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Kaz Weida

6 Apr, 10 tweets, 4 min read

This morning in our #TuesdayThread , we're asking how the failure of a toxic wastewater reservoir happened and what it means for Florida.

Could this catastrophe have been avoided?
The short answer is absolutely.
This is a tragedy of our own making.
(THREAD)

(2) In case you missed it, crews are frantically pumping water out of a leaking reservoir near Tampa Bay in an effort to avert total collapse.

The water is contaminated with high levels of nitrogen and phosphorus from a phosphogypsum stack.

usatoday.com/story/news/nat…

(3) What's so bad about this wastewater? Well, the level of phosphorus and nitrogen in the water that has already leaked is like dumping 60,000 bags of fertilizer into the bay.

It causes algae blooms, which depletes oxygen in the water and kills the fish

wtsp.com/article/tech/s…

(4) The tragedy is this could have been avoided. The wastewater reservoir is from a fertilizer plant that was abandoned in 2001, leaving gypsum stacks and ponds full of wastewater behind.

Records show the plastic lining of the pond was leaking in 2011.

tampabay.com/news/environme…

(5) In addition to negligence at this site, it is important to note that Florida is actually full of these types of phosphate waste facilities.

Environmentalists have been warning about the dangers these aging wastewater ponds present for years.

sarasotamagazine.com/news-and-profi…

(6) Mosaic, one of the biggest phosphate companies in the world currently owns 380,000 acres in Manatee, Hillsborough, Polk, and Hardee counties.

In 2019 courts allowed Mosaic to expand mining operations over the objection of environmentalists.

tampabay.com/news/environme…

(7) What's so important about phosphorus? This is actually its own tragic story. Phosphorus is a desperately needed component of fertilizer that supports the world's food supply.

But we do a REALLY bad job managing this resource & we're facing shortages.

theconversation.com/how-the-great-…

(8) However mining phosphorus presents some pretty significant environmental impacts and people have known the toxic sludge the stacks produce were a problem for years.

At one point phosphorus mining consumed 700 square miles of Florida.

thecounter.org/earth-day-mosa…

(9) So at the bottom of this looming disaster is a much bigger question. What is going to happen to these wastewater ponds and how do we prevent another crisis?

The answer may lie in changing how we think about critical infrastructure.

esquire.com/news-politics/…

@Ohdarkthirty1

(10) Thanks for stopping by for our Tuesday thread, suggestion courtesy of @Ohdarkthirty1 . Come back Thursday and we'll do this again.

Like threads like this and want to keep them coming? You can support my work here:
paypal.me/kazweida
patreon.com/kazweida

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More from @kazweida

Kaz Weida

@kazweida

23 Mar

I dunno who still needs to hear this but voting rights are vital to democracy.

Republicans have rigged the system so they choose their voters rather than voters choosing them. This has eroded democracy & held progress hostage through the oppression of minority rule.
(THREAD)

(2) So how are we going to fight back against a wave of gerrymandering and voter suppression laws that threaten a new era of Jim Crow?

This is a fight that'll be fought on 3 fronts.
In our legislatures. In the courts. And in our communities.

brennancenter.org/our-work/resea…

(3) First, we need national action on voting rights in order to curb voter suppression efforts in GOP-held state legislatures.

Right now, there are 43 states that have introduced over 253 bills to curtail voting rights.

brennancenter.org/our-work/resea…

Read 11 tweets

Kaz Weida

@kazweida

23 Mar

When people ask what Fibro pain is like, I describe it this way:

Imagine feeling hungry or your leg or neck muscles are sore. Now imagine that instead of feeling that as hunger or stiffness, nerves tell your brain you’re being stabbed by knives.

That’s what my fibro feels like.

The thing is you are certainly not being stabbed by knives and often there’s no real reason for the pain except something in that area has attracted the attention of your nervous system.

So while the pain is very real, the reason is often a miscommunication.

This is why meditation & yoga has been a huge help for me. Yoga helps me stay in my body and be gentle with it. Mediation helps find some distance from my pain and experience it without judgment.

I eat well. I exercise daily.
I take care of myself.
The rest isn’t up to me.

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Kaz Weida

@kazweida

11 Mar

For our Thursday thread today we’re trying to answer a pretty simple question.

What the hell is wrong with the media and what can we do to stop enabling false equivalences and “both sides” coverage?

(THREAD)

kqed.org/education/5319…

(2) I think there are two things fueling the current infuriating headlines and leading to false equivalences and both sides coverage.

The first is competence.
When government is functioning as it should, outrage clickbait becomes harder to manufacture.

nymag.com/intelligencer/…

(3) The second factor in play here is pure laziness and a reliance on access journalism.

Far too many media outlets have leaned into this problematic approach for far too long. It prioritizes scoops from those in power over independent accountability.

pressrun.media/p/access-journ…

Read 11 tweets

Kaz Weida

@kazweida

9 Mar

This week our high-risk household is celebrating (commiserating?) 365 days in quarantine.

If you’re wondering what it means to go back to “normal,” I share your confusion. In so many ways we’ll never be the same.

Here’s what I think our new normal looks like.

(THREAD)

(2) Because I have two children too young to be vaccinated, one of whom is high risk, our new normal includes wearing masks for the foreseeable future.

There will be no birthday parties. No sleepovers. No family gatherings. That’s the normal this country has left us with.

(3) My new normal likely includes struggling with fierce agoraphobia and anxiety.

Continuing to track our exposure and limit interaction is the only weapon I have in the face of a red state government that insists on dropping mask mandates ASAP.

Read 11 tweets

Kaz Weida

@kazweida

25 Feb

(3) After yesterday's hearing, Biden followed up with an announcement that he'll move to appoint three Democrats to fill vacancies on the USPS board of governors. This would give Dems the majority on the board.

Problem solved, right? Not so fast.

washingtonpost.com/business/2021/…

(4) There are two hurdles to jump. The first may not be a big deal but the second is nearly insurmountable at this point. Let me explain.

First, these nominees to fill the board openings have to be approved by the Senate. Sigh.

apnews.com/article/joe-bi…

(5) If we can get all three nominees onto the board without too much fuss, then we can fire DeJoy, right? Yeah, not so fast. One of the Dems on that board is actually a DINO and he's part of the problem.

Democrats would need his support to remove DeJoy.

slate.com/news-and-polit…

Read 9 tweets

Kaz Weida

@kazweida

23 Feb

I spent 2019 struggling with health issues that confounded diagnosis. In early 2020 I became convinced I had fibromyalgia & began exploring triggers & treatments.

Here's what I've learned after a year of living with fibromyalgia that might help others who are suffering.
(THREAD)

(2) FIBRO CAN FEEL DIFFERENT FOR EVERYONE

For the longest time, I got hung up on the fact that I didn't have spots that were sore to the touch that followed those trigger point diagrams. Those diagrams are a VERY outdated way of diagnosing fibro.

(3) The light bulb went off when I went to see an ortho specialist who could manipulate trigger points in my neck to produce symptoms in various parts of my body.
I started to put the pieces together.

Read 31 tweets

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