GRETA]
ON PLUGGED IN …
PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN …
CHALLENGES WORLD LEADERS …
ON CLIMATE CHANGE …
WITH AN AMBITIOUS GOAL …
FOR THE UNITED STATES
[[SOT –BIDEN: “The United States sets out on the road to cut greenhouse gases in half by the end of this decade”]]
REACHING THOSE GOALS …
RELIES ON TECHNOLOGIES …
THAT REDUCE EMISSIONS …
FROM CARS AND TRUCKS.
[[SOT ASHER BENNETT “We want trucks to be green and we want them to do a lot of green miles per day.” ]]
ITS NOT JUST THE AIR …
THAT NEEDS TO BE CLEANED.
SOLAR AND HYDRO POWER …
PUSH THE WHEEL …
THAT CLEANS THE WATER.
[[SOT ADAM LINDQUIST “The trash wheels have picked up over 16 hundred tons of trash and debris from the Baltimore Harbor over the past seven years.” ]]
THE INNOVATIONS …
ALREADY IN USE …
AND THOSE STILL …
TO BE DEVELOPED …
ON PLUGGED IN …
THE CLIMATE CHANGE CRISIS...
[[GRETA]]
HELLO AND WELCOME …
TO PLUGGED IN.
I’M GRETA VAN SUSTEREN …
REPORTING FROM WASHINGTON, DC.
JOE BIDEN …
CAMPAIGNED ON A PROMISE …
TO MAKE FIGHTING …
CLIMATE CHANGE …
A CENTRAL PART …
OF HIS PRESIDENCY.
IN APRIL …
BIDEN CONVENED …
WORLD LEADERS …
IN A VIRTUAL …
CLIMATE SUMMIT …
SETTING A GOAL …
FOR THE UNITED STATES …
TO CUT ITS …
GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS …
BY 50 PERCENT ….
BY 2030.
HE ALSO ANNOUNCED …
AN INTERNATIONAL …
CLIMATE FINANCE PLAN …
TO HELP OTHER COUNTRIES …
FUND CLIMATE-RELATED PROGRAMS …
AND LIMIT FIUNDING …
FOR FOSSIL FUEL PROJECTS.
VOA’S STEVE BARAGONA …
REPORTS THE PRESIDENT'S PLAN …
MAY GET APPROVAL OVERSEAS ...
BUT FACES CHALLENGES AT HOME.
[[TAKE PKG]]
((VIDEO: BIDEN ENTERS))
((Mandatory CGs: U.S. State Dept., YouTube logo))
((NARRATOR))
On the last day of his summit, President Joe Biden sought to focus on the upside.
((Mandatory CGs: U.S. State Dept., YouTube logo))
((President Joe Biden))
"Today's final session is not about the threat that climate change poses. It's about the opportunity that fighting climate change provides. It's an opportunity to create millions of good-paying jobs in innovative sectors."
((VIDEO: SUMMIT VIDEO))
((Mandatory CGs: U.S. State Dept., YouTube logo))
((NARRATOR))
A video featured jobs in green industries. And Biden got a boost from government and business leaders.
((Mandatory CGs: U.S. State Dept., YouTube logo))
((Mette Frederiksen, Danish Prime Minister))
"Today, Denmark has more jobs in green energy than in fossils, and the private sector is on board."
((Mandatory CGs: U.S. State Dept., YouTube logo))
((Nthabiseng Mosia, Co-founder, Easy Solar))
"In Kenya, decentralized renewable energy companies are employing upwards of 10,000 formal workers, the majority of which are based in rural areas. This figure is comparable to the number of people employed by the Kenyan state utilities."
((Mandatory CGs: U.S. State Dept., YouTube logo))
Anna Borg, President and CEO, Vattenfall))
"A few years ago, Vattenfall embarked on a journey with a goal to enable fossil-free living within one generation. This is not our sustainability strategy. It is our business strategy."
((VIDEO: SUMMIT VIDEO - BUILDING STEEL PLANT))
((Mandatory CGs: U.S. State Dept., YouTube logo))
((NARRATOR))
Borg said the Swedish energy company is helping build the world's first fossil-fuel-free steel plant, steel being one of the world's most energy-intensive industries.
But others stressed that not everyone will come out ahead.
((Mandatory CGs: U.S. State Dept., YouTube logo))
((Pedro Sánchez, Spanish Prime Minister))
"Climate action has to put people at the center. The process of decarbonization will produce winners and losers. And governments must support proactively regions and communities negatively affected."
((VIDEO: SUMMIT VIDEO))
((Mandatory CGs: U.S. State Dept., YouTube logo))
((NARRATOR))
Labor union leaders said workers know change is coming. But they need to be at the table when planning what comes next.
((Mandatory CGs: U.S. State Dept., YouTube logo))
((Sharan Burrow, General Secretary, International Trade Union Confederation))
"To stabilize the planet with net-zero economies by 2050, we all know, we have to get at least half of the job done by 2030. But it cannot repeat past transitions that have left workers and their communities stranded."
((VIDEO: SUMMIT VIDEO))
((Mandatory CGs: U.S. State Dept., YouTube logo))
((NARRATOR))
The summit marked a U.S. return to climate leadership. Biden's pledge to cut emissions in half by 2030 is one of the world's most ambitious.
But achieving it will not be easy, technically or politically. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell described it this way:
((Mandatory CGs: YouTube logo))
((Mitch McConnell, Senate Republican Leader))
“This is quite the one-two punch: Toothless requests of our foreign adversaries and maximum pain for American citizens.”
((VIDEO: BIDEN))
((Mandatory CGs: U.S. State Dept., YouTube logo))
((NARRATOR))
Through his executive powers, Biden can get a lot done without Congress’ help.
((Ryan Fitzpatrick, Climate and Energy Program Director, Third Way))
"But it's going to be a lot harder and might not be possible to actually achieve the 50 to 52% reduction without the type of action from Congress that Biden has been calling for in something like the American Jobs Plan."
((VIDEO: WIND TURBINES))
((NARRATOR))
Experts say Biden and other world leaders have work to do so they have something to deliver at November's United Nations conference in Glasgow.
((STEVE BARAGONA, VOA NEWS))
[GRETA]
ENVIRONMENTAL EXPERSTS SAY...
ELECTRIC VEHICLES ARE..
A WELCOME STEP TOWARD..
REDUCING POLLUTION-RELATED...
HEALTH CHALLENGES..
BUT THEY ALSO SAY...
EMISSIONS STANDARDS AND..
PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION...
ARE STILL LACKING ..
IN DIFFERENT PARTS OF.
THE WORLD.
AN ELECTRICAL TAXI SERVICE...
FROM FINLAND IS HELPING...
TO REDUCE EMISSIONS …
IN THE NOTORIOUS....
TRAFFIC IN NAIROBI KENYA...
THAT’S WHERE WE FIND ..
OUR VOA CORRESPONDENT..
RUD ELMENDORP
(PRONO: ROOD EL-MAN-DORP).
[[TAKE PKG]]
((NARRATOR))
Kenyan taxi driver Charles Kaloki says switching to an electric vehicle with Finnish ride-hailing service Nopea Ride has been a boon for his pocketbook.
Nopea Ride’s parent company EkoRent Oy launched in Kenya in 2018 and has charging stations that give free power for their drivers.
((Charles Kaloki, Nopea Driver, (English, 6 secs))
“You can make better money out of this than paying for fuel in every corner in town that you visit.”
((NARRATOR))
Nopea Ride, which means “Fast Ride” in Finnish, plans to expand its fleet of rented electric taxis from 30 to 100 by the end of this year.
While the high cost of electric cars - about double that of fuel burners - remains a deterrent for buying, founder Juha Suojanen says the demand is only growing.
((Juha Suojanen, Founder, Nopea Ride , (English, 10 secs))
“I think in the future it’s not going to be only Nopea that is importing these electric cars. There will be other people that will be buying these cars and more of them coming to the market.”
((NARRATOR))
Nopea is competing against more than 11,000 fuel-driven taxis in Nairobi.
The United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) says most cars in Kenya are used imports from Japan with high emission levels.
The World Health Organization says automobile pollution causes at least 5,000 deaths per year in Kenya.
((Martin Muchangi, AMREF Health Africa, (English, 19 secs))
“We see increased cases of obstructive congestive pulmonary diseases. We see many triggers of asthma and all this can be alluded to the air pollution that is happening along our highways.”
((NARRATOR))
Environmental experts say switching to electric taxis will help reduce air pollution, but Kenya also needs better public transport and a ban on high-emission vehicles.
((Rob De Jong, United Nations Environment Program, (English, 10 secs))
“They will then have to meet some minimum standards which can already result in reductions of emissions, depending on the pollutive, between 70 and 90 percent per vehicle.”
((NARRATOR))
Meanwhile, Nairobi will slowly see more electric cars plying its roads as chariots of change.
((Ruud Elmendorp, for VOA News, Nairobi))
[GRETA]
THE PACKAGE DELIVERY INDUSTRY
HAS BEGUN MOVING …
FROM DIESEL FUEL …
TO BATTERY OPERATED ...
ELECTRIC VEHICLES.
[[VO]]
E-COMMERCE GIANT AMAZON …
IS BUYING 100 THOUSAND …
ELECTRIC VEHICLES …
FROM RIVIAN …
A NEW U.S. MANUFACTURER …
OF ELECTRIC VEHICLES.
AMAZON IS TESTING ...
THESE CUSTOM VEHICLES ...
IN 16 CITIES THIS YEAR …
WITH A GOAL ...
OF CONVERTING ...
TO 100 PERCENT …
RENEWABLE ENERGY BY 2030.
FED-EX PLANS TO REPLACE ...
ALL OF ITS PICKUP …
AND DELIVERY FLEET …
WITH BATTERY-POWERED VEHICLES …
BY 2040.
D-H-L SAYS IT PLANS …
TO BE AT ZERO EMISSIONS …
BY 2050.
[[GRETA]]
WHILE ELECTRIC CARS …
ARE GAINING POPULARITY …
THERE ARE CHALLENGES …
TO FULL ACCEPTANCE.
AMONG THOSE CHALLENGES:
DEVELOPING THE TECHNOLOGIES …
TO ALLOW LONGER DRIVES …
ON A SINGLE BATTERY CHARGE.
ASHER BENNETT...
IS THE CEO …
OF TEVVA (PRONO: TEH-vuh) MOTORS.
HIS GROUP IS WORKING ...
TO PUT MORE ELECTRIC ...
FREIGHT TRUCKS ...
ON THE ROADS.
WE SPOKE EARLIER ...
ABOUT THE TECHNOLOGY ...
AND WHERE THE ...
ELECTRIC TRUCK MARKET ...
IS HEADED.
[[SOT]]
AB = Asher Bennett
GVS = Greta Van Susteren
AB The world of electric trucks painfully is not where it should be. We see a lot of versions of electric cars out there, and just not enough electric trucks. Most of the electric trucks, by far, the options are much less than in cars. We design the Tevva battery electric trucks. So, you charge them at night at your depot usually and hopefully run all day, and we also offer the same trucks with a range extension option. We think it's a very important option. The thing about trucks we have to understand is trucks are out there driving, eight, nine hours a day, unlike cars that the average is one and a half hours a day, and we believe we need different solutions for trucks and for cars.
GVS Is the battery that we see in electric cars and here in the United States is that and the technology is that the same technology you have at Tevva, in the in the trucks is that the is that the same battery?
AB Well, we use lithium ions. We make our own battery packs and that's the brains of the battery. We purchase cells from cell big cell makers, we tend to use a chemistry called Lithium Iron Phosphate but it's just one of the lithium chemistries, we see sometimes even Tesla is using it in some of its vehicles, it is less energy dense than the other chemistry so you need weighs a little bit more for the same amount of energy, but it has a lot of other advantages like the longer life cycle and a bit of a lower cost, but there are different. Lithium Ion chemistry is out there, we're open, using different ones for different needs, because we make our own battery packs, we can adapt. So, what's great about lithium ion batteries in I've been involved with lithium ion batteries for over, developing and building them for over a decade, is they're getting better and better. In both energy density so the amount of energy in a given weight or volume. And also, more importantly, the cost is coming down, I mean, about a decade ago is like $1,000, per kilowatt hour for battery pack level and now it's approaching $150 And it's getting better, but it's not. Moore's law, it's not, you know, tripling and quadrupling in short. In just a few years. So, we're getting more and more energy into the same volume, weight, but it's not software or chips, it's something that chemistry. So, we're improving. The issue is, if you think about trucks and want to get more and more range, there's always the option of putting more and more battery by one point, all that extra battery is a lot of weight that you're carrying around is expensive, it's getting much better but it's so expensive. And that limits you in the payload, it starts to be too much on the cost wise, and we have to remember one more thing. You can put a lot of battery on the truck, but you still have to charge that battery and chargers are not as fast as we would want as powerful as we want, and they're not ubiquitous at every street corner just yet. And let's talk one thing about trucks, when you're driving your Tesla, you might at one point say the state of charges your battery's going low and start thinking about where you will go to charge or your car, but in most cases, trucks are not going to stop in the middle of a delivery day look for a charger. Hope it's available hope it's working and then stop for half an hour or two hours depending to charge, it's not the way trucks are used, so you need to, basically you need a solution that when you send the truck out in the morning, it will come back, no matter what.
GVS What's sort of the biggest technological hurdle that everybody's having the most trouble overcoming with electric vehicles?
AB It's the total getting the total solution and ecosystem together to work. So, you can have an electric car. But if you don’t have a dedicated parking space wherever you live, you can’t set up your own charger, you might be limited in being able to use car and having to depend on public charging is difficult. It's about getting the ability to get that energy into the vehicle and getting it dependently and cost effectively. I've seen very fast high-powered chargers out there and that's great. It’s really advancing the world of electric vehicles. But right now the cost of the chargers is very high, often more than the cost of the vehicle itself. And even then, it’s about getting the power to the charger. The grid can't always allow very high power, or a lot of it, and at the same location. If you're thinking about trucks, putting very large batteries into trucks and you want dozens of trucks to simultaneously charge and charge fast. You're talking many megawatts of power, and that is not something that is easily available at many locations and remember, you want to have the ability to charge everywhere you need it. Otherwise you can't depend on it. We have to focus on a product that long term, customers will buy because it gets the job done on range wise and saves them money, with or without. That's more important, that's the best way to get a lot of trucks to be green. We want trucks to be green and we want them to do a lot of green miles per day. We don’t want them doing short routes. That sort of defeats the whole purpose.
[GRETA]
WHILE WE CAN SEE …
THE DARK SMOKE …
COMING OUT OF …
TAILPIPES AND SMOKESTACKS …
THE EFFECTS …
OF THAT POLLUTION …
GOES LARGELY UNSEEN …
EXCEPT FOR THOSE …
WHO’S LIVELIHOODS …
DEPEND ON THE LAND …
AND THE SEA.
MORE NOW FROM …
VOA’S ARASH ARABASADI (pronounced uh-RAHSH ARAB-uh-sah-dee)
[[TAKE PKG]]
((MANDATORY CG: NASA))
((NARRATOR))
Scientists point to climate change as the reason for the increase in the number of extreme weather events.
NASA senior climate adviser Gavin Schmidt says the problem starts with rising temperatures.
((Gavin Schmidt, NASA Senior Climate Adviser))
“As the planet warms, the ocean absorbs that heat, and that’s causing the ocean to expand. So that fills the basins more and more. But of course, as we’re warming, we’re also melting ice, we’re melting ice in mountain areas, glaciers are retreating, all of that water is effectively ending up in the ocean.”
((mandatory cg NATIONAL AUTONOMOUS UNIVERSITY))
((NARRATOR))
Schmidt says the planet’s rising temperatures lead to drier land, which in turn leads to wildfires like this one in Mexico.
Edgar Godoy oversees Mexico for the Rainforest Alliance, a nonprofit group working to protect nature while helping farmers. He says fires, floods and melting glaciers have become routine.
((Edgar Godoy, Rainforest Alliance in Mexico)) ((MANDATORY CG: Skype))
“Every year in Mexico, as I think in the whole world, we are always saying, ‘This was the hottest year in the last five years.’ But it’s happening year after year after year, so this is something that is not changing.”
((NARRATOR))
About one-third of Mexico City’s 20 million residents is affected by water shortages.
Under near-constant threat of drought, Godoy says farmers can’t depend on their crops alone.
((Edgar Godoy, Rainforest Alliance in Mexico)) ((MANDATORY CG: Skype))
“As they don’t have the income they were expecting from a specific crop, maybe they will need to go to the forest or the rainforest and clear-cut it to sell some wood or some other things that are having impact on deforestation or degradation of forests and rainforests.”
((NARRATOR))
As trees disappear from clear-cutting and their roots no longer hold dirt in place, landslides and flooding increase.
Intan Fardinatri of the Rainforest Alliance in Indonesia says these natural disasters hit hardest those who make a living off the land.
((Intan Fardinatri, Rainforest Alliance in Indonesia)) ((MANDATORY CG: Skype))
“The agriculture rural community … they are in a very remote area. And by having landslides damaging infrastructure, they are even ((more)) remote than before. Isolated.”
((NARRATOR))
Fardinatri says the erratic weather patterns have cut Indonesia’s coffee production in half and the country’s cocoa and coffee farmers have watched their livelihoods shrink.
((Intan Fardinatri, Rainforest Alliance)) ((MANDATORY CG: Skype))
“When they were young, it wasn’t like this. Now the soil is getting exhausted. The soil is dry.”
((NARRATOR))
She says the clash between economic development and protecting the environment may make those taken-for-granted staples increasingly unsustainable to grow.
Arash Arabasadi, VOA News.
[GRETA]
300-MILLION TONS …
OF PLASTIC …
IS PRODUCED WORLDWIDE …
ACCORDING TO …
THE NATURAL RESOURCES …
DEFENSE FUND.
HALF OF THAT …
IS FOR SINGLE-USE ITEMS …
LIKE STRAWS …
EATING UTENSILS …
AND BAGS.
A YEAR AGO …
SENEGAL BANNED MOST …
SINGLE-USE PLASTICS …
BUT ENFORCEMENT …
HAS BEEN A CHALLENGE.
FOR EARTH DAY IN APRIL …
SENEGALESE SURFERS …
SCUBA DIVERS …
AND ACTIVISTS …
WENT UNDERWATER …
TO SET AN EXAMPLE.
ANNIKA HAMMERSCHLAG …
REPORTS FROM DAKAR.
[TAKE PKG]
((VIDEO-VOA: UNDERWATER BLOWFISH, PLASTIC FLOATING, GARBAGE ON BEACH-various, DEAD BLOWFISH, BIRD BY CANAL, CANAL-VARIOUS, FISH CLOSEUP, MARKET-VARIOUS, NDIAYE))
((NARRATOR))
From bottles and bags to food wrappers and fishing nets, plastic waste is piling up on Senegal’s beaches, harming the environment that people and animals depend on.
Toxic chemicals from plastic leach into the water and can build up in fish, which are a vital part of the Senegalese diet.
Senegal’s Ministry of Public Health notes links between plastic pollution and infertility, heart disease, cancer, and other health problems.
((Dr. Marie Khémesse Ngom Ndiaye, Director of Public Health, Senegal, (French, 20 secs)) (Needs English Translation)
((incue - “Tou sé pro-duee ke” outcue - “Ma-rin”))
“All of these products that are used by the industry can be dangerous. And, in terms of pollution, they can attack all of our organs, but equally those of animals. But especially, as you’ve seen in all these documentaries and studies, it impacts marine life.”
((VIDEO-VOA: TRASH BURNING-VARIOUS, LITTER-VARIOUS, CONTE-VARIOUS, ZERO WASTE SIGNS-VARIOUS, CONTE))
((NARRATOR))
The Senegalese government passed a law in 2015 banning single-use plastics, but little changed.
The law was rescinded to make way for new legislation that specifically targeted plastic cups, straws, plates, bags and bottles. It went into effect in 2020, but it’s still rarely enforced.
((Aisha Conte, President, Zero Waste Senegal, (French, 15 secs)) (Needs English Translation)
“There is not necessarily enough information. The population, the users, are not well enough informed about the existence of this law and its different statutes.”
((VIDEO-VOA: DIVERS UNDERWATER COLLECTING CANS & TRASH UNDERWATER-VARIOUS, SORTING WASTE-VARIOUS, DIOUF-VARIOUS, DIOUF))
((NARRATOR))
To mark the anniversary of last year’s ban, and this year’s Earth Day, Dakar’s Barracuda Scuba Diving Club and activists held a coastal cleanup.
Clean Senegal’s Khadim Diouf wore a plastic costume while sorting the waste to underscore the need to make an impact.
((Khadim Diouf, Clean Senegal, (French, 15 secs)) (Needs English Translation)
“I think we can do it – us, the citizens of the world. I don’t just mean the citizens of Senegal, but the citizens of the world. Everyone must protect their environment. That’s what we must do.”
((VIDEO-VOA: LOADING GARBAGE-VARIOUS, HORSE CART-VARIOUS, UNDERWATER SCHOOL OF FISH))
((NARRATOR))
Until then, Diouf and other activists said they will continue to campaign for a cleaner Senegal.
((Annika Hammerschlag, for VOA News, Dakar, Senegal.))
[GRETA]
IN THE MID-ATLANTIC ...
CITY OF BALTIMORE, MARYLAND ...
SOLAR-POWERED ...
WATER WHEELS ...
ARE PULLING …
PILES OF TRASH ...
FROM THE CITY’S …
WATERWAYS.
ADAM LINDQUIST ...
WORKS WITH THE BALTIMORE ...
WATERFRONT PARTNERSHIP...
ONE OF SEVERAL GROUPS ...
PROMOTING WATER HEALTH EDUCATION.
I ASKED HIM …
HOW THE TRASH WHEELS WORK ...
TO KEEP THE CITY’S...
WATERWAYS CLEAN.
[SOT]
GVS- Greta Van Susteren
AL- Adam Lindquist
AL: We run a project called Mr. Trash Wheel which is actually the world's first sustainably powered trash interceptor. It floats at the end of a river and uses solar and hydropower to pick up trash. Mostly plastic out of the water before it can reach the Baltimore Harbor or the Chesapeake Bay.
GVS: All right when you say sustainable you mentioned the solar and the water power. So we're not you're not using a gasoline engine to put more stuff in the water, right?
AL: Correct Right. We thought it was really important that if we're going to be cleaning up the harbor that we not make pollution while we're doing that.
GVS: Where's this trash coming from that you're collecting?
AL: So a lot of people think that it's people throwing their trash into the water but that's not actually the case. The trash in the Baltimore Harbor comes from throughout the city because every time litter goes down a storm drain, it goes into our streams and harbor. It doesn't get filtered out by some magical filtration plant.
GVS: So so when you when you collect it at the river entering into the harbor- I mean where are these collection points?
AL: Sure we collect --so trash we are at the end of a river or stream or stormwater outfall. They don't move around. I can say they're not roombas. They don't go around looking for trash. They sit at the end of the stream and wait for the trash to come to them. So we pick up about 90 percent of our trash when it's raining because that's when storm water is carrying trash into our drains and into our streams and harbor.
GVS: How many of these do have?
AL: So we have three in Baltimore right now but we're actually about to install our fourth in a matter of weeks. So we will soon have four trash interceptors here.
GVS: Are these trash interceptors though in other parts of United States? We have we've got the same problem in other harbors in the United States and also around the world.
AL: absolutely you know, Mr. Trash we started here in Baltimore was invented in Baltimore, but I get calls weekly from cities around the world interested in installing this technology. And in fact, the company that builds them is already working in Panama City, Panama to install a trash wheel there.
GVS: How much do they cost? If I wanted, if I want to buy one if I had a river and I want to clean it up. Well how much would I have to pay?
AL: Well you know, the real question is how much is it going to cost to dispose of the trash every year? Because it's easy to get enough money to build the trash wheel but to find an entity who's going to own and operate it for the duration of its life is a lot more challenging. So a trash wheel might cost between half a million and a million dollars. But the bigger, the harder question is, who's going to pay for the like, one hundred thousand dollars of trash you have to dispose of? because once you pick up the trash out of the water you own it. You've got to you've got to take it away to some sort of disposal facility. And then there are tipping fees and disposal fees related to that. So, you know, that's the real cost that a lot of people don't realize. A lot of people think you just put a trash wheel on the river and you're done. You can move on. But really you need to figure out how to pay for the ongoing operation and maintenance.
GVS: I take it that's only really picking up the floating trash, am I correct?
AL: that is correct. Anything that floats we pick it up. if it's neutrally buoyant like a plastic bag for example we might capture it. Trash is funneled to the front of the device using two containment booms. And those booms have a two-foot skirt beneath them. So we catch whatever is in the first two feet of the water column, but something that's floating lower down might get past us.
GVS: Have you have some measure of how Mr. Trash Will has done it? Is there some sort of measurement? Could you give me how much trash you've taken out of the quality of the harbor?
AL: Yeah absolutely. You know, Mr. Trash has made a huge difference. after a large storm that we picked up fifteen dumpsters full of trash just from one storm. so if Mr. Trash Wheel wasn't there, all of that trash would be floating around the harbor and going out into the Chesapeake Bay. Combined, the trash wheels have picked up over 16 hundred tons of trash and debris from the Baltimore Harbor over the past seven years. To put that in perspective, that's about --- to put that in perspective that's about 13 million cigarette butts, over a million foam containers and over a million plastic bottles.
GVS: What's the biggest offender- Plastic bottles? that you see most of?
AL: I would say that foam containers used to be our biggest offender. Foam is a real problem because, you know, it doesn't break down, It breaks up into smaller and smaller pieces making it harder and harder to collect. But really cool story about Mr. Trash Wheel and I think a really important part of what we're doing in Baltimore is that we use our data and our photos to actually pass legislation. So we helped Maryland become the first state in the country to ban foam containers statewide.
GVS: All right What's the next project Or is this are you going to expand on this one?
AL: Well we're going to be installing this new trash will which we call when Gwynda the good wheel of the West in a couple of weeks. And Glenda will actually be the largest trash will we've ever installed. So we're really excited because she should pick up more trash than the other three trash wheels combined.
GVS: Thank you very much, I appreciate and since I live near the Baltimore Harbor within 60 miles, I see I see the work that it is doing and really appreciate. Thank you sir.
AL: Thank you for having me.
[GRETA]
CLIMATE CHANGE’S IMPACT …
IS BEING CAREFULLY WATCHED …
AT THE LOWEST POINT …
IN THE WORLD …
THE DEAD SEA.
SCIENTISTS ARE CONCERNED …
IT IS DISAPPEARING …
AND ALONG WITH IT …
A UNIQUE ENVIRONMENT.
LINDA GRADSTEIN …
REPORTS FROM THE DEAD SEA.
[[TAKE PKG]]
((NARRATOR))
Jake Ben Zaken steers his small boat toward a strange salt formation poking through the surface of the Dead Sea. Until recently, these formations were all underwater, but the sea is shrinking fast.
He believes that the unique environment of the Dead Sea, the lowest place on earth, must be preserved.
((Jake Ben Zaken, Salty Adventures ( Male in English) ))
“I think that the Dead Sea belongs to the world. It’s the only place in the world, there is nothing like it. And I think yeah, we should save it.”
((NARRATOR))
The shrinking Dead Sea has been documented for years by the Dead Sea Revival Project.
((Noam Bedein, Dead Sea Revival Project (Male in English) ))
“The Dead Sea is actually right now in the lowest (point) in recorded history. We’re losing up to 600 Olympic pools per day.// We’re trying to do anything we can to have a vision to restore the historical flow, in order to try saving the Dead Sea in any way possible.”
((NARRATOR))
The Dead Sea’s main source of water is the Jordan River, but its flow has been drastically reduced by rain and water shortages in this desert region. Climate change has also led to the sudden appearance of over 6,000 huge and dangerous sinkholes in the landscape, devastating the tourist industry in the area.
Some Israeli environmental artists are trying to raise awareness of the shrinking Dead Sea and the dangerous sinkholes, using dance, photo exhibitions, and environmental art installations.
((Doron Gazit, Environmental Artist (Male in English ))
“The red line is a metaphor for the blood vein of Mother Nature. I see this whole area also as a prophecy of what’s going to happen in the world if we are not going to take care of our mother, Mother Nature.”
((NARRATOR))
Dead Sea “Climate Therapy” clinics have treated thousands of patients suffering from skin diseases and breathing problems. They utilize the region’s unique environmental conditions, including increased oxygen levels, UVA radiation, and mineral-laden water. Now a new study shows that the Dead Sea environment may benefit COVID patients as well.
((Dr. Marco Harari, DMZ Clinic, (Male in English) ))
“It is the first time that we can see that UVA radiation can be helpful for patients with Covid-19. In the recent study we understood that UVA radiation can prevent death from Covid 19.”
((NARRATOR))
Environmentalists here say there are many reasons to save the Dead Sea and hope this research will raise awareness of what needs to be done to stop the Dead Sea from shrinking even more.
((Linda Gradstein, for VOA News, at the Dead Sea))
[GRETA]
THAT’S ALL THE TIME …
WE HAVE FOR NOW.
THANKS TO MY GUESTS …
TEVVA MOTORS FOUNDER
AND C.E.O…
ASHER BENNETT…
AND ENVIRONMENTAL ...
ADVOCATE ADAM LINDQUIST.
STAY UP TO DATE …
ON THE LATEST NEWS …
AT VOANEWS.COM.
AND FOLLOW ME …
ON TWITTER …
AT GRETA.
THANK YOU FOR BEING …
PLUGGED IN.
ON PLUGGED IN …
PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN …
CHALLENGES WORLD LEADERS …
ON CLIMATE CHANGE …
WITH AN AMBITIOUS GOAL …
FOR THE UNITED STATES
[[SOT –BIDEN: “The United States sets out on the road to cut greenhouse gases in half by the end of this decade”]]
REACHING THOSE GOALS …
RELIES ON TECHNOLOGIES …
THAT REDUCE EMISSIONS …
FROM CARS AND TRUCKS.
[[SOT ASHER BENNETT “We want trucks to be green and we want them to do a lot of green miles per day.” ]]
ITS NOT JUST THE AIR …
THAT NEEDS TO BE CLEANED.
SOLAR AND HYDRO POWER …
PUSH THE WHEEL …
THAT CLEANS THE WATER.
[[SOT ADAM LINDQUIST “The trash wheels have picked up over 16 hundred tons of trash and debris from the Baltimore Harbor over the past seven years.” ]]
THE INNOVATIONS …
ALREADY IN USE …
AND THOSE STILL …
TO BE DEVELOPED …
ON PLUGGED IN …
THE CLIMATE CHANGE CRISIS...
[[GRETA]]
HELLO AND WELCOME …
TO PLUGGED IN.
I’M GRETA VAN SUSTEREN …
REPORTING FROM WASHINGTON, DC.
JOE BIDEN …
CAMPAIGNED ON A PROMISE …
TO MAKE FIGHTING …
CLIMATE CHANGE …
A CENTRAL PART …
OF HIS PRESIDENCY.
IN APRIL …
BIDEN CONVENED …
WORLD LEADERS …
IN A VIRTUAL …
CLIMATE SUMMIT …
SETTING A GOAL …
FOR THE UNITED STATES …
TO CUT ITS …
GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS …
BY 50 PERCENT ….
BY 2030.
HE ALSO ANNOUNCED …
AN INTERNATIONAL …
CLIMATE FINANCE PLAN …
TO HELP OTHER COUNTRIES …
FUND CLIMATE-RELATED PROGRAMS …
AND LIMIT FIUNDING …
FOR FOSSIL FUEL PROJECTS.
VOA’S STEVE BARAGONA …
REPORTS THE PRESIDENT'S PLAN …
MAY GET APPROVAL OVERSEAS ...
BUT FACES CHALLENGES AT HOME.
[[TAKE PKG]]
((VIDEO: BIDEN ENTERS))
((Mandatory CGs: U.S. State Dept., YouTube logo))
((NARRATOR))
On the last day of his summit, President Joe Biden sought to focus on the upside.
((Mandatory CGs: U.S. State Dept., YouTube logo))
((President Joe Biden))
"Today's final session is not about the threat that climate change poses. It's about the opportunity that fighting climate change provides. It's an opportunity to create millions of good-paying jobs in innovative sectors."
((VIDEO: SUMMIT VIDEO))
((Mandatory CGs: U.S. State Dept., YouTube logo))
((NARRATOR))
A video featured jobs in green industries. And Biden got a boost from government and business leaders.
((Mandatory CGs: U.S. State Dept., YouTube logo))
((Mette Frederiksen, Danish Prime Minister))
"Today, Denmark has more jobs in green energy than in fossils, and the private sector is on board."
((Mandatory CGs: U.S. State Dept., YouTube logo))
((Nthabiseng Mosia, Co-founder, Easy Solar))
"In Kenya, decentralized renewable energy companies are employing upwards of 10,000 formal workers, the majority of which are based in rural areas. This figure is comparable to the number of people employed by the Kenyan state utilities."
((Mandatory CGs: U.S. State Dept., YouTube logo))
Anna Borg, President and CEO, Vattenfall))
"A few years ago, Vattenfall embarked on a journey with a goal to enable fossil-free living within one generation. This is not our sustainability strategy. It is our business strategy."
((VIDEO: SUMMIT VIDEO - BUILDING STEEL PLANT))
((Mandatory CGs: U.S. State Dept., YouTube logo))
((NARRATOR))
Borg said the Swedish energy company is helping build the world's first fossil-fuel-free steel plant, steel being one of the world's most energy-intensive industries.
But others stressed that not everyone will come out ahead.
((Mandatory CGs: U.S. State Dept., YouTube logo))
((Pedro Sánchez, Spanish Prime Minister))
"Climate action has to put people at the center. The process of decarbonization will produce winners and losers. And governments must support proactively regions and communities negatively affected."
((VIDEO: SUMMIT VIDEO))
((Mandatory CGs: U.S. State Dept., YouTube logo))
((NARRATOR))
Labor union leaders said workers know change is coming. But they need to be at the table when planning what comes next.
((Mandatory CGs: U.S. State Dept., YouTube logo))
((Sharan Burrow, General Secretary, International Trade Union Confederation))
"To stabilize the planet with net-zero economies by 2050, we all know, we have to get at least half of the job done by 2030. But it cannot repeat past transitions that have left workers and their communities stranded."
((VIDEO: SUMMIT VIDEO))
((Mandatory CGs: U.S. State Dept., YouTube logo))
((NARRATOR))
The summit marked a U.S. return to climate leadership. Biden's pledge to cut emissions in half by 2030 is one of the world's most ambitious.
But achieving it will not be easy, technically or politically. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell described it this way:
((Mandatory CGs: YouTube logo))
((Mitch McConnell, Senate Republican Leader))
“This is quite the one-two punch: Toothless requests of our foreign adversaries and maximum pain for American citizens.”
((VIDEO: BIDEN))
((Mandatory CGs: U.S. State Dept., YouTube logo))
((NARRATOR))
Through his executive powers, Biden can get a lot done without Congress’ help.
((Ryan Fitzpatrick, Climate and Energy Program Director, Third Way))
"But it's going to be a lot harder and might not be possible to actually achieve the 50 to 52% reduction without the type of action from Congress that Biden has been calling for in something like the American Jobs Plan."
((VIDEO: WIND TURBINES))
((NARRATOR))
Experts say Biden and other world leaders have work to do so they have something to deliver at November's United Nations conference in Glasgow.
((STEVE BARAGONA, VOA NEWS))
[GRETA]
ENVIRONMENTAL EXPERSTS SAY...
ELECTRIC VEHICLES ARE..
A WELCOME STEP TOWARD..
REDUCING POLLUTION-RELATED...
HEALTH CHALLENGES..
BUT THEY ALSO SAY...
EMISSIONS STANDARDS AND..
PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION...
ARE STILL LACKING ..
IN DIFFERENT PARTS OF.
THE WORLD.
AN ELECTRICAL TAXI SERVICE...
FROM FINLAND IS HELPING...
TO REDUCE EMISSIONS …
IN THE NOTORIOUS....
TRAFFIC IN NAIROBI KENYA...
THAT’S WHERE WE FIND ..
OUR VOA CORRESPONDENT..
RUD ELMENDORP
(PRONO: ROOD EL-MAN-DORP).
[[TAKE PKG]]
((NARRATOR))
Kenyan taxi driver Charles Kaloki says switching to an electric vehicle with Finnish ride-hailing service Nopea Ride has been a boon for his pocketbook.
Nopea Ride’s parent company EkoRent Oy launched in Kenya in 2018 and has charging stations that give free power for their drivers.
((Charles Kaloki, Nopea Driver, (English, 6 secs))
“You can make better money out of this than paying for fuel in every corner in town that you visit.”
((NARRATOR))
Nopea Ride, which means “Fast Ride” in Finnish, plans to expand its fleet of rented electric taxis from 30 to 100 by the end of this year.
While the high cost of electric cars - about double that of fuel burners - remains a deterrent for buying, founder Juha Suojanen says the demand is only growing.
((Juha Suojanen, Founder, Nopea Ride , (English, 10 secs))
“I think in the future it’s not going to be only Nopea that is importing these electric cars. There will be other people that will be buying these cars and more of them coming to the market.”
((NARRATOR))
Nopea is competing against more than 11,000 fuel-driven taxis in Nairobi.
The United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) says most cars in Kenya are used imports from Japan with high emission levels.
The World Health Organization says automobile pollution causes at least 5,000 deaths per year in Kenya.
((Martin Muchangi, AMREF Health Africa, (English, 19 secs))
“We see increased cases of obstructive congestive pulmonary diseases. We see many triggers of asthma and all this can be alluded to the air pollution that is happening along our highways.”
((NARRATOR))
Environmental experts say switching to electric taxis will help reduce air pollution, but Kenya also needs better public transport and a ban on high-emission vehicles.
((Rob De Jong, United Nations Environment Program, (English, 10 secs))
“They will then have to meet some minimum standards which can already result in reductions of emissions, depending on the pollutive, between 70 and 90 percent per vehicle.”
((NARRATOR))
Meanwhile, Nairobi will slowly see more electric cars plying its roads as chariots of change.
((Ruud Elmendorp, for VOA News, Nairobi))
[GRETA]
THE PACKAGE DELIVERY INDUSTRY
HAS BEGUN MOVING …
FROM DIESEL FUEL …
TO BATTERY OPERATED ...
ELECTRIC VEHICLES.
[[VO]]
E-COMMERCE GIANT AMAZON …
IS BUYING 100 THOUSAND …
ELECTRIC VEHICLES …
FROM RIVIAN …
A NEW U.S. MANUFACTURER …
OF ELECTRIC VEHICLES.
AMAZON IS TESTING ...
THESE CUSTOM VEHICLES ...
IN 16 CITIES THIS YEAR …
WITH A GOAL ...
OF CONVERTING ...
TO 100 PERCENT …
RENEWABLE ENERGY BY 2030.
FED-EX PLANS TO REPLACE ...
ALL OF ITS PICKUP …
AND DELIVERY FLEET …
WITH BATTERY-POWERED VEHICLES …
BY 2040.
D-H-L SAYS IT PLANS …
TO BE AT ZERO EMISSIONS …
BY 2050.
[[GRETA]]
WHILE ELECTRIC CARS …
ARE GAINING POPULARITY …
THERE ARE CHALLENGES …
TO FULL ACCEPTANCE.
AMONG THOSE CHALLENGES:
DEVELOPING THE TECHNOLOGIES …
TO ALLOW LONGER DRIVES …
ON A SINGLE BATTERY CHARGE.
ASHER BENNETT...
IS THE CEO …
OF TEVVA (PRONO: TEH-vuh) MOTORS.
HIS GROUP IS WORKING ...
TO PUT MORE ELECTRIC ...
FREIGHT TRUCKS ...
ON THE ROADS.
WE SPOKE EARLIER ...
ABOUT THE TECHNOLOGY ...
AND WHERE THE ...
ELECTRIC TRUCK MARKET ...
IS HEADED.
[[SOT]]
AB = Asher Bennett
GVS = Greta Van Susteren
AB The world of electric trucks painfully is not where it should be. We see a lot of versions of electric cars out there, and just not enough electric trucks. Most of the electric trucks, by far, the options are much less than in cars. We design the Tevva battery electric trucks. So, you charge them at night at your depot usually and hopefully run all day, and we also offer the same trucks with a range extension option. We think it's a very important option. The thing about trucks we have to understand is trucks are out there driving, eight, nine hours a day, unlike cars that the average is one and a half hours a day, and we believe we need different solutions for trucks and for cars.
GVS Is the battery that we see in electric cars and here in the United States is that and the technology is that the same technology you have at Tevva, in the in the trucks is that the is that the same battery?
AB Well, we use lithium ions. We make our own battery packs and that's the brains of the battery. We purchase cells from cell big cell makers, we tend to use a chemistry called Lithium Iron Phosphate but it's just one of the lithium chemistries, we see sometimes even Tesla is using it in some of its vehicles, it is less energy dense than the other chemistry so you need weighs a little bit more for the same amount of energy, but it has a lot of other advantages like the longer life cycle and a bit of a lower cost, but there are different. Lithium Ion chemistry is out there, we're open, using different ones for different needs, because we make our own battery packs, we can adapt. So, what's great about lithium ion batteries in I've been involved with lithium ion batteries for over, developing and building them for over a decade, is they're getting better and better. In both energy density so the amount of energy in a given weight or volume. And also, more importantly, the cost is coming down, I mean, about a decade ago is like $1,000, per kilowatt hour for battery pack level and now it's approaching $150 And it's getting better, but it's not. Moore's law, it's not, you know, tripling and quadrupling in short. In just a few years. So, we're getting more and more energy into the same volume, weight, but it's not software or chips, it's something that chemistry. So, we're improving. The issue is, if you think about trucks and want to get more and more range, there's always the option of putting more and more battery by one point, all that extra battery is a lot of weight that you're carrying around is expensive, it's getting much better but it's so expensive. And that limits you in the payload, it starts to be too much on the cost wise, and we have to remember one more thing. You can put a lot of battery on the truck, but you still have to charge that battery and chargers are not as fast as we would want as powerful as we want, and they're not ubiquitous at every street corner just yet. And let's talk one thing about trucks, when you're driving your Tesla, you might at one point say the state of charges your battery's going low and start thinking about where you will go to charge or your car, but in most cases, trucks are not going to stop in the middle of a delivery day look for a charger. Hope it's available hope it's working and then stop for half an hour or two hours depending to charge, it's not the way trucks are used, so you need to, basically you need a solution that when you send the truck out in the morning, it will come back, no matter what.
GVS What's sort of the biggest technological hurdle that everybody's having the most trouble overcoming with electric vehicles?
AB It's the total getting the total solution and ecosystem together to work. So, you can have an electric car. But if you don’t have a dedicated parking space wherever you live, you can’t set up your own charger, you might be limited in being able to use car and having to depend on public charging is difficult. It's about getting the ability to get that energy into the vehicle and getting it dependently and cost effectively. I've seen very fast high-powered chargers out there and that's great. It’s really advancing the world of electric vehicles. But right now the cost of the chargers is very high, often more than the cost of the vehicle itself. And even then, it’s about getting the power to the charger. The grid can't always allow very high power, or a lot of it, and at the same location. If you're thinking about trucks, putting very large batteries into trucks and you want dozens of trucks to simultaneously charge and charge fast. You're talking many megawatts of power, and that is not something that is easily available at many locations and remember, you want to have the ability to charge everywhere you need it. Otherwise you can't depend on it. We have to focus on a product that long term, customers will buy because it gets the job done on range wise and saves them money, with or without. That's more important, that's the best way to get a lot of trucks to be green. We want trucks to be green and we want them to do a lot of green miles per day. We don’t want them doing short routes. That sort of defeats the whole purpose.
[GRETA]
WHILE WE CAN SEE …
THE DARK SMOKE …
COMING OUT OF …
TAILPIPES AND SMOKESTACKS …
THE EFFECTS …
OF THAT POLLUTION …
GOES LARGELY UNSEEN …
EXCEPT FOR THOSE …
WHO’S LIVELIHOODS …
DEPEND ON THE LAND …
AND THE SEA.
MORE NOW FROM …
VOA’S ARASH ARABASADI (pronounced uh-RAHSH ARAB-uh-sah-dee)
[[TAKE PKG]]
((MANDATORY CG: NASA))
((NARRATOR))
Scientists point to climate change as the reason for the increase in the number of extreme weather events.
NASA senior climate adviser Gavin Schmidt says the problem starts with rising temperatures.
((Gavin Schmidt, NASA Senior Climate Adviser))
“As the planet warms, the ocean absorbs that heat, and that’s causing the ocean to expand. So that fills the basins more and more. But of course, as we’re warming, we’re also melting ice, we’re melting ice in mountain areas, glaciers are retreating, all of that water is effectively ending up in the ocean.”
((mandatory cg NATIONAL AUTONOMOUS UNIVERSITY))
((NARRATOR))
Schmidt says the planet’s rising temperatures lead to drier land, which in turn leads to wildfires like this one in Mexico.
Edgar Godoy oversees Mexico for the Rainforest Alliance, a nonprofit group working to protect nature while helping farmers. He says fires, floods and melting glaciers have become routine.
((Edgar Godoy, Rainforest Alliance in Mexico)) ((MANDATORY CG: Skype))
“Every year in Mexico, as I think in the whole world, we are always saying, ‘This was the hottest year in the last five years.’ But it’s happening year after year after year, so this is something that is not changing.”
((NARRATOR))
About one-third of Mexico City’s 20 million residents is affected by water shortages.
Under near-constant threat of drought, Godoy says farmers can’t depend on their crops alone.
((Edgar Godoy, Rainforest Alliance in Mexico)) ((MANDATORY CG: Skype))
“As they don’t have the income they were expecting from a specific crop, maybe they will need to go to the forest or the rainforest and clear-cut it to sell some wood or some other things that are having impact on deforestation or degradation of forests and rainforests.”
((NARRATOR))
As trees disappear from clear-cutting and their roots no longer hold dirt in place, landslides and flooding increase.
Intan Fardinatri of the Rainforest Alliance in Indonesia says these natural disasters hit hardest those who make a living off the land.
((Intan Fardinatri, Rainforest Alliance in Indonesia)) ((MANDATORY CG: Skype))
“The agriculture rural community … they are in a very remote area. And by having landslides damaging infrastructure, they are even ((more)) remote than before. Isolated.”
((NARRATOR))
Fardinatri says the erratic weather patterns have cut Indonesia’s coffee production in half and the country’s cocoa and coffee farmers have watched their livelihoods shrink.
((Intan Fardinatri, Rainforest Alliance)) ((MANDATORY CG: Skype))
“When they were young, it wasn’t like this. Now the soil is getting exhausted. The soil is dry.”
((NARRATOR))
She says the clash between economic development and protecting the environment may make those taken-for-granted staples increasingly unsustainable to grow.
Arash Arabasadi, VOA News.
[GRETA]
300-MILLION TONS …
OF PLASTIC …
IS PRODUCED WORLDWIDE …
ACCORDING TO …
THE NATURAL RESOURCES …
DEFENSE FUND.
HALF OF THAT …
IS FOR SINGLE-USE ITEMS …
LIKE STRAWS …
EATING UTENSILS …
AND BAGS.
A YEAR AGO …
SENEGAL BANNED MOST …
SINGLE-USE PLASTICS …
BUT ENFORCEMENT …
HAS BEEN A CHALLENGE.
FOR EARTH DAY IN APRIL …
SENEGALESE SURFERS …
SCUBA DIVERS …
AND ACTIVISTS …
WENT UNDERWATER …
TO SET AN EXAMPLE.
ANNIKA HAMMERSCHLAG …
REPORTS FROM DAKAR.
[TAKE PKG]
((VIDEO-VOA: UNDERWATER BLOWFISH, PLASTIC FLOATING, GARBAGE ON BEACH-various, DEAD BLOWFISH, BIRD BY CANAL, CANAL-VARIOUS, FISH CLOSEUP, MARKET-VARIOUS, NDIAYE))
((NARRATOR))
From bottles and bags to food wrappers and fishing nets, plastic waste is piling up on Senegal’s beaches, harming the environment that people and animals depend on.
Toxic chemicals from plastic leach into the water and can build up in fish, which are a vital part of the Senegalese diet.
Senegal’s Ministry of Public Health notes links between plastic pollution and infertility, heart disease, cancer, and other health problems.
((Dr. Marie Khémesse Ngom Ndiaye, Director of Public Health, Senegal, (French, 20 secs)) (Needs English Translation)
((incue - “Tou sé pro-duee ke” outcue - “Ma-rin”))
“All of these products that are used by the industry can be dangerous. And, in terms of pollution, they can attack all of our organs, but equally those of animals. But especially, as you’ve seen in all these documentaries and studies, it impacts marine life.”
((VIDEO-VOA: TRASH BURNING-VARIOUS, LITTER-VARIOUS, CONTE-VARIOUS, ZERO WASTE SIGNS-VARIOUS, CONTE))
((NARRATOR))
The Senegalese government passed a law in 2015 banning single-use plastics, but little changed.
The law was rescinded to make way for new legislation that specifically targeted plastic cups, straws, plates, bags and bottles. It went into effect in 2020, but it’s still rarely enforced.
((Aisha Conte, President, Zero Waste Senegal, (French, 15 secs)) (Needs English Translation)
“There is not necessarily enough information. The population, the users, are not well enough informed about the existence of this law and its different statutes.”
((VIDEO-VOA: DIVERS UNDERWATER COLLECTING CANS & TRASH UNDERWATER-VARIOUS, SORTING WASTE-VARIOUS, DIOUF-VARIOUS, DIOUF))
((NARRATOR))
To mark the anniversary of last year’s ban, and this year’s Earth Day, Dakar’s Barracuda Scuba Diving Club and activists held a coastal cleanup.
Clean Senegal’s Khadim Diouf wore a plastic costume while sorting the waste to underscore the need to make an impact.
((Khadim Diouf, Clean Senegal, (French, 15 secs)) (Needs English Translation)
“I think we can do it – us, the citizens of the world. I don’t just mean the citizens of Senegal, but the citizens of the world. Everyone must protect their environment. That’s what we must do.”
((VIDEO-VOA: LOADING GARBAGE-VARIOUS, HORSE CART-VARIOUS, UNDERWATER SCHOOL OF FISH))
((NARRATOR))
Until then, Diouf and other activists said they will continue to campaign for a cleaner Senegal.
((Annika Hammerschlag, for VOA News, Dakar, Senegal.))
[GRETA]
IN THE MID-ATLANTIC ...
CITY OF BALTIMORE, MARYLAND ...
SOLAR-POWERED ...
WATER WHEELS ...
ARE PULLING …
PILES OF TRASH ...
FROM THE CITY’S …
WATERWAYS.
ADAM LINDQUIST ...
WORKS WITH THE BALTIMORE ...
WATERFRONT PARTNERSHIP...
ONE OF SEVERAL GROUPS ...
PROMOTING WATER HEALTH EDUCATION.
I ASKED HIM …
HOW THE TRASH WHEELS WORK ...
TO KEEP THE CITY’S...
WATERWAYS CLEAN.
[SOT]
GVS- Greta Van Susteren
AL- Adam Lindquist
AL: We run a project called Mr. Trash Wheel which is actually the world's first sustainably powered trash interceptor. It floats at the end of a river and uses solar and hydropower to pick up trash. Mostly plastic out of the water before it can reach the Baltimore Harbor or the Chesapeake Bay.
GVS: All right when you say sustainable you mentioned the solar and the water power. So we're not you're not using a gasoline engine to put more stuff in the water, right?
AL: Correct Right. We thought it was really important that if we're going to be cleaning up the harbor that we not make pollution while we're doing that.
GVS: Where's this trash coming from that you're collecting?
AL: So a lot of people think that it's people throwing their trash into the water but that's not actually the case. The trash in the Baltimore Harbor comes from throughout the city because every time litter goes down a storm drain, it goes into our streams and harbor. It doesn't get filtered out by some magical filtration plant.
GVS: So so when you when you collect it at the river entering into the harbor- I mean where are these collection points?
AL: Sure we collect --so trash we are at the end of a river or stream or stormwater outfall. They don't move around. I can say they're not roombas. They don't go around looking for trash. They sit at the end of the stream and wait for the trash to come to them. So we pick up about 90 percent of our trash when it's raining because that's when storm water is carrying trash into our drains and into our streams and harbor.
GVS: How many of these do have?
AL: So we have three in Baltimore right now but we're actually about to install our fourth in a matter of weeks. So we will soon have four trash interceptors here.
GVS: Are these trash interceptors though in other parts of United States? We have we've got the same problem in other harbors in the United States and also around the world.
AL: absolutely you know, Mr. Trash we started here in Baltimore was invented in Baltimore, but I get calls weekly from cities around the world interested in installing this technology. And in fact, the company that builds them is already working in Panama City, Panama to install a trash wheel there.
GVS: How much do they cost? If I wanted, if I want to buy one if I had a river and I want to clean it up. Well how much would I have to pay?
AL: Well you know, the real question is how much is it going to cost to dispose of the trash every year? Because it's easy to get enough money to build the trash wheel but to find an entity who's going to own and operate it for the duration of its life is a lot more challenging. So a trash wheel might cost between half a million and a million dollars. But the bigger, the harder question is, who's going to pay for the like, one hundred thousand dollars of trash you have to dispose of? because once you pick up the trash out of the water you own it. You've got to you've got to take it away to some sort of disposal facility. And then there are tipping fees and disposal fees related to that. So, you know, that's the real cost that a lot of people don't realize. A lot of people think you just put a trash wheel on the river and you're done. You can move on. But really you need to figure out how to pay for the ongoing operation and maintenance.
GVS: I take it that's only really picking up the floating trash, am I correct?
AL: that is correct. Anything that floats we pick it up. if it's neutrally buoyant like a plastic bag for example we might capture it. Trash is funneled to the front of the device using two containment booms. And those booms have a two-foot skirt beneath them. So we catch whatever is in the first two feet of the water column, but something that's floating lower down might get past us.
GVS: Have you have some measure of how Mr. Trash Will has done it? Is there some sort of measurement? Could you give me how much trash you've taken out of the quality of the harbor?
AL: Yeah absolutely. You know, Mr. Trash has made a huge difference. after a large storm that we picked up fifteen dumpsters full of trash just from one storm. so if Mr. Trash Wheel wasn't there, all of that trash would be floating around the harbor and going out into the Chesapeake Bay. Combined, the trash wheels have picked up over 16 hundred tons of trash and debris from the Baltimore Harbor over the past seven years. To put that in perspective, that's about --- to put that in perspective that's about 13 million cigarette butts, over a million foam containers and over a million plastic bottles.
GVS: What's the biggest offender- Plastic bottles? that you see most of?
AL: I would say that foam containers used to be our biggest offender. Foam is a real problem because, you know, it doesn't break down, It breaks up into smaller and smaller pieces making it harder and harder to collect. But really cool story about Mr. Trash Wheel and I think a really important part of what we're doing in Baltimore is that we use our data and our photos to actually pass legislation. So we helped Maryland become the first state in the country to ban foam containers statewide.
GVS: All right What's the next project Or is this are you going to expand on this one?
AL: Well we're going to be installing this new trash will which we call when Gwynda the good wheel of the West in a couple of weeks. And Glenda will actually be the largest trash will we've ever installed. So we're really excited because she should pick up more trash than the other three trash wheels combined.
GVS: Thank you very much, I appreciate and since I live near the Baltimore Harbor within 60 miles, I see I see the work that it is doing and really appreciate. Thank you sir.
AL: Thank you for having me.
[GRETA]
CLIMATE CHANGE’S IMPACT …
IS BEING CAREFULLY WATCHED …
AT THE LOWEST POINT …
IN THE WORLD …
THE DEAD SEA.
SCIENTISTS ARE CONCERNED …
IT IS DISAPPEARING …
AND ALONG WITH IT …
A UNIQUE ENVIRONMENT.
LINDA GRADSTEIN …
REPORTS FROM THE DEAD SEA.
[[TAKE PKG]]
((NARRATOR))
Jake Ben Zaken steers his small boat toward a strange salt formation poking through the surface of the Dead Sea. Until recently, these formations were all underwater, but the sea is shrinking fast.
He believes that the unique environment of the Dead Sea, the lowest place on earth, must be preserved.
((Jake Ben Zaken, Salty Adventures ( Male in English) ))
“I think that the Dead Sea belongs to the world. It’s the only place in the world, there is nothing like it. And I think yeah, we should save it.”
((NARRATOR))
The shrinking Dead Sea has been documented for years by the Dead Sea Revival Project.
((Noam Bedein, Dead Sea Revival Project (Male in English) ))
“The Dead Sea is actually right now in the lowest (point) in recorded history. We’re losing up to 600 Olympic pools per day.// We’re trying to do anything we can to have a vision to restore the historical flow, in order to try saving the Dead Sea in any way possible.”
((NARRATOR))
The Dead Sea’s main source of water is the Jordan River, but its flow has been drastically reduced by rain and water shortages in this desert region. Climate change has also led to the sudden appearance of over 6,000 huge and dangerous sinkholes in the landscape, devastating the tourist industry in the area.
Some Israeli environmental artists are trying to raise awareness of the shrinking Dead Sea and the dangerous sinkholes, using dance, photo exhibitions, and environmental art installations.
((Doron Gazit, Environmental Artist (Male in English ))
“The red line is a metaphor for the blood vein of Mother Nature. I see this whole area also as a prophecy of what’s going to happen in the world if we are not going to take care of our mother, Mother Nature.”
((NARRATOR))
Dead Sea “Climate Therapy” clinics have treated thousands of patients suffering from skin diseases and breathing problems. They utilize the region’s unique environmental conditions, including increased oxygen levels, UVA radiation, and mineral-laden water. Now a new study shows that the Dead Sea environment may benefit COVID patients as well.
((Dr. Marco Harari, DMZ Clinic, (Male in English) ))
“It is the first time that we can see that UVA radiation can be helpful for patients with Covid-19. In the recent study we understood that UVA radiation can prevent death from Covid 19.”
((NARRATOR))
Environmentalists here say there are many reasons to save the Dead Sea and hope this research will raise awareness of what needs to be done to stop the Dead Sea from shrinking even more.
((Linda Gradstein, for VOA News, at the Dead Sea))
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