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The responsible use of the world's dwindling supply of natural resources is everybody's business. In this program, experts from industry and academia provide background on energy conservation, while real-world examples prompt viewers to use natural resources thoughtfully. Surprising facts, such as how some appliances use electricity even when turned off; scientific information, including lighting and window technologies that can save energy; and suggestions...
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Throughout her career, Denise Chamberlain has advised business, government, and community representatives on site remediation and redevelopment. In this program, Ms. Chamberlain focuses on brownfields liability reform and the Phoenix Awards. Charles Bartsch, Ira Whitman, and Cherokee Investments' Thomas Darden offer insights into liability issues as well. Additional interviews with EPA, HUD, and EDA officials from around the U.S. balance out the video....
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Americans make up a small fraction of the world's population yet consume about a quarter of the planet's total resources. In this video, high school students present some startling facts about people's impact on the environment while sharing ideas about how to make Earth-friendlier choices in the home and when driving. Correlates to all applicable National and State Educational Standards including the NCLB Act.
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After addressing terms and concepts essential to an understanding of brownfields, this program turns to author Storm Cunningham and Robert Colangelo, executive director of the National Brownfields Association, for historical background on the problem. In addition, nationally recognized experts Charles Bartsch and Ira Whitman discuss legislation that led to the Brownfields Revitalization Act of 2002, and City of Phoenix brownfields coordinator Rosanne...
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The moment demand outpaces supply, water becomes a commodity to be traded in the global market. But who owns the rights to water? And how can a price be set on water? In this program, the pros and cons of privatization are assessed in a number of water management situations around the world: Aguas Argentina in Buenos Aires; the Bechtel corporation in Cochabamba, Bolivia; Thames Water company in Jakarta; and a public/private test partnership in Albania....
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Job creation, tax base expansion, neighborhood improvement, and sustainable development are only four of the many themes covered in this documentary as it presents the economics side of infill development using examples drawn from the Northeast and Southwest. The EDA's Dennis Alvord and David Sampson, environmental engineering and management specialist Ira Whitman, and a host of other experts discuss how communities are using strategies including...
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Household waste can cause pollution of all kinds, but more and more of these wastes can be recycled effectively and economically. The result is reduced pollution and a useful new source of raw materials and energy. Hospital waste disposal presents the additional problems of contaminated waste, which is a series of problems depending on the nature of the waste: contaminated blood waste, for example, requires different treatment from radioactive waste....
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By expanding the legal definition of a brownfield, clarifying remediation standards, and limiting investor liability, the Brownfields Revitalization Act of 2002 added much-needed momentum to the land recycling movement. This documentary shows how redevelopers of brownfields, both actual and perceived, are bridging the financial gap between proposal and implementation with cleanup grants, tax credits, low-interest and revolving loans, hazardous discharge...
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Environmental protection laws have spawned a whole new form of business: firms that specialize in handling ecological regulatory issues for industry. To what extent are environmental standards achieving the goal of purifying America's air, land, and water? And to what extent are those selfsame standards contributing to the growth of a market geared toward simply meeting the legal minimums in order to avoid penalties? In this program, Betsy Taylor,...
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In this program, Katherine Heller, of RTI International; Jane Mergler, of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers; Norman Camp III, co-chairman of Partners for Environmental Justice; and other experts drive home the importance of community involvement in brownfields reclamation. Renewal projects in Baltimore, Trenton, Phoenix, Denver, and elsewhere illustrate how sustainable redevelopment depends heavily on sharing information, balancing majority interests...
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In this documentary, environmental regulators share their knowledge about voluntary brownfields cleanup programs. Linda Garczynski, director of the U.S. EPA Office of Brownfields, explains how regulatory flexibility and memorandums of agreement facilitate the cleaning up of polluted sites for redevelopment. Arizona brownfields coordinator Ren Willis-Frances covers different ways to address cleanup activities. And Stan Hitt, brownfields administrator...
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Can sustainability be applied to any design work, whether it's jewelry or architecture? What exactly does it mean to take a sustainable approach to design? This program examines the art of conceiving and creating physical products according to ecologically sound principles. Viewers learn the importance of, and the basic working framework for, design work that utilizes renewable resources, makes the most efficient use of energy and materials, and minimizes...
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This program takes a hard look at the mounting challenge of providing millions of people in urban areas with potable water and adequate disposal of waste water. To highlight the difficulties, segments focus on the water problems of the megalopolis, cities with populations of over ten million people, such as Lagos, Jakarta, and Mexico City. The massive logistics that enable Las Vegas to prosper in the middle of a desert are also explored.
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State and local programs are on the frontlines of brownfields reclamation. This documentary-a practical primer with many examples-catalogs common types of environmental challenges faced in the redevelopment of contaminated properties. Virginia brownfields coordinator Chris Evans and U.S. EPA Region V Administrator Tom Skinner comment on their efforts. David Sampson and Dennis Alvord, both of the EDA, review federal programs available to states and...
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Made from waste, packaged in waste: that's the mantra of TerraCycle, an entrepreneurial startup that uses worms to turn premium organic garbage into fertilizer that is then packaged and shipped in repurposed plastic containers and cardboard cartons. This fast-paced program will have viewers sweating right along with TerraCycle's 22-year-old founder Tom Szaky as it tracks his company through three stressful years of unceasing effort that finally leads...
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Electricity and heat-two forms of energy that American households and businesses can't do without. More and more consumers and companies are realizing that we can't rely on fossil fuels for these necessities and must switch to renewable sources. This program investigates three main ways in which solar energy is used around the world: solar hot water, photovoltaic solar panels that generate electricity for small consumers, and thermal arrays that use...
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Almost half the world gets its drinking water from rivers that cross national boundaries. Analysts predict that more wars will be fought over water than oil. This program surveys a number of active or potential hot spots: Israel and the river Jordan; the Southeastern Anatolia Project in Turkey and its effects on Syria and Iraq; Egypt's Toshka Canal and the Nile Basin Initiative; and the Tehri dam in India. The program also looks at the effects of...
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Ozone, groundwater contamination, and hazardous waste disposal are only three of the many ecological hurdles to be jumped in the race to save the Earth. This program investigates the major environmental problems facing the United States today and the possible health hazards associated with each. Contributing factors such as rapid resource depletion and an ever-growing population are considered, as well as positive steps that can be taken by communities...
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When it comes to water management, many politicians and technocrats have felt that colossal problems are only solved by colossal projects: dams. But blind faith in concrete can often have devastating effects on communities and the environment. This program examines the positive and negative impact, as well as the politics and economics of several ongoing or proposed projects: China's Three Gorges Dam, Egypt's Mubarak pumping station, pit-mine reclamation...
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If global warming cycles are natural phenomena, why should humans alter their consumption habits and behavior? Have we really accelerated climate change? This program studies the causes of ozone depletion and the buildup of greenhouse gases-examining both sides of the highly politicized issue while making the case that current warming trends are in fact human-caused. Outlining the importance of the greenhouse effect for life on Earth, the video looks...