Local Government Agencies Need to Resume In Person Meetings

Seven months into the Covid19 pandemic we know a lot more as to how the virus is transmitted and what we need to do to start to resume all services including government. The virus is in fact airborne and 85% of transmission comes through the air. The balance 15% is surface and droplet transmission. To prevent airborne transmission social distancing, mask wearing and proper and ongoing hygiene are the most effective measures. See the Swiss Cheese model of disease prevention in the photo.

Just last week San Mateo County moved into the Orange Tier of Covid19 monitoring allowing different types of businesses and groups to start reopening:

"Activities and businesses that have a lower risk of spreading COVID-19 are allowed to open sooner. Higher-risk activities or businesses aren’t allowed until later tiers. An activity or business’s tier depends on whether it can:

• Accommodate mask wearing at all times (for example, eating and drinking requires removing masks)
• Allow physical distance between individuals from different households
• Limit the number of people per square foot
• Limit time that an individual is at the business or activity
• Limit time of exposure
• Limit mixing of people from different households
• Limit amount of physical interactions of visitors/patrons
• Increase airflow (such as operating outdoors or opening windows and doors)
• Limit activities that are known to increase virus spread (like singing, shouting and heavy breathing)"

https://covid19.ca.gov/safer-economy/

In fact even as Governor Newsom’S Executive Order N-29-20 notes, the earlier online meeting guidelines only applied for as long as state or local officials imposed or recommended social distancing measure. (https://www.gov.ca.gov/wp-cont...) Bottom line, it is now time for local and state government agencies to resume meeting in person in public. Government meetings can accommodate most of those directives such as mask wearing at all times, allowing physical distance between individuals and limiting the number of people per square foot.

Updating government facilities to allow for the proper ventilation of indoor spaces needs to be made a priority. As Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany has explained ventilation is one of the cheapest and most effective ways of containing the virus :

“the government’s guidelines to tackle the virus, encapsulated in the acronym AHA, which stands for distancing, hygiene and face coverings, will be extended to become AHACL. The “C” stands for the government’s coronavirus warning app, and “L” for Lüften or airing a room.

‘Regular impact ventilation in all private and public rooms can considerably reduce the danger of infection,’ the government’s recommendation explains.”

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/sep/30/germans-embrace-fresh-air-to-ward-off-coronavirus

Government meeting rooms and council chambers may need to increase ventilation protocols to decrease airborne transmission but at least for closed system buildings with good heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems this should not be very complicated.

If need be the reopening process can be gradual as in:

1. Require only elected officials and government staff to meet in person in public chambers with cameras on.

2. As a second step allow 25% in person public participation occupancy through a reservation system.

3. Increase public in person participation as the situation allows.

Government officials claiming they cannot meet to do their jobs in person when they are able to go out and support protesters is hypocritical and needs to stop. The sooner the better. Then again maybe I wouldn't be pushing so hard for elected officials to return to in person meetings if they at least had the presence of mind to go on camera and be seen during meetings instead of hiding who knows where and not making the nominal effort of facing their constituents in the manner that has become prevalent in these pandemic times!