5A – Identifying Local Opportunities
I used the Tampa Bay Times for this assignment.
01/24/2019
In Pinellas county, they are having problems with the red light cameras. The Flashing cameras was supposed to be a way to reduce ran red lights, but it’s causing issues in other areas. For instance, during business hours when school is in session and crossing guards stop you, then it leaves you vulnerable to be flagged by the red light or getting out of the way for emergency vehicles. One of the main problems Pinellas county is having is the wait time is not accurate for each light. A hold time for one light might be two minutes where some lights may be only a couple seconds. All of these problems causes impatience, and it makes the road more dangerous. Hence, by trying to solve the problem, the city might have made the problem worse.
More than 700 Hillsborough children miss out on potentially life-saving swim lessons because of lack of federal funds. 01/24/2019
Children under the age of 5 make up the majority of people that drown in America. In Hillsborough county, it lead the highest rate of child drownings in the state. The Head Start program taught the children water safety, swimming lessons and floating lessons. Unfortunately, The program is short on funding for transportation to the pools, which halts 700 children from this life saving opportunity. The parents will have to find a way to protect their children if they have pools, and to worry about their safety when they can’t keep an eye on their children at all times.
Tampa Electric's Big Bend changes face increased opposition
01/24/2019
The Tampa electric company is facing resistance to change their coal-powered unit at their Big Bend Power station into a natural gas unit. The central concern is for the environmental impacts, health impacts and cost. The spokesperson for Tampa electric says it will improve “the land, water and air emission at Big Bend”, but that doesn’t shake the concern for other organizations. The NAACP, Sierra Club, and the League of Women Voters have all protested out against this plan set for May 2021. I dug a little deeper and the reason that they might resist to changing is if the methane reaches over 2% when burning the fossil fuel it can impact climate change more than burning coal according to the journal of industrial Journal of Ecology. So the company and organizations are battling for which is the best method. Leaving the company Big Bend Power in a situation that may stall the plans.
Government shutdown still affecting Tampa Bay farmers, despite office re-openings
01/24/2019
Hernando County Farmers are losing out on funding due to the government shutdown. For farmers like Rebecca she has to get her loan for her farm payment, but because the offices were closed due to the government shutdown farmers that were in the process of trying to get approved for loans won’t be getting any funding. Basically, if you’re a farmer that was approved for a loan, then you have nothing to worry about, but for the ones that were still in the process or trying to get a loan then they are at a crossroad. This affects America in a big way because farmers are valuable. This affects all farms across America and the people that depend on the farms such as grocery stores.
Editorial: Another child dead, another state failure
01/18/2019
Citizens are feeling that the Children Welfare system is failing to protect vulnerable children. Children and families missed warning signs leading to the 2-year old child's death. They failed to make home visits, did nothing about the mother falsifying statements in court saying that she took counseling sessions that were mandatory. The people feel that law enforcement, judges, and social workers all have a hand to play in the safety of a child, and when the communication is bad between them it ultimately leaves the child in an unsafe environment. So the parents or guardians of the child that cause harm are charged, but what about the people that were supposed to make sure the guardians were in line with caring for the child. Enforcing a stronger system to have better conditions for the children is the only way to stop these recurring deaths of innocent children.
Hey Kyra,
ReplyDeleteThere are definitely opportunities that come with the issues that you presented in your post! The two articles about the children in Hillsborough and the children in the Welfare System are a real call to action. I remember volunteering for the Head Start program in high school and thinking it was such an amazing idea. I am sad to see that it has failed due to funding.
These are all stories with some very large problems to fix. Some of the opportunities that I can see in these stores would require a large amount of capital to get off the ground and possibly even the help of some government lobbyists. Both of these items are possible depending on your center of influence and/or ability to raise capital.
ReplyDeleteNice post, Kyra. You had a lot of interesting articles with problems that definitely require a solution. One article of yours that interested me was about the kids who can't swim because of a lack of funding. I learned how to swim when I was in pre-school, and I became a varsity swimmer in high school. Even unprofessionally, I believe swimming is a skill that is really important, especially because we all live in Florida. I hope that a solution comes along that allows these kids to learn how to swim.
ReplyDeleteHey Kyra,
ReplyDeleteI think that the Big Bend power plant situation is a serious issue, the cost saving measures are not worth the potential damage that could be done to the surrounding ecosystem. In addition the residents in that area will be exposed to harsher air pollutants that can lead to many negative health concerns. If the switch is made the power plant should definitely be closely monitored to ensure the methane levels never go over the 2% safe limit.
Hi Kyra,
ReplyDeleteNice job with your local opportunities. I really was intrigued by your first opportunity. I found an article about how Florida is the worst of the fifty states for pedestrian safety. I think the article I found and the article for your first opportunity are very closely related. I think by solving the problem you found may be a way to help solve the problem of pedestrian safety.