Return to Transcripts main page

CNN 10

Headlines From Nicaragua to New York; Look At the U.S. Presidential Cabinet; Report on Benefits of Kelp Farming. Aired 4-4:10a ET

Aired November 20, 2020 - 00:04   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

CARL AZUZ, CNN 10 ANCHOR: A trio of headlines, headline today`s show well that`s make that a (inaudible) because number one is Friday`s are awesome.

I`m Carl Azuz. It`s great to have you spending part of your Friday with us. We start in Central America where people are trying to recover from

Hurricane Iota. It struck Nicaragua Caribbean coast as a Category 4 storm this week about two weeks after the Category 4 Hurricane Eta made landfall

there. When it blew ashore, Iota`s sustained wind speeds were 155 miles per hour. Just two miles per hour shy of Category 5 status, the strongest

hurricane classification. Iota killed at least 26 people across Nicaragua, Honduras, Guatemala and Columbia and though its wind speeds have died down.

Iota`s rain still threatened to bring flash flooding, river flooding and mudslides to Central America.

Officials say the storm affected more than 400,000 in Nicaragua alone. In the United States, students watching this show from New York City are

likely watching from home. The nation`s largest public-school system was one of the first to resume in-person learning this fall but less than eight

weeks afterward the number of coronavirus cases reached a level that triggered another school shutdown in New York City. State officials are

expected to close gyms and indoor restaurants there in the days ahead. The pandemic has also had a major impact on the airline industry, but the

aerospace company Boeing just found out it`s 737 Max planes are back on track to fly in America. The 737 Max is Boeing`s bestselling jet, but U.S.

regulators grounded the model in March of 2019 after computer problems caused two of the planes to crash killing 356 people.

Boeing has updated the plane`s software and made other changes. The Federal government says after additional safety measures are taken. The planes will

be able to resume some domestic flights in America. The U.S. airlines allowed travelers to change their plane if they still don`t want to fly on

a 737 Max. Next story today focuses on the U.S. Executive Branch. President Donald Trump says he still has a clear path to victory as his campaign

disputes election results in several states. But states are moving toward certifying their vote totals and American media project that Joe Biden is

the U.S. President-elect. He hasn`t announced his nominees yet for important cabinet jobs, but CNN 10 contributor Kelly Mena explores what

those positions are all about. Kelly.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KELLY MENA, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Thanks Carl. Today, we`re going to be taking a look at the presidential cabinet. A group of individuals who advise the

president. The presidential cabinet is made up of 15 executive departments including the vice-president. Each (inaudible) known as a secretary like

the Secretary of Transportation or the Secretary of Education, with the exception of the Justice Department which is known as the Attorney General.

Cabinet members are chosen by the president and confirmed by the U.S. Senate. The cabinet members departments are important to the running of the

country and each secretary will advise the president based on their area of expertise.

The presidential cabinet dates back to the first President George Washington who had a group of four trusted advisors including Thomas

Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton. These advisors are usually nominated around December and January and the full cabinet won`t be confirmed until a

few months into the new administration. In recent presidencies, at least one chosen cabinet member will be withdrawn before being confirmed. Carl,

though President-elect Joe Biden has started to fill out portions of his cabinet it will be interesting to see the final line up of chosen advisors.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

AZUZ: 10 Second Trivia. The substance algin which is used to make everything from candy to car tires is found in what? Milk, petroleum,

bamboo or kelp. Brown algae, aka, kelp is a major source of algin.

Though the uses for brown seaweed are expanding worldwide, the kelp farming industry is not a big one and some scientists say farms need to be

monitored as they grow because on a large scale they could affect and possibly harm the local marine environment. And they could harm communities

that become dependent on growing kelp if the crop were to become diseased for example. These pros and cons are mirrored in using kelp or seaweed as a

food source.

It contains a lot of nutrients and a lot of minerals but some researchers are concerned that eating too much of it, especially on a regular basis

could give people too much iodine which can cause health problems of it`s own. So farming kelp is not an answer to all the world`s problems. Though

those who do it count many benefits.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is Rathlin Island. It`s the northern most point of Northern Ireland, has a population of around 150 people and it`s the

site of one the UKs few kelp farms. And this is Kate Ferns (ph) who founded Island of Rathlin kelp visiting kelp farms in Maine, USA.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I just look at the scientists doing something in a lab with seaweed. So it wasn`t until I saw it as a (inaudible) and then also

working with fishermen. (inaudible) working with fishermen thing that really clicked with me.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Kelp is something of a wonder crop. It absorbs large amount of CO2.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Actually, good for the environment when you grow it. No fertilizers. No pesticides, herbicides.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It`s nutritious. Kelp and other seaweeds have as much protein gram by gram as beef and are one of the few non-animal sources of

Vitamin B-12. On top of all that, growing it creates beneficial ecosystems for marine life.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: To produce a food with -- with such food value. It`s surprising how much (inaudible) people talk of it, seaweed and seaweed

(inaudible) food but actually when you look for it on menus and when you look for it in shops. It`s still not there.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The United Nations stated that seaweeds like kelp have unmatched potential in tackling global issues such as food insecurity and

climate change but growing them is not easy. Firstly, the conditions need to be right.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Kelp likes to grow between seven degrees and 12 degrees is ideal. But because of the Gulf Stream, we have sea temperatures

here generally between seven and 12, 12 months of the year.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Kelp is not actually a plant but an algae. So, baby kelp, or spores have to be collected and grown to feed the kelp lines.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: So, this the lab, (inaudible) nursery and this is where we do the cultivation in here off -- off the young-- of the young

kelp plants. These have been growing for about 35 days and the kelp plants is about 2 millimeters long. Millions of kelp plants and those are ready to

go out to sea.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Kelp is amongst the fastest growing organisms on Earth. Some species can grow upwards of two feet per day.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: So, we would go out a kelp line, it`s usually about 100 meters. So you`re talking about a ton of kelp coming off of that and --

and so we maybe would have somewhere between 16 and 20 rope sites.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Although seaweed has been growing throughout history, the industry today is still fledgling but growing rapidly. Doubling in size

between 2005 and 2015 and it currently produces over 30 million tons a year. But growing things that are thousands of potential farmers in

struggling fishing villages who could help expand the industry.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (inaudible) what`s really important is that we as a small community here have -- have done something amazing and we`re -- we`re

proof it could work under the most challenging circumstances. Really (inaudible) resources but we`ve created jobs and we`ve created an industry.

It needs to take off. It`s such an important food stock and such a sustainable food stock and such a useful resource for -- for coastal

communities.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

AZUZ: In New York City tradition, a 75-foot-tall Christmas tree recently arrived at Rockefeller Center. What`s not traditional was what was inside,

this guy. A worker found him while setting up the tree. Officials say the saw wet owl probably got trapped when the tree was being tied up for

transport. They named him Rockefeller. He`s not seriously hurt and after Rockefeller fully recovers at a wildlife center. He`ll be set free.

Say what? No saw wet. Saw what? A saw wet owl. Who saw "wet"? I "saw wet". Soon he`ll be a "Freebird". This winter, he`ll be a "snowbird". He`s been

involved in quite a "flap" and we don`t know if he`ll be "be" but we are glad folks were on hand to help a "feller" like Rockefeller. I`m Carl Azuz.

Today`s shout out goes somewhere new like New Brockton High School. It`s in New Brockton, Alabama. Great to have you guys on our You Tube channel. We

will be back next Monday and Tuesday before we`re off the rest of the week for the Thanksgiving holiday. So CNN 10 will be "CNNin" you then.

END