Using idle land key to housing project's success

The Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development (DHSUD) said on Sunday that the executive order issued by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. allotting idle government land for housing projects will ensure the success of the Pambansang Pabahay para sa Pilipino (4PH) program.

"This Executive Order (EO) 34 the President has issued is a pro-poor measure that could spell the difference in finally addressing homelessness in the country," DHSUD Secretary Jose Rizalino Acuzar Jr. said.

EO 34, which directs the DHSUD to make use of idle government land in building shelter for the poor, was very timely and vital, he said.

"This has direct positive impact on homeless Filipinos, particularly the informal settler families (ISFs), who are among President Marcos Jr.'s priorities in the 4PH program," Acuzar said.

"No other Philippine president in recent memory has done what President Marcos Jr. did, directing all government agencies to allocate idle lands for housing," the housing czar added.

EO 34 empowers the agency to identify national and local government land "suitable for housing and human settlements, including new townships and estates development, in coordination with concerned government agencies and local government units (LGUs)."

On the one hand, all concerned government agencies, LGUs and other government entities including government-owned and -controlled corporations are mandated to "provide full support to and cooperation with the DHSUD to ensure the successful implementation of the program."

Specifically, they are obliged to submit land inventories to DHSUD within 60 days from the issuance of the EO.

Acuzar said that EO 34 is a huge factor in significantly reducing the cost of housing units under the 4PH.

"The allocation of idle government lands for housing will further bolster the ongoing nationwide implementation of 4PH," he said.

Source: The Manila Times

Weak housing market and export gloom put brakes on China growth

China’s economy expanded by 6.3% in the second quarter of 2023 compared with the same period a year ago, falling short of market expectations as export demand remained tepid and sinking property prices sapped consumer confidence.

China’s GDP in the April-June period was up by 6.3% , the national bureau of statistics reported . The year-on-year increase was 4.5% in the first quarter.

Economists had forecast growth to accelerate to 7.3%, according to a Reuters survey.

China’s growth has underpinned the global economy for three decades, providing a generation of new demand.

Given last year’s Covid lockdowns, 2023 was expected to see the country post a rapid rebound. The trade sector recorded particularly weak figures .

In June alone, it fell about 6%, with exports slumping by 8.3% to just shy of 2tn yuan ( £21 3bn) and imports down by 2.6%. Also for June alone, China’s retail sales grew by 3.1% , far below May’s 12.7% increase. Analysts had expected growth of 3.2%.

Louis Kuijs, S&P Global’s chief Asia economist , said the consumption numbers were disappointing . “We had double-digit retail sales growth in April and May from a very low base, and that has petered out to only 3.1% nominal retail sales growth, indicating consumers remain quite reluctant,” he told Reuters.

The moderate growth numbers are likely to raise expectations of further eff orts by the Chinese government to stimulate the economy and ensure a 5% growth target is reached for 2023.

Yesterday’s preliminary numbers show the economy grew by 5.5% for the first six months.

China’s central bank has already lowered borrowing rates several times to try to shore up demand . Inflation has largely evaporated in China, in contrast to many other parts of the world.

While the urban unemployment rate in China remained unchanged for June at 5.2%, the proportion of those out of work aged between 16 and 24 rose to a record 21.3% , the sixth consecutive monthly increase.

Other official data released yesterday showed the value of newly constructed residential buildings continued to decline in almost all of the 70 largest cities in China.

Those in Shenzhen, near Hong Kong in the south, were down more than 5% over the January-June period compared with a year earlier.

Source: The Guardian

Are the Germs in Your House Making You Sick?

Research tells us the most likely places to find germs in the house

Germs surround us everywhere; that’s a fact of life. But there are some places—even in your own home—that are breeding grounds for bacteria. Let’s take a careful look at what the evidence says about where the germs live in your house.

First, can you guess the worst offender for breeding germs? It’s not the toilet seat or even the floor—it’s your kitchen sponge. A study published in Nature’s Scientific Reports investigated which and how many bacteria typically live in a kitchen sponge, and the best way to clean them.

The study found that as many as 362 different species of bacteria live inside an average kitchen sponge, and there are a lot of them—about 82 billion in a cubic inch of space. In case you’re counting, that’s about the same number of bacteria found in a human stool sample. Many of these bacteria are harmless to people with normal immune systems. But if you’ve used your sponge to wipe up a drip of raw egg or some dirt from fruit and vegetables, it can harbor bacteria that will make you sick.

Using a sponge to wipe down kitchen surfaces just spreads these bacteria—to the inside of your microwave, your refrigerator’s handle, or your kitchen counter.

Furthermore, the study found that trying to clean a sponge can actually lead to more bacteria. That’s because a typical cleaning job—whether microwaving the sponge, dousing it in a cleaner, or running it through the laundry—gets rid of the weaker bacteria, leading more space for the stronger bacteria to reproduce.

Your best bet? Throw out your kitchen sponge every week and start with a new one.

Now that we’ve tackled the germy-kitchen sponge, let’s move onto your kitchen floor. You’ve undoubtedly heard of the five-second rule, which means if you pick up dropped food within five seconds of it hitting the floor, it’s still okay to eat.

A microbiologist at Rutgers University led a study to find out if this rule is scientifically sound. His study team tested four different foods—watermelon, bread, buttered bread and gummy candy—on four different surfaces—stainless steel, ceramic tile, wood and carpet—for four lengths of time—less than one second, five seconds, 30 seconds and five minutes.

They found that food that touched the ground for any length of time—even less than one second—was contaminated. And the longer a piece of food stayed on the ground, the more bacteria it picked up.

Watermelon picked up the most bacteria—most likely because it is wet—and gummy candy the least. Carpet was the least likely surface to transmit bacteria, while steel and ceramic were the most likely.

Again, many of these bacteria are harmless to people; and exposure to germs can even help to bolster your immune system, reducing the chance you’ll get sick later. But germs that make you sick, such as the viruses that cause colds and the flu, can survive on surfaces for days. The bottom line: The five-second rule doesn’t hold up; if you drop food on the floor, it’s best to throw it out.

Finally, what about wearing shoes in the house? A study conducted by a microbiologist at the University of Arizona studied how much and which types of bacteria remained on shoes throughout the day. He found that shoes do pick up and track bacteria over long distances, but less than you might think. Compare shoes to your kitchen sponge: Studies found 421,000 units of bacteria on the outside of a shoe versus 82 billion in a cubic inch of a sponge.

While that’s still enough bacteria to warrant not eating off the floor (see the five-second rule above), wearing shoes in the house is not the biggest source of germs. Of course, there are exceptions. If you have been mucking around in horse stalls, for example, it’s probably best to take your shoes off at the door. If you have a crawling baby in your home, it’s also a good idea to take off your shoes. And if you suffer from environmental allergies, taking off shoes can reduce the number of allergens in your home. Overall, if you want to focus on reducing how many germs you are exposed to in your house, replace that kitchen sponge, and don’t eat food that’s dropped on the floor.

Source: Psychology Today