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Solar leads the renewable energy boom; access to green spaces expands; a nuclear update from Fukushima; young environmentalists restore coral reefs; Hurricane Hunters fly into the eye of the storm.
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EarthX is a media company dedicated to inspiring people to care about the planet. We take an omni channel approach to reach audiences of every age through its robust 24/7 linear channel distributed across cable and FAST outlets, along with dynamic, solution oriented short form content on social and digital platforms. EarthX is home to original series, documentaries and snackable content that offer sustainable solutions to environmental challenges. EarthX is the only network that delivers entertaining and inspiring topics that impact and inspire our lives on climate and sustainability.
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Solar leads the renewable energy boom; access to green spaces expands; a nuclear update from Fukushima; young environmentalists restore coral reefs; Hurricane Hunters fly into the eye of the storm.
About EarthxNews:
A weekly program dedicated to covering the stories that shape the planet. Featuring the latest updates in energy, environment, tech, climate, and more.
EarthX & EarthXtra
Love Our Planet.
The Official Network of Earth Day.
About Us:
At EarthX, we believe our planet is a pretty special place. The people, landscapes, and critters are likely unique to the entire universe, so we consider ourselves lucky to be here. We are committed to protecting the environment by inspiring conservation and sustainability, and our programming along with our range of expert hosts support this mission. We’re glad you’re with us.
EarthX is a media company dedicated to inspiring people to care about the planet. We take an omni channel approach to reach audiences of every age through its robust 24/7 linear channel distributed across cable and FAST outlets, along with dynamic, solution oriented short form content on social and digital platforms. EarthX is home to original series, documentaries and snackable content that offer sustainable solutions to environmental challenges. EarthX is the only network that delivers entertaining and inspiring topics that impact and inspire our lives on climate and sustainability.
EarthX Website: https://earthxmedia.com/
Follow Us:
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TVTranscript
00:00Gaining popularity. The amount of renewable energy sources used to produce electricity is expected to reach a record high. That's according to a new report. But what's fueling the surge? We'll take a look. Plus, the state of New York leaves green energy builders in a financial pickle. More on the move that could jeopardize the state's clean energy ambitions is just ahead.
00:23And Seeing Green, a new federal program aims to improve access to nature in cities nationwide and tackle climate change. We'll explain.
00:40Hello and welcome to EarthX News, where we focus on sustainability and the environment. I'm Christina Thompson.
00:46Let's get into some of the biggest headlines facing our planet today. And we really want to take a deep dive into the power of solar energy.
00:54Renewable energy is gaining popularity in a world that has some high inflation happening right now. And the solar is steadily pulling ahead of wind in the race.
01:02Now, the International Energy Agency said soaring fuel and oil prices and fears about energy security had boosted support for solar and wind installations, which are expected to reach 440 gigawatts in 2023.
01:16Now, that's a pretty significant number, considering it's about a third more than the world added the previous year, which takes the global installed capacity to 4,500 gigawatts.
01:26That's about the combined total power output of the United States and China, according to the IEA.
01:32Now, here in America, Nevada is leading the charge for building a workforce centered on the solar energy boom.
01:39They're doing this by retraining workers for jobs at large-scale solar plants as the state moves away from fossil fuels.
01:46And they're doing such a good job that workers from other states are flocking to them.
01:51This year, more than half of the new power generation in the U.S. will be solar.
01:55In Nevada, the planned projects are expected to increase solar power by almost 1,600 megawatts.
02:02The Solar Energy Industries Association says we'll need 800,000 new workers in less than 10 years to push America's solar electricity generation from 4% to 30% by 2030.
02:15Now, it's being referred to as the Green Gold Rush for a reason.
02:19But keeping solar energy clean can only be accomplished with proper recycling solutions.
02:24Now, this is a problem renewable energy companies need to tackle.
02:28Many solar panels end up in landfills at the end of their lives, which sort of negates the clean energy they provided during their life.
02:35That's why many experts are using this analogy when it comes to square and rectangle solar panels.
02:41We need to figure out how to fit them into a circle.
02:44And what does that circle consist of?
02:47Reduce, reuse, recycle.
02:49Now, for example, energy upgrades and changes in industry standards often push companies to abandon their panels before they exhaust the ability to generate electricity.
02:58Now, these panels might not be able to power a massive company anymore, but they are more than capable of powering a small home for, say, about a decade still.
03:07Now, policies are needed to incentivize companies to recycle these panels, as well as use recycled materials when building new ones to keep decommissioned ones out of landfills.
03:17And as we increase our solar and wind energy use, we also need to increase our energy storage.
03:24Energy storage is a key part of our transition to clean energy and refers to storing electricity, which can essentially be used as backup energy during times of high demand.
03:34The United States is good, but not great at the storage.
03:37Now, in the second quarter of this year, the U.S. added a record amount of energy storage, the highest ever for a single quarter.
03:44That includes completing nearly 1,700 megawatts worth of projects.
03:49Now, despite the growth, developers continue to run into some challenges.
03:53There were an additional 2,000 megawatts of projects that developers have pushed into later quarters and even years.
03:59The projects are running late for a whole bunch of reasons, including difficulty getting parts, long waits to get approvals to connect to the grid, and the need to revise financing because of rising costs.
04:11New York is saying no more subsidies.
04:14Officials in the state refusing to grant an additional $12 billion to the developers of 90 renewable energy projects,
04:22which did raise some red flags over the state's ability to cut dependence on fossil fuels over the next decade.
04:29Now, state law requires that by 2030, renewable resources like sun and wind must account for 70% of the share of electricity consumed in the state.
04:39The law also requires that by 2035, offshore wind farms be able to generate up to 9 gigawatts of energy at a given time.
04:48That's up from zero where it's at today.
04:50But the developers of those wind farms have recently complained about higher costs and disruptions in supply chains.
04:57They say this has made the terms of those contracts unreachable.
05:01Still, lawmakers say they just cannot ask taxpayers to shell out another $12 billion on top of the 10 it already cost.
05:09And clean hydrogen is here.
05:11The U.S. Department of Energy named seven regional clean hydrogen hubs to receive $7 billion in federal funding across the U.S.
05:20It's part of an initiative to speed up the commercial-scale development of clean hydrogen and drive down costs.
05:26Their main purpose is to jumpstart a national network of clean hydrogen producers, consumers, and infrastructure.
05:32Now, each hub includes clean hydrogen production, storage, and delivery.
05:37Clean hydrogen is important because it helps to clean up hard-to-decarbonize sectors like refining, chemicals, and transport.
05:44In the power sector, hydrogen can be combusted in gas turbines for decarbonization or be used as a form of long-duration energy storage.
05:52California was selected to hold one of these seven hubs.
05:56According to a press release by Governor Gavin Newsom, it will cut up to 2 million metric tons of carbon emissions every year,
06:03create 220,000 new jobs, and bring in $2.95 billion per year in economic value from better health and health cost savings.
06:13The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Forest Service is actively trying to expand access to trees and green spaces in communities and neighborhoods across the nation.
06:24Now, they are awarding more than a billion dollars in grants to plant and maintain trees, fight extreme heat and climate change,
06:31and improve access to nature in cities, towns, and suburbs where more than 84 percent of Americans live.
06:38Proper land management is important.
06:40Not only does it make our communities more beautiful, it also protects them.
06:45Take, for example, wildfires.
06:47Recent wildfires in Canada have showed that fire prevention zones significantly slow the spread of unpredicted fires.
06:55These zones, created by carefully clearing and removing fuel by, in some cases, setting deliberate planned burns,
07:03help firefighters control wildfires when they aren't planned.
07:06Indigenous methods show that wildfires are an essential part of the natural cycle of forests.
07:12Now, if we don't allow forests to clear themselves out, then fires can grow so big that containment is virtually impossible.
07:20Creating more fire prevention zones in the offseason can help slow blazes to allow people time to escape.
07:26Now, clearly, forestry is vital to the conservation of our lands,
07:30and something else that's vital to conservation is caring for species in the habitats they live in.
07:36So let's check back in on Fukushima for an update on the fish that inhabit the Pacific waters off the coast of Japan,
07:42where treated nuclear wastewater is currently being released.
07:45We first brought you this story a few weeks ago, and now a team of scientists just visited Japan
07:51to sample those fish for the very first time.
07:54A member of the International Atomic Energy Agency team visited Japan for the first marine sampling
08:01since the Fukushima nuclear power plant started releasing treated radioactive wastewater into the ocean.
08:08Their teams watched flounder and other popular kinds of fish being caught off the coast
08:13and brought on boats to the ports for auction.
08:16The good news, the IAEA does not expect any rise in radiation levels in the fish caught in the areas.
08:24The bad news, Japan is still suffering.
08:27Well, I think it's important that we come here and we see exactly how it's done.
08:32I think everything has been very open and transparent,
08:36so we've been able to watch the fish coming in off the boats, being landed, and then being packed for samples.
08:46Fukushima started releasing wastewater into the sea back on August 24th.
08:51The release, which is expected to take decades, has been strongly opposed by fishing groups
08:56and neighboring countries, including China and South Korea, where hundreds of people have protested.
09:02China immediately banned all imports of Japanese seafood the day the release began,
09:08which cost Japan millions and badly hurt Japanese seafood producers, processors, and exporters.
09:15Russia recently joined China in the trade restrictions.
09:18The IAEA says these bans aren't necessary, as they have reviewed the safety of the wastewater release
09:25and concluded that if carried out as planned, it would have a negligible impact on the environment,
09:31marine life, and human life in the area.
09:34The IAEA's visit is significant.
09:36For one, it's the first since the release began.
09:39And two, the IAEA sees firsthand how the fish is sampled and packed.
09:46The IAEA selected six species of fish.
09:49They chose these because they are known to have higher levels of radioactivity
09:53than other species due to the areas they tend to move around in.
09:58The Japanese government asked the IAEA to conduct the environmental and fish sampling
10:03to build confidence about the data that Japan provides
10:06because of all the aforementioned skepticism coming internationally.
10:09The sample collection team includes two staff from the IAEA Marine Environmental Laboratories in Monaco,
10:16as well as experts from laboratories in China, South Korea, and Canada.
10:21They will send identical samples to about a dozen participating laboratories
10:25for comparison and analysis of radioactivity and evaluation, the IAEA said.
10:31After the sampling work, separate IAEA task force will review the safety of the treated radioactive water.
10:39But rebounding from this will likely take Japan a very long time.
10:43Japan's government has set up a relief fund to help find new markets
10:47and reduce the impact of China's seafood ban.
10:51Japan is also pushing temporary purchase, freezing, and storage of seafood
10:55and promoting seafood sales at home.
10:57At the end of the day, Japan says this is their only option.
11:02The government says discharging the water into the sea is unavoidable.
11:06The tanks where the treated wastewater is stored will reach their 1.37 million ton capacity next year,
11:12and space at the plant will be needed for its decommissioning, which is expected to take decades.
11:18They continue to stress that this water is treated to reduce radioactive materials to safe levels,
11:24and then is diluted with seawater by hundreds of times to make it much safer than international standards.
11:31Now, many experts have said that such long-term release of low-dose radioactivity is unprecedented
11:38and does require close monitoring.
11:40And coming up, she calls herself the Nomad Reefer,
11:44and she's making it her mission to replenish coral reefs.
11:47We speak with her about her superhero efforts after the break.
11:50Welcome back to EarthX News.
12:15Young environmental activists are popping up all over the world.
12:18They are helping to save the planet one community at a time.
12:22And we have the pleasure of speaking with one of those young activists today.
12:26Welcome in the Nomad Reefer, Jasmine Serrano.
12:29Jasmine, thanks for coming on the show today.
12:30Can you tell me about some of your environmental work and your work to restore coral?
12:35Thank you for having me.
12:36Yes.
12:37So some of my environmental work boils down to my day-to-day tasks as far as using reusable containers,
12:44making sure my cleaning and hygiene products are chemical runoff safe.
12:50But my passion is with coral.
12:54And essentially making sure that the ocean's ecosystem is running the way that it should be.
13:01When you really think about it, the ocean is our planet's biggest living organism.
13:07And right now it's a little sick.
13:10And if that's sick, then it'll only be a domino effect.
13:14So I like to preserve it as best I can, which makes me indulge in collecting corals
13:21and saving some of the dying species of corals that have been around for hundreds of thousands of years
13:28by putting them in controlled environments, sustaining them,
13:33and then trying to slowly implement them back into our oceans.
13:37That's incredible.
13:38Coral, we know, is super important to the oceans as well.
13:41I know just some of the stats regarding coral is that they play a massive role in oxygen production,
13:47not only in the ocean, but also in the atmosphere.
13:49Can you talk about that?
13:51Absolutely.
13:52So we've all been taught how important trees are for oxygen on Earth.
13:57However, the ocean provides about 70% of the oxygen on Earth through a series of photosynthesis
14:08throughout bacteria and microalgaes and planktons that grow throughout it.
14:13So essentially, the ocean is the world's largest rainforest, and it sustains everything below and above it.
14:22And coral right now is feeling the heat underwater in regards to climate change and global warming.
14:29How is that contributing to the coral bleaching that we've been seeing?
14:33So coral bleaching is essentially coral dying.
14:38With warmer waters, the coral is using more energy, and it's not able to replenish itself within a timely manner.
14:46Think if your AC only was able to keep your house at a 90-degree temperature Fahrenheit, and you were immobile.
14:57That would be very uncomfortable and stressful.
15:01So essentially, global warming, warming temperatures of Earth is creating warmer waters that sit around anywhere from 85 to 90 degrees and up,
15:13and that is creating the bleaching of coral.
15:18I mean, you're pretty young to have accomplished so much already in regards to protecting our planet.
15:23Do you hope to inspire other young people to preserve our environment as well?
15:26Absolutely.
15:27I currently am in the beginning phases of creating an immersive, interactive, sustainable social media app
15:38that will inspire and keep people informed and wanting to go the extra steps to make sure that the biggest living organism on Earth
15:50that sustains us all is on her way to recovery, if you will.
15:55So definitely would love to inspire the youth through that platform.
15:59That's amazing.
16:00When can we expect for that to launch?
16:03Probably by the end of 2025, if all goes well.
16:07Well, very cool.
16:08Looking forward to it.
16:08I will definitely download that as well.
16:10You are helping to inspire a whole new generation of people who can go out and help save the planet just as you are doing.
16:15So, Jasmine Serrano, thank you so much for coming on.
16:18Thank you for having me.
16:19It's been a pleasure.
16:19And our next story is filled with berry-fishy content, that is.
16:26Brown bears in Alaska gorging themselves on the richest and most accessible foods they can find, which means a whole lot of salmon.
16:32Every year, Alaska promotes a contest to vote on which brown bear gets the fattest before their hibernation starts.
16:39Now, it is a way for the public to get excited about nature and species health, and this year, Grazer won that contest.
16:46Now, as the National Park Twitter will say, though unaware of her title in this imaginary contest, her success is real.
16:53For bears, fat equals success, and she is set up well for winter.
16:56And coming up, we are talking more about those once-in-a-lifetime storms that pummeled the entire world this past summer.
17:04I'm talking fires, earthquakes, catastrophic rain, flooding, and, of course, hurricanes.
17:09Now, tracking storms like these is one way to save countless lives before disaster strikes.
17:16That's where NOAA's hurricane hunters come in.
17:18A hurricane's path can be hard to track, but we are headed right into the eye of the storm with NOAA's hurricane hunter, Dr. Mike Brennan.
17:26He will give us a firsthand look at some of the technology aimed at improving predictions and the brave storm chasers who risk their safety to save yours during massive storms.
17:36Stay right here. EarthX News will be right back.
17:39Anytime a storm is rapidly intensifying, I think that's the situation where having the aircraft in there is one of the most beneficial times to have that,
17:47because the storm's changing very rapidly, and we can see that happening on satellite imagery.
18:08Hurricanes are becoming more and more difficult to predict,
18:11but understanding their path is important to cut back on lost lives, property, and livelihoods during impact.
18:16But to understand their patterns, we need to take a deep dive directly into the eye of the storm.
18:22For that, I want to welcome in hurricane hunter, NOAA scientist, Dr. Mike Brennan.
18:26Dr. Brennan, thank you so much for coming on today for the show.
18:29We really appreciate it.
18:30I wanted to talk to you about something that NOAA is doing that's really incredible.
18:34It's cutting edge in the world of hurricane tracking.
18:36You are literally flying headfirst into storms to collect data.
18:41How do you do this?
18:43Well, we have great partners from the NOAA, or hurricane hunters.
18:48They fly aircraft directly into the eye of the storm, and they give us direct information here at the National Hurricane Center
18:54about where the storm is located, how strong the storm is in terms of its peak winds, and how big the storm is.
19:00And our forecasters here use all that information to help analyze the storm and improve our forecast of where the storm's going to go,
19:06how big it's going to be, what the hazards are going to be like in terms of storm surge, wind, and heavy rainfall.
19:11So it's a really vital thing that they do, and they're really the only direct measurements we can get of some of those parameters of the storm.
19:18So what exactly is a hurricane-hunting aircraft?
19:22Well, they're a variety.
19:23Right now, NOAA has two P-3 Orion hurricane hunters that you're looking at now.
19:27They're propeller aircraft, and they fly sort of low-altitude missions into a hurricane,
19:32flying about 8,000 to 10,000 feet to collect data on the structure of the storm.
19:37They have a tail-doppler radar on board that can measure the precipitation and the wind information around the storm.
19:43NOAA also has a high-altitude Gulf Stream 4 jet that flies out up at 45,000, 50,000 feet near and around the storm
19:51and drops dropsondes that measure temperature and wind and moisture through the depth of the atmosphere
19:55all the way down to the ocean surface.
19:57And that data gets used by the numerical models that help our forecasters make the forecast
20:02and issue the watches and warnings for hurricanes here.
20:04Yeah, I wanted to ask, how is that data then used to be able to help lives, to save lives?
20:10I believe this is some fairly new technology that you guys are working with, right?
20:15Well, the data has always been used for many, many years by forecasters here at the National Hurricane Center
20:19for their own analysis to understand what's going on in the storm.
20:22But what's changed in the last five to 10 years especially is all the data coming from all the hurricane hunter aircraft
20:27are going into the numerical weather forecast models that we use to make track and intensity and size forecasts.
20:32And they tend to improve the track and intensity forecast by about 10 to 20 percent.
20:36So that can mean the difference between evacuating a community and not evacuating a community
20:40or better understanding the threat from storm surge, wind and heavy rainfall to help people better prepare for a storm.
20:46Are there any tangible benefits, any exact moments in time where there was a storm that may be hit,
20:51where you guys have been able to do something in real time to save people that you can look back on and say,
20:56that's because of our missions, that's because of our efforts?
20:58Well, I think, you know, anytime a storm is rapidly intensifying, I think that's the situation where having the aircraft in there
21:05is one of the most beneficial times to have that because the storm is changing very rapidly.
21:10And we can see that happening on satellite imagery, but that only gives us an estimate of how strong the storm is.
21:16So when a storm is really changing quickly, having the aircraft directly measuring the data in the aircraft
21:21can allow us to make changes to the types of watches and warnings we have out,
21:25can update the forecast for storm surge, which is the potential hazard that has the potential
21:29to kill the most people in tropical storms and hurricanes in this country
21:32and get that information out to people very quickly.
21:35I mean, this is so important, especially now.
21:36I know this past summer we had some of the strongest storms, strongest hurricanes we've ever seen.
21:40You guys are saving lives.
21:41So we really appreciate all that you're doing for the planet.
21:45All right.
21:46Dr. Mike Brennan with NOAA, thank you so much for coming on the show today.
21:49Thanks.
21:49And that's it for this edition of EarthX News.
21:52Please join us again next week.
21:54I'm Christina Thompson.
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