Return to Transcripts main page
CNN 10
Zero COVID Protests In China; Exploring A Crypto Mine. Aired 4-4:10a ET
Aired December 01, 2022 - 04:00:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
COY WIRE, CNN 10 ANCHOR: Hello, lovely people. Can you believe it`s December 1st already? I swear it feels like it was just November yesterday.
But no, just like that, only one month remaining in this year, so let`s make it great. I`m Coy Wire. This is CNN 10.
And we`re starting with news out of China today, where protesters are taking to the streets in a rare display of defiance against the country`s
ruling communist party. The people are rising up against the zero COVID policy, a strategy that China has been using to limit the spread of COVID.
But while the policy has kept China`s virus levels lower than other large countries, it`s placed millions of people under lockdown and quarantine,
limiting their access to food medicine and family. It`s also hurting the economy and restricting travel.
Anger boiled over last week when a fire in an apartment building killed at least 10 people. Some believe the tragic deaths could have been prevented
were it not for the anti-virus restrictions that may have prevented first responders from arriving more quickly.
The authorities aren`t messing around when it comes to shutting down the demonstrations and acts of defiance online as well. Hundreds of armored
vehicles have been deployed to the streets. Authorities have vowed to, quote, strike hard if necessary. The number of people detained as a result
of the resistance is not known at this time but the punishment for protesting in China can be severe.
Senior international correspondent Ivan Watson has more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): China`s police state strikes back, flooding the streets of Beijing and Shanghai
with police, an unmistakable show of force after a weekend of unprecedented protest in at least 15 cities across the country.
In the eastern city of Hangzhou Monday night, police arrested people in a central square. And an eyewitness tells CNN police searched people`s phones
on the Shanghai subway, looking for apps that allow users to circumvent Shanghai`s strict Internet censorship.
The communist party`s domestic security committee ordering officials to resolutely strike hard against infiltration and sabotage activities by
hostile forces, as well as criminal activities that destabilized social order. No compromise for peaceful protesters to voice their opinion.
Meanwhile, health officials striking a slightly softer tone, calling for shorter lockdowns in the Chinese government campaign to eradicate COVID-19.
CHENG YOUQUAN, CHINESE CTR. FOR DISEASE CONTROL & PREVENTION (through translator): We need to minimize the inconvenience to the general public
because of the anti-COVID-19 measures. As for the high-risk regions, we must have rigorous control. But at the same time, we should spare no effort
to provide services to meet people`s basic living needs and medical needs.
WATSON: A carrot and stick approach from different parts of the Chinese state, after the biggest nationwide display of discontent that this tightly
controlled country has seen in a generation.
Ivan Watson, CNN, Hong Kong.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WIRE: Next up, we`re going inside a cryptocurrency mine. Unlike the dollar, the euro, yen, franc or pound that you can put in your pocket,
cryptocurrency is completely digital. It`s created with encrypted computer algorithms.
Many experts are quick to point out the issues with crypto, though, including market instability bankruptcies lawsuits and how it can actually
harm the environment because the computers give off massive amounts of heat. That`s why they`re stored in crypto mines.
We`ll go now to northern Sweden with CNN reporter Anna Stewart who`s found a mind that may be more sustainable for the environment if their plans to
use the heat to grow things we can eat come to fruition.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANNA STEWART, CNN REPORTER: Well, this is what a crypto currency mine looks like the frozen rows of computers, in fact, there are 116,000 here.
As you can hear, it sounds pretty noisy, and I can say that it feels really hot up close to these machines. There`s about a 30 degrees centigrade
difference though between here and here under one of the big bends where you`re getting the cold air from outside. So, you can feel the energy that
is coming out of these lots of power a small city, one of the reasons crypto mining can be just so controversial.
But that is why Hive Blockchain Technologies have set up shops here in the north of Sweden. Come take a look why.
Outside, some 500 meters along the River Lulea is a hydrogen power plant, a source of abundant cheap and renewable energy.
JOHANNA THORNBLAD, PRESIDENT, HIVE BLOCKCHAIN TECHNOLOGIES: This is the energy that is powering the Boden community and our data center that is
located just nearby so this is also one of the main reasons that Hive has decided to bet on the Boden community.
STEWART: Given Europe is in an energy crisis, there will be people that think this is renewable energy. Should it be used for crypto mining?
Shouldn`t it be used to power people`s homes and industry, keep lights on in hospitals? What do you say to them?
THORNBLAD: There are not enough inhabitants or companies to use all the energy that is available, so the community of Boden was inviting data
centers to come to use this renewable stranded energy really.
STEWART: One crypto mining company is not just turning a profit in the midst of a crypto winter but also trying to forge a greener future, there
are nearer term plans to turn the excess heat from the crypto mining into something more fruitful.
THORNBLAD: In the spring, we`re going to support a Swedish company called Actira (ph). So they`re building a huge, big greenhouse just at the back of
our data center. And so, we will have tomatoes and cucumbers grown all year round in the very north of Sweden.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
WIRE: Ten-second trivia:
What is the geographical region at the base of South America which covers parts of Chile and Argentina?
Colombia, Patagonia, Marmot, or North Face?
Patagonia is your answer here, a nature lover`s paradise where you could hike the Andes Mountains.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WIRE: Next, we head to Patagonia on the Chilean side, home to some of the most tantalizing topography and wondrous wildlife on the planet. The remote
and rugged coastline region in south America is known for its gorgeous glaciers, beautiful lakes and rivers. But this region may be in danger.
We`ll meet Vreni Haussermann now, a marine biologist studying the wildlife in the region.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
VRENI HAUSSERMANN, MARINE BIOLOGIST, SAN SEBASTIAN UNIVERSITY: For me, Patagonia is the most beautiful part of Chile. It`s a very remote, very
wild and rugged coastline. Full of green forest, temperate rainforest, has lots of glaciers, rivers, lakes and the coast is very steep.
The marine life came from deep waters but also from adjacent areas and so the diversity we find in fjords is elevated compared to other coastlines.
My name is Vreni Haussermann. I`m a scientist working at the University of San Sebastian and I`m studying the marine biodiversity of Chilean
Patagonia.
Diving in Patagonia, we found many species that haven`t been described before. The coastline is more than 100,000 kilometers, which is twice
around the world. Only a handful of scientists working there.
So even if we studied all the main areas, there are still most parts that we don`t know yet.
Chilean Patagonia was free of human impact for a long time, but in the `80s when aquaculture moved in, it started to be impacted. Life in the fjords
has been reduced in abundance. There are species we hardly don`t find anymore.
By impacting an area where we know very little about, we always have the risk that we are damaging ecosystems and the equilibrium of the ecosystems
is lost.
I hope that humanity understands the need of protect our planet. I hope humanity understands the need of protecting the oceans and our lives and
the lives of all future generations depend on a healthy ocean and a healthy planet.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WIRE: And for today`s 10 out of 10, a reminder that it`s never too late to right a wrong.
In Minnesota, a library book was finally returned after being checked out 47 years ago. For decades, a Mercedes-Benz repair manual was missing from
the shelves but earlier this month, it was mailed back with 200 bucks and an anonymous handwritten note saying that the sender had been fixing their
car and although they probably couldn`t afford the late fees maybe the library could buy a new book instead.
Hope that dude finally got his car fixed.
And you know I went to a bookstore the other day and saw a book called "How to End 50 Percent of Your Problems". So, I bought two.
Shout out time now. Hanover Online School in Ashland, Virginia, thanks for subscribing typing and commenting on our YouTube channel. And thanks for
all the love, @CoyWire on Instagram, Snapchat, and TikTok. It is Thursday. So happy Friday eve people.
My team and I are already working on a plan to finish this week strong with you right here on CNN 10.
END
