The city of San Diego, like a lot of giant organizations, has money in various accounts and invests it until it needs to spend it. It has flirted with not investing that money in energy companies that dig for and deliver fossil fuels.
For this week’s Environment Report, MacKenzie Elmer notes that the city has decided to keep investing in fossil fuel stock a year after it got dinged for doing so.
So far, the local public eye still isn’t fixed on the cleanliness of the city’s investment portfolio. But increasingly, fossil fuel companies, banks and other institutions are beginning to bend under globalized pressure to do something about the rate the planet is warming.
Have an idea for the Environment Report? Email Elmer at mackenzie@voiceofsandiego.org.
Undersheriff: Las Colinas Jail Staff Fearful of Vaccines
The sheriff’s top deputy, Kelly Martinez, revealed something interesting about some of her employees last week.
At our debate between the candidates for sheriff Thursday, we asked what they each thought about whether the sheriff should require all employees to take the COVID-19 vaccination. Right now, the county requires vaccines or weekly tests. All new hires must be vaccinated and all jail personnel who work in medical settings must get vaccinated.
“I definitely support the vaccination. I got vaccinated as soon as I could,” Martinez said. But she didn’t think it was appropriate at this time to say whether all employees of the sheriff’s department should be required to get the vaccination.
She then mentioned a significant group of holdouts: Women who work at Las Colinas Detention Facility for women.
“I do want to say that the perception that deputies or officers are not getting vaccinated or don’t want them to be vaccinated — a lot of it isn’t because they’re some crazy right wing idealist,” she said before mentioning Las Colinas.
“Some of them still believe that this will affect fertility. So we’re working through some misinformation,” she said. “I just don’t want people to think law enforcement are looking at this from the perspective of some crazy ideal.”
To be clear, there’s no evidence the vaccines affect fertility.
Other takes: Dave Myers, a retired deputy who is running for sheriff, said he would absolutely mandate vaccines. When asked what he would do if any deputies quit in large numbers, he said that wouldn’t happen.
“You do not spend hundreds and hundreds of hours in an academy and phase training and get into law enforcement to say, because I have to get a shot, I’m going to quit and walk away,” Myers said.
John Hemmerling, who leads the city of San Diego city attorney’s criminal division and is also running, said he prefers to give people a choice. But he would follow the rules.
“There’s a lot of law enforcement individuals who, for all the reasons that Dave stated, do want to get vaccinated and they do appreciate the mandate because they have to be around individuals who are not doing it,” he said.
Related: Our favorite local immunologist, Shane Crotty, has some takes on boosters and mixing of different shots. Here’s what he would choose if you’re, say, a Johnson and Johnson and thinking about a Moderna, etc. And here’s his take on a new study about all the mixing.
No offense to other immunologists. He’s just been on our podcast, where we asked him about the fertility myth, and other issues. If you missed that, it’s here.
Corrections
A previous version of “Judge: San Diego Doesn’t Know Climate Impact of Infrastructure Projects” identified Superior Court Judge Timothy Taylor as the judge who issued the ruling. The ruling came from Fourth District Court of Appeals Judge Judith Haller, joined by judges Judith McConnell and William Dato.
In Other News
- Supervisor Terra Lawson-Remer and her senior public safety advisor argue in a new opinion piece that alternatives to incarceration for people suffering from mental illness or substance abuse are more effective than imprisoning someone who is not a public safety risk.
- The Union-Tribune reports that the city and a team led by the Padres have yet to settle on purchase and development terms for the city-owned site known as Tailgate Park. (Note: This story is for subscribers only).
- Mayor Todd Gloria tweeted Monday that he signed the ordinance to adopt a licensing plan for short-term vacation rentals. “After years of this issue plaguing City Hall, I’m pleased to finally have sensible regulations on the books,” he wrote. Earlier this month, we explained why the city’s attempt to regulate vacation rentals could still get delayed.
- The woman killed last week in a downtown high-rise double-slaying was married to the suspected shooter, who entered a not-guilty plea in the case on Monday. (NBC 7)
This Morning Report was written by MacKenzie Elmer and Scott Lewis. It was edited by Megan Wood.