West Coast Fires, Sen. Ed Markey, Deafness Cures. Sept 18, 2020, Part 1

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🗓️ 18 September 2020

⏱️ 47 minutes

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Summary

Peak wildfire season is just beginning on the West Coast, but 2020 is already another unprecedented year. In California, more than 2.2 million acres have burned so far this year, beating an all-time record of 1.6 million set just two years ago. And in the Pacific Northwest, where Portland’s air quality hit the worst in the world on Monday, raging fires have produced never-before-seen poor air quality that threatens the health of millions. More than 500,000 people in California, Washington and Oregon are under evacuation orders, and dozens of people have died. Kerry Klein of Valley Public Radio in California’s San Joaquin Valley, and Oregon Public Broadcasting reporter Erin Ross talk about the toll of the fires in their regions, the role of climate change and other factors, and what the rest of the fire season may bring. Plus, with record heat and fires raging in the American west, and the Gulf Coast facing still more hurricane activity, is climate change becoming a more prominent issue for U.S. voters? Senator Edward J. Markey of Massachusetts thinks so. He recently repelled a primary challenge in what he calls “a referendum on the Green New Deal.” Now, just weeks before the November elections, candidates from both parties are forced to confront hazards worsened by climate change. Senator Markey joins Ira to discuss the Green New Deal, energy options, and environmental policy priorities for this election year—and many years to come.

Transcript

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0:00.0	This is Science Friday. I'm Ira Flato. A bit later in the hour, Senator Ed Markey, sponsor of the Green New Deal, explains why his primary victory shows that climate change is a winning issue with voters in this electoral season.
0:16.2	But first, it's time to check in on the state of science.
0:20.6	This is KERNO, St. Louis Public Radio,
0:23.0	KU. Iowa Public Radio News.
0:25.7	Local science stories of national significance.
0:29.4	And there are perhaps few things more nationally significant
0:32.4	than the dozens of uncontained wildfires
0:35.3	currently burning on the West Coast.
0:37.7	Peak fire season is only just beginning,
0:40.7	and California has already set a new record.
0:43.9	More than 3 million acres burned.
0:46.6	More than half a million people have been under evacuation orders this week,
0:50.6	and in Oregon and Washington, or even wetter,
0:54.1	more temperate regions are burning,
0:56.7	the air quality from smoke has been setting records for both worst in the world this week
1:02.6	and worst ever recorded for those regions.
1:05.9	And here to report on why this season has been so bad, so far, and the toll these fires are taking on the
1:12.4	millions of people who live near them are my guests. Carrie Klein, reporter for Valley Public
1:18.1	Radio in Fresno, California, and Aaron Ross, science reporter for Oregon Public Broadcasting based
1:25.1	in Portland. Welcome back, both of you. Thank you. Hi, thank you.
1:29.7	You're welcome. Carrie, I just set the scene with numbers, records, you name it, but as you've been
1:35.8	covering the creek fire and the San Joaquin Valley, what's it been like for people actually living
	...

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