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United States
California Lockdown
As cases of COVID-19 continue to rise in California, the state has issued new lockdown orders asking all individuals to stay within 120 miles (190 km) of their home. The state of California maintains a map on their website informing residents about updates to the stay-at-home orders. The new restrictions, in place in all regions of the state with the exception of Northern California and Greater Sacramento, will not be lifted until ICU bed capacity meets or exceeds 15 percent availability. Yesterday, Northern California reported only 17.6 percent ICU bed availability, a precipitous decline from 35 percent on Monday. Southern California and San Joaquin Valley regions currently have zero percent availability of ICU beds, and officials fear some hospitals may soon need to ration care. Active cases in California number 2,748,108 according to Johns Hopkins University’s COVID-19 Dashboard.
This map depicts the region’s in California currently under lockdown orders. Click on the map to learn more.
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United Kingdom
Forced Labor Imports Ban
On Tuesday, the United Kingdom (UK) accused China of human rights violations amounting to “barbarism” against its Uighur minority, as it announced new rules to ban imports of goods suspected of using forced labor. The announcement made in parliament by Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab included a strengthening of the UK’s Modern Slavery Act to introduce fines for businesses that inadvertently or deliberately profit from, or contribute to, human rights violations against the Uighurs in Xinjiang province, northwest China. Raab said there was harrowing evidence of forced labor among Muslim Uighurs in Xinjiang after the United Nations estimated at least 1 million members of the minority group were held in internment camps, to which China denies the accusation. Members of the Uighur minority group have reportedly been forced to pick cotton in Xinjiang province, China’s largest cotton-producing region, leading to concerns British consumers could inadvertently be buying products made with forced labor. It is not clear how many products connected to Xinjiang enter the supply chain in Britain. A Chinese foreign ministry spokesman called on Britain to reverse the decision on its new rules immediately.
This map depicts the cotton-producing regions in China. Click on the map to expand.
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Arctic Ocean
Microplastics from Clothing
Microplastics, which are particles of synthetic plastic smaller than 5mm, are becoming an increasingly common occurrence in global oceans which poses a large environmental threat to aquatic organisms. A recent study, published in Nature Communications, found textiles to be a major source of microplastic pollution worldwide. From clothing production to washing machines, a single piece of clothing has been found to release millions of fibres from just a single wash. Approximately 73% of microplastics in the oceans are the result of polyester fibers, most commonly found in clothing. Analyses show that approximately 3,500 tons of microplastics enter the oceans each year from washing clothing in the United States and Canada alone. These fibers have been increasingly found in the Arctic and open ocean waters, where it has been linked to the deaths of large marine animals such as turtles, seals, and whales. While data is limited, it is thought that the build up of microplastics in humans can pose potential health threats and complications.
This map depicts the concentration of microplastics found by researchers in the Arctic Ocean. Click on the map to learn more.
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Q: Comprising 11 percent of land area in the Northern Hemisphere, which terrestrial biome is considered the largest in the world?
A: Taiga
Also known as coniferous or boreal forest, taiga comprises 27% of the world’s total forest. Soil within the taiga is thin and rocky, and does not support a wide-variety of plant species outside of coniferous trees and shrubs, which are highly susceptible to fire. The taiga stretches in a wide band across northern North America, Europe, and Asia.
Source (1), (2)
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Q: With a height of 33,500 feet (10,200 meters) from base to peak, what is the tallest mountain on Earth?
Stay tuned for the answer to today’s question in tomorrow’s DailyGeo.
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