Interview with Sean Arent, WPSR Nuclear Weapons Abolition Program Manager

https://xray.fm/broadcasts/63054

Guest: Sean Arent, Nuclear Weapons Abolition Program Manager. Sean talks to host Steven Glickman about where things stand with regards to nuclear proliferation.

Letter: Want better Cascades passenger train service?

March 18, 2025 Submitted by Breck Lebegue MD MPH, WA Physicians for Social Responsibility

Amtrak Cascades service in Washington just received a boost of positive new energy with House passage of ESHB 1837. Senator Nobles co-sponsored a companion bill in the Senate that did not advance, so the House bill now needs to also pass the Senate for us to enjoy faster, more frequent, reliable train service between Vancouver, B.C., Seattle, and Portland by 2035. The bill expects trains to be on time a minimum of 88% of the time, much better than a 50% on-time average over the past 10 years. Trains would run 14 roundtrips between Seattle and Portland, taking only 2-hours 45-minutes each way–a much more relaxed, healthy, and climate-conscious way to travel, than driving on busy freeways or flying from crowded airports.

Read More

Letter: State's Regressive Tax System Compromises Health Care by WPSR Member GLEB SYCH

To the editor — As a medical student, I have witnessed how access to health care can mean the difference between stability and crisis. Throughout my clinical rotations in South Puget Sound and time in Yakima, I’ve seen patients struggle to receive the care they need due to gaps in funding and resources. Yet, without progressive revenue solutions, lawmakers may have to gut life-saving support programs, disability services, paid medical leave and other critical health care resources.

Washington has one of the most regressive tax systems in the country. The lowest-income residents pay nearly three times more of their income in taxes than the wealthiest, while a handful of ultra-wealthy individuals and corporations avoid paying their fair share. The result? Underfunded hospitals, delayed medical care, and working families forced to choose between health and financial survival.

We have a choice: allow cuts to essential services or ensure the wealthiest pay what they owe to keep these programs funded. Lawmakers must enact progressive tax reforms to secure stable, long-term health care funding.

No one should suffer because a billionaire gets another tax break. I urge my fellow Washingtonians to contact their legislators and demand action. Our communities — and our patients — are depending on it.

GLEB SYCH

Olympia

https://www.yakimaherald.com/letter-states-regressive-tax-system-compromises-health-care/article_2e8125de-f3bc-11ef-bfbe-771ff47ef7be.html#

Eco-nomics: We’re breathing in what we put into the air

https://www.heraldnet.com/opinion/eco-nomics-were-breathing-in-what-we-put-into-the-air/

"However, a comprehensive review can be found in the excellent work of The Washington Physicians for Social Responsibility (WPSR). In 2022 WPSR published “Climate and Health Washington 2022”: wpsr.org/climateandhealthreport. Retired Everett physician Dr. Jonathan Witte has been a leader in WPSR’s efforts for many years."

How excessive rent increases harm the physical and mental health of Washingtonians by Gleb Sych

The stability and affordability provided by rent stabilization will have cascading benefits for all of our communities. Renters would be more financially secure, with more disposable income to spend in the local economy. Long term tenancies would mean stronger connections between neighbors, kids have greater consistency with teachers and friends at school, and businesses can keep valued workers who can continue living near their jobs.

Read more at: https://www.theolympian.com/opinion/op-ed/article300955339.html#storylink=cpy

Bills in Olympia would incentivize reusable, recyclable packaging and reduce the use of plastic.

By Jonathan Witte / For The Herald

Plastic! It’s everywhere: cups, bottles, jars, bags, eating utensils, and packaging material. Oh, and don’t forget micro-fiber plastic from which clothing and other fabric is made. The list is seemingly endless.

Compounding this, nearly half of all plastic products are made to be used just once, then thrown away. But there is no “away.” Plastic ends up littering our neighborhoods, our shorelines and our parks. We are being buried in plastic.

Most of us want to do the right thing, such as not buying plastic is the first place. However, that is nearly impossible, since often there is no viable alternative. Many of us try to be diligent recyclers. We look for the triangle with the number in the middle and put that item in the recycling bin. We feel good about that; however, even if a product has a triangle that doesn’t necessarily mean that it is recyclable. The triangle indicates the type of plastic it is, not that it is always recyclable. Furthermore, there may not be an active recycling market for that type of plastic, and it ends up being tossed anyway. Many plastic products are not recyclable at all. As a result, meaningful plastic recycling is extremely difficult, and is at the very least ineffective and confusing.

In 2021, Washington generated more than 800,000 tons of plastic waste, of which only 9.3 percent was recycled. Most of the rest was either buried in a landfill, incinerated, or ended up somewhere else in the environment. The problem is, plastic sticks around in the environment for an extremely long time; essentially forever. Not only that, plastics can be toxic and hazardous to our health.

Burning waste, including plastics, whether in commercial incinerators or elsewhere, releases an array of harmful chemicals and pollutants. These include particulate matter that can cause lung and heart disease and heavy metals such as lead and mercury which cause neurologic disease. Other toxic chemicals such as dioxins and PFAS (“forever chemicals” that make consumer goods resistant to water, stain, and grease) cause cancer and other health problems. These chemicals and pollutants enter the air, water and food supply near where they are burned and get into our bodies when we breathe, drink and eat these contaminants.

In general, plastic compounds are very stable. Their chemical breakdown is extremely slow. Instead, they primarily break down physically. As a result their particle size just keeps getting smaller and smaller, eventually becoming what is referred to as “microplastics.” These particles range in size from a few micrometers to a few millimeters in diameter, which is tiny. By way of comparison, a single human red blood cell is about 8 micrometers in diameter and a human hair about 40 micrometers.

Microplastics are everywhere. They are present in the food we eat, the air we breathe and the water we drink. It is estimated that people in the U.S. take in between 74,000 to 121,000 microplastic particles each year. While the entire impact of microplastics on human health is still being studied, they have been shown to cause inflammation in the body, and have been implicated in a variety of neurologic, gastrointestinal, endocrine, respiratory, and cardiovascular diseases.

https://www.heraldnet.com/opinion/comment-producers-must-step-up-to-reduce-flood-of-plastic/

WPSR's 2025 Legislative Kickoff

Last week, WPSR unveiled our priority policies for 2025 at our Legislative Kickoff event! We were thrilled to see so many supporters there, people like you who are eager to address the ways that the climate crisis and economic inequity threaten the health of people and communities across Washington.  

Missed the event? Want to brush up on key policies or the legislative process? You can find the event recording here and slides here.

California governor visits Seattle for rally against ballot measure that aims to undo climate efforts

by Lisa Stiffler on October 21, 2024

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee hosted California Gov. Gavin Newsom in Seattle this past weekend in an effort to get out the vote in opposition to Initiative 2117.

The ballot measure would eliminate a program requiring Washington’s largest polluters to pay for greenhouse gas emission permits, and would forbid leaders from creating similar efforts in the future.

The cap-and-invest carbon market was created by the state’s Climate Commitment Act and has raised billions of dollars that pay for climate programs including initiatives in communities and tribes hardest hit by the impacts of climate change, state transportation infrastructure projects, and support for job creation and climate tech companies working on decarbonization. Read More

Housing for All: What Works and How We Get There

October 22, 2024

For Immediate Release:

WPSR's Economic Inequity & Health Task Force invites you to a free, virtual event on November 19th at 6pm: Housing for All: What works and how we get there. Housing is essential for health and wellbeing and every one of us deserves to be housed. So how do we make systemic changes to ensure everyone has safe, stable, affordable housing? Join us to hear about efforts that have made a difference and upcoming opportunities to advocate for statewide housing policies.

REGISTER: https://www.wpsr.org/housingforall

Governors Inslee and Newsom Join WPSR to Oppose Ballot Initiatives

October 22, 2024

For Immediate Release:

WPSR hosts California Governor Gavin Newsom, Washington Governor Jay Inslee, local elected officials, and health care professionals representing WPSR's Task Forces. This diverse group of local and national leaders came together to rally community members behind efforts to protect and promote funding that addresses the climate crisis, preserves education, and provides long-term healthcare for Washingtonians