Down to Earth: Recent Episodes
FRANCE 24 English
We meet the people behind fascinating environmental, health and technological innovations in a bid for sustainable solutions to our changing world. Saturday at 7:20pm. Or you can catch it online from Friday.
Turtles have inhabited our oceans for over 150 million years, ever since dinosaurs roamed the Earth. Yet today, six out of seven living species are considered endangered. They usually live in tropical waters. However, since the late 2000s, one species – the loggerhead sea turtle – has been coming to lay its eggs in the south of France. Scientists believe that this unprecedented phenomenon could be linked to rising global temperatures. The Down to Earth team reports.
From crop failures to shrinking lakes, Europe is increasingly suffering from a lack of water. According to the European Environment Agency, around 30 percent of the continent's population is already affected by shortages. Preventing water leaks has become a priority for many cities. In France, a special dog brigade has been trained to locate leaky pipes. As the dogs are able to detect chlorine, they can pinpoint leaks quickly and efficiently. Our team at Down to Earth reports.
Can man and wolves coexist? Several European countries are grappling with this question, as wolves naturally regain ground across the continent. Switzerland is the latest country that's having to adapt to their return. Wolves were first spotted there in 2012, with their numbers tripling to reach at least 300. Shepherds have since had to face growing attacks, but one NGO has made it its mission to reconcile sheep and wolves, offering a unique service to help. Our Down to Earth team reports.
Around the world, record-shattering temperatures are feeding demand for air conditioning. 135 million individual ACs are sold every year, a figure set to triple by 2050 according to the International Energy Agency. This rush to cool air could in turn become a major driver of electricity consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. In Paris, a little-known network of underground water pipes aims to cool down buildings, without resorting to polluting AC units.
Organisers of the Paris Olympics have promised the event will be "historic for the climate". As part of its climate strategy, the committee established a goal of generating no more than half the planet-warming gases produced by previous Summer Games in London and Rio, pledging to slash emissions in three main categories: construction, transportation and operations. So how is Paris faring, compared to its predecessors? And can a planetary event like the Olympics ever be sustainable?
An Australian environmental activist has become the first person to run the entire length of the Seine River, a total of 848km from its source to the sea, in 30 days. Mina Guli set off on this epic journey last month to draw attention to efforts being made to clean up the Seine, and the need for all cities to restore rivers. The 53-year-old completed her Seine River Run challenge earlier in July, crossing the finishing line in the port city of Le Havre.
Over the next eight years, scientists will study the DNA of 4,500 marine species found along France's coastline and overseas territories. The ATLASea programme aims to collect specimens of fish, mammals and algae whose genomes have never been sequenced before in order to draw up a genetic “map” of underwater life. Researchers hope the database will eventually contribute to the discovery of new molecules for use in medicine, agriculture and other fields.
There's less than a month to go before the Olympics kick off in Paris. It's a big event for athletes but also for chefs, who are getting ready to serve more than 40,000 meals. As part of a pledge to limit greenhouse gas emissions, the Paris Games are set to make history by offering more vegetarian cuisine than any previous edition. The committee says the event's plant-based offering will help halve the carbon footprint of meals, compared to the Rio and London games. Our team at Down to Earth got to have a taste.
Scientists are warning of the growing risk of tropical illnesses spreading due to global warming. As temperatures rise, many places are becoming more hospitable to Asian tiger mosquitoes, which are known to carry and transmit dengue fever, Chikungunya but also Zika. In France, record cases of dengue fever have been reported since the start of 2024. Most of them are in people who had travelled to French overseas territories. Authorities warn this could result in people getting infected in mainland France, in a wave of so-called native cases. The Down to Earth team investigates.
Around the world, food insecurity is on the rise, with the cost of living crisis cutting many households off from nutritious meals. In France's Bordeaux region, 400 people have begun experimenting with a unique food security programme, aiming to make locally-grown food accessible to everyone - regardless of income. Inspired by France's universal healthcare system, the programme could be the premise of a new branch of “social security” for food - with both social and environmental benefits.
Cheese lovers beware: the days of Camembert could be numbered. According to France's National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS), a lack of microbial diversity risks driving the famed French soft cheese to the brink of extinction. Researchers say a single mould strain known as Penicillium camemberti, which is essential for the production of camembert, is now unable to reproduce. This has led to a collapse in its genetic make-up, threatening its survival and that of the iconic cheese along with it. The Down to Earth team reports from France's Normandy region, the home of Camembert.
Asian hornets were first detected on French soil in 2004, and the invasive species has since spread rapidly across the country and the rest of Europe, including Germany, Spain and the UK. Asian hornets are known to be a major cause of high bee mortality, with entire colonies wiped out in as little as several days. Earlier this month, the French government launched a nationwide strategy to combat their proliferation. Beekeepers have also had to adapt in order to protect their hives. The Down to Earth team reports from France's western Finistère peninsula.
April 22 marks Earth Day, and this year's theme is "Planet vs. Plastics". Over the past 60 years, around 7 billion tons of plastic have been produced, according to the UN. But only around 10 percent of it has been recycled. Initiatives are flourishing around the world to tackle the waste crisis, including new technology to improve recycling rates. French startup Carbios has developed an alternative method to mechanical recycling, using plastic-chewing enzymes to break down polyethylene, one of the most common single-use plastics in the world. The Down to Earth team visited their demonstration plant in Clermont-Ferrand.
As the Spanish region of Catalonia battles its worst drought on record, activists are beginning to question Barcelona's mass tourism model. Should Spain's most visited city be allowed to welcome even more tourists this summer amid a state of emergency? The Down to Earth team takes a closer look.
Pumping industrial emissions into the depths of the Earth's crust – is it a silver bullet to pump the breaks on climate change? Norway says yes, as it prepares to launch the world’s first cross-border carbon storage facility. But will it cut global emissions? Or just greenwash and prolong the same old polluting practices?
The Paris metro is one of the oldest underground railway networks in the world. Every day, 4 million people in the French capital rely on its services. But could Parisians be unknowingly exposing themselves to toxic levels of air pollution? The Down to Earth team takes a closer look.
In France's eastern Lorraine region, scientists have uncovered vast deposits of natural hydrogen, one of the cleanest fuels in nature. The discovery could be the biggest of its kind so far, spurring a global energy race for the fuel of the future. The Down to Earth team takes a closer look.
Where life cannot be sustained, some plant species show astounding resilience against toxic contaminants. Could they help us clean up pollution? The Down to Earth team investigates.
As the UN's annual climate summit gets underway in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, one underlying question is set to top the agenda: can the world finally agree to ditch fossil fuels? Down to Earth takes a closer look.
One year on from the historic wildfires that decimated the woodlands of Gironde in south-western France, the bark beetle is adding insult to injury. Bark beetle larvae usually feed off the sap of dead trees, but after the fires left so many trees weakened, it's been a field day for the insect, which is now proliferating at an alarming rate. It's now a race against time to save what can be saved – to evacuate dead or infected trees from the area, in the hope of protecting their neighbours. The Down to Earth team reports.
Last August, a massive rockfall in France's Maurienne valley brought traffic to a standstill between France and Italy. Nearly 16,000 cubic metres of rock suddenly tumbled down the mountain, damaging a highway and train tracks down below.
Their carbon-absorbing properties have made trees crucial climate allies. But for how long? As extreme climate conditions accelerate their decline, forests are losing their ability to act as carbon sinks by soaking up planet-warming gases. In France, some have even turned into a source of carbon. In this edition of Down to Earth, we meet with scientists as they try to piece together the sequence of factors contributing to the decline of French forests and carbon sequestration.
As cities expand, demand for land continues to grow. But that same land provides vital services to humans, such as agriculture. Nature and urbanisation are two sides of the same coin. Can they ever be reconciled? Or is urban sprawl inevitable? The Down to Earth team takes a closer look at the situation in France.
They produce twice as much oxygen in the Mediterranean as the Amazon rainforest. They are often confused with algae. But seagrasses, known as "posidonia" in the Mediterranean, are plants that are crucial to our planet. Yet they are under threat. Scientists believe the Mediterranean has lost 14 percent of its seagrass meadows over the past 100 years. Tourism, boats dragging their anchors and pollution have driven the rapid decline of this ancient, carbon-absorbing plant.
The healthcare sector accounts for around 4 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions. That's equivalent to the annual emissions of France, Germany and Brazil combined. Medical staff and the healthcare industry are gradually embracing the objective of reducing the sector's contribution to global warming. But the task remains daunting. The Down to Earth team takes a closer look.
Dry rivers, thirsty villages and depleted groundwater reserves: as water supply grows ever more uncertain, France is gearing up for another dry summer. But the country has a game plan for survival: share, reuse and save a dwindling resource. The Down to Earth team takes a closer look.
Swimming in the Seine has long been forbidden but taking a dip in the iconic river could soon become a reality. Just in time for the 2024 Summer Olympics, Paris has embarked on its most ambitious bid yet to clean up one the world’s busiest waterways.
With microplastic pollution invading our oceans and the soil, few places have been spared. Could it also enter the food chain? Scientists in the Netherlands are beginning to uncover the tip of the iceberg – so far, with more questions than answers.
It could almost be the scene of a picture postcard: old boats dotted around the French coastline, moving with the tide. But their environmental impact is a lot less charming. Most boats are made of fibreglass, plastics and resins, making them difficult to recycle. But is there another way? Can sustainable boating set sail? We take a closer look in this edition of Down to Earth.
They can be found on raincoats, non-stick pans and plastic packaging. In the last 50 years, PFAS – short for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances – have made their way into many of our everyday objects. Dubbed "forever chemicals", they're extremely persistent and can stay in the air, water and soil for decades, harming the environment and ultimately our health. Is PFAS pollution irreversible? And what can we do to protect ourselves? We take a closer look in the edition of Down to Earth.
It has ravaged farms, decimated wild birds and spilled onto mammals. Could avian flu spark the next human pandemic? The Down to Earth team takes a closer look.
Billions of tiny plastic beads, known as nurdles, have been washing up on beaches in the north of Spain and along France’s Atlantic coast. This is the result of industrial pollution on a massive scale. To understand how this form of pollution has gone undetected for so long, the Down to Earth team traveled to Tarragona, Spain, where massive nurdle spills have been reported.
If you think fishing nets are made of natural rope, think again — they're made of plastic. Every year, some 80,000 km² of nets are lost and abandoned at sea. As they drift aimlessly, these so-called "ghost nets" litter the ocean floor and trap nearly everything in their path. We take a closer look in this Edition of Down to Earth.
Lithium has become a vital component for the batteries that power electric cars. But with neither mines nor refineries on its soil, can Europe break its dependence on foreign imports? The Down to Earth team takes a closer look.
Wolves were once the stuff of myths. But decades of conservation efforts have gradually brought them back to life, with the predator reclaiming lost territory across Europe. Their return, though, has sparked tensions within rural communities and questions over how man and wolf can peacefully coexist. The Down to Earth team takes a closer look.
Modern wind turbines are growing taller, bigger and more powerful. They offer the potential for reliable, abundant energy. But what happens to the ageing fleet? The industry is now scrambling to avoid a waste problem, giving old turbines a second lease of life. The Down to Earth team takes a closer look.
The constant rumble of traffic and people brings cities to life. But is it also making us sick? The ill-effects of noise pollution are now well documented, with cities declaring open war on the not-so-silent killer. The Down to Earth team takes a closer look.
This summer, an unprecedented marine heatwave hit the Mediterranean Sea, causing mass die-offs of marine life. Will ecosystems ever recover? The Down to Earth team takes a closer look.
Rising gas and oil prices have plunged Europe into its worst energy crisis in decades. France has been hit hard, but perhaps not for the reasons you would expect. Nuclear and hydroelectric power, the country's main sources of electricity, are both running out of steam. Has the French energy mix hit a breaking point? We take a closer look in this edition of Down to Earth.
This weekend, the United Nation's climate change conference COP27 kicks off in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt. Losses from climate-related disasters are on the rise, and the question of who will foot the bill is likely to dominate discussions. Developing nations, bearing the brunt of the crisis, won't shy away from demanding that richer countries pay up. In this special edition of Down to Earth, we take a closer look at the growing rift between the North and global South.
Over the past century, city streets have been optimised for motor vehicles. In Berlin, for example, nearly 60 percent of the traffic space is devoted to cars, which account for just a third of journeys, while only 3 percent is set aside for bicycles, even though they make up for 15 percent of journeys.
Tiny and insidious, microalgae are multiplying along our coastlines. Although vital to our survival, some 200 out of 5,000 species studied are harmful to people and ecosystems. As global warming intensifies the problem, our oceans may be growing ever more toxic. The Down to Earth team investigates.
Between July and August, the south-western French region of Gironde was hit by major wildfires, destroying nearly 30,000 hectares of forest. The magnitude and fury of the blaze shocked the country, with many now using the term megafire to describe the disaster. So has France entered a new era of megafires? We take a closer look in this edition of Down to Earth.
The summer of 2022 has seen unprecedented droughts that have ravaged crops, threatening the livelihoods of millions across the world. France wasn't spared, with almost all departments facing water restrictions. Increasingly, farmers are turning to water reservoirs, a method decried by environmentalists. In this episode of Down to Earth we travel to western France, where tensions are mounting over the management of water supplies.
Nearly a quarter of Paris' house sparrows have vanished in less than 15 years. It's a global phenomenon that baffles scientists and conservationists. In London, Hamburg and Amsterdam, the species is also in free-fall. We take a closer look.
It sounds like an effortless solution to one of humanity's greatest challenges: using trees as a tool to capture carbon dioxide. As the climate crisis deepens, countries and companies have embarked on a global tree-planting spree. But could they end up doing more harm than good?
Bottom trawling is often singled out by scientists and activists as one of the world's most destructive fishing techniques. It's prevalent in European waters. Nothing escapes the vast nets: fish, crustaceans, but also coral reefs and seagrass beds. Wherever trawlers go, the ocean floor turns into a desert. In this edition of Down to Earth we head to Spain, where bottom trawling is rife, even in marine protected areas.
The word sand usually conjures up images of a holiday on the beach. But the fine grains also happen to be a precious commodity. Humans extract 50 billion tonnes of sand and gravel every year, making it the second most exploited resource on the planet. Can the world keep digging for more? The Down to Earth team investigates.
Throughout history, Venetians have learned to live with high tides, known as acqua alta. But now, climate change is taking its toll on the ancient city, with flooding increasing in both frequency and intensity. Massive barriers, which temporarily separate the Venetian lagoon from the sea, have been designed to fend off the water. But they have also raised a difficult question: should Venice save itself or the lagoon’s fragile ecosystem?
Coal mining has long polluted the natural environment, with devastating consequences. But today, could it be a source of renewable energy? Down to Earth travels to the UK where disused, flooded coal mines are now reservoirs of geothermal energy.
Europe is at a crossroads. Amid the war in Ukraine, can the continent wean itself off Russian gas? An energy transition is underway, but the alternatives could lock countries into dirty fossil fuels for years to come. We take a closer look in this edition of Down to Earth.
Since the 20th century, European rivers have been dammed and diverted for the sake of generating renewable energy. But the concrete walls have left an indelible mark, upending entire ecosystems. Migratory fish species in particular are paying the price. Atlantic salmon can no longer find they way back to their home streams to spawn, pushing the species to the brink of extinction. Should dams be torn down in the name of biodiversity? We take a closer look in this edition of Down to Earth.
Scientists have issued a stark warning: chemical pollution has officially exceeded the limits safe for humans and the planet. The ocean, which has become a dumping ground for a cocktail of toxic pollutants, is bearing the brunt of this pollution. We take a closer look in this edition of Down to Earth.
Parched soil and empty reservoirs aren't just warning signs of droughts in the summer, they’re also becoming the new normal in the early days of winter. Can science or nature help farmers endure future dry spells? We take a closer look in this edition of Down to Earth.
As climate change takes its toll, warm winter and unreliable snow are now the new reality. Will skiing become a relic of the past? Ski resorts can improvise and adapt, but can they survive? We take a closer look in this edition of Down to Earth.
Nature has its very own information storage technology: DNA. For millions of years, the double helix has been the primary code for all living things. But could DNA also become the ultimate storage solution for our digital information? We take a closer look in this edition of Down to Earth.
Fungi are normally associated with the forest floor and, yes, mould. In reality, they are fascinating living beings with hidden superpowers. Whether it's detoxifying polluted soil, or even replacing fossil fuels, mushrooms could be an invaluable ally for the planet. In this episode of Down to Earth, we meet the scientists and entrepreneurs working to unlock their full potential.
From the construction industry to car manufacturing, steel is everywhere. It's the most commonly used metal, but also a major source of greenhouse gas emissions. In this edition of Down to Earth, we take a closer look at what can be done to clean up one of our dirtiest industries.
Flash floods engulfing cities and washing away entire communities are yet another reminder of the climate crisis. But are we bound to live with the ever-present danger of deadly downpours? And how can cities prepare for the next big disaster? We take a closer look in this edition of Down to Earth.
Last year, this Scottish archipelago produced more electricity from green sources than it can use. Its secret? The power of tides, waves and wind.
The Netherlands is one of Europe's largest per capita emitters of greenhouse gases and the livestock industry is largely to blame. Home to 4 million cows, the country is now under pressure to tackle methane emissions but also a so-called nitrogen crisis ravaging ecosystems. The government is even considering plans to reduce livestock numbers. We take a closer look in this edition of Down to Earth.
It's been billed as the most consequential climate summit since the Paris agreement. Is COP26 in Glasgow our last chance to rein in global warming? We take a closer look in this special edition of Down to Earth.
As temperatures continue to rise, climate change is turning glaciers into lakes. In the Alps, glacial lake outbursts are no longer a distant threat but a reality.
An electrified highway, with infrastructure similar to that used in a tram, is being billed as one of the solutions to reduce the heavy toll of carbon emissions linked to long-haul transport. Electronic giant Siemens has already built the technology on several stretches of German highways, enabling trucks to charge their batteries while they drive. The Down to Earth team went to see how it works.
When China suddenly announced in 2017 that it would no longer accept foreign waste, Poland quickly became a new dumping group for European trash. The Down to Earth team takes a closer look at an illegal business that's more lucrative than narcotics.
Around the world, wetlands are still disappearing three times faster than forests, erasing entire ecosystems. While tropical rainforests are often called the lungs of the Earth, wetlands are described as the kidneys. They can absorb large quantities of water, filtering pollutants and helping to prevent floods. They have also become key allies in the fight against climate change, as they can capture CO2 from the atmosphere. In this episode of Down to Earth, we explore what is being done to bring damaged wetlands back to life.
From fast fashion to haute couture, the textiles industry has a dark secret: mountains of unsold clothes, destroyed before they see the light of day.