the Fold - America’s buildings are dangerously old

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