EDS: An earlier version of this audio and script included a mispronunciation and misspelling of Nate Solmon’s name and an incorrect job title for Joseph Currie in the story about water catchments. The audio and script below have been corrected, but clients who used previous versions are asked to run the correction found here.
- Slug: BC-CNS-CN2Go Weekly Update. Runtime 8:54.
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[Music bed under]
CN2Go Host: This is Cronkite News 2 Go. I’m your host, Deanna Pistono.
[Music fade in/under]
CN2Go Host: On today’s show we talk about health effects as a result of smoke from the fire at Salt River landfill, man made water catchments and Phoenix zoo’s baby ringtails.
HOST INTRO: If you’ve been smelling something off in the last couple of days near Scottsdale and Phoenix, it’s not you – it’s the smoke. I spoke with Stacey Mortenson at the American Lung Association about what this smoke could mean for the health of those breathing it in.
DEANNA PISTONO: On Saturday a fire started in a landfill on the Salt River Indian Reservation near North Beeline Highway. Though the fire has been reduced to smolder and smoke, the smoke, according to Stacey Mortenson at the American Lung Association, can still get into your lungs and cause problems.
<<MORTENSON: It has very small particles in it. It can be just a third of the width of a human hair, so you’re not going to feel that you breathed it in, but that very small particle can start to lodge in your lungs.>>
DEANNA PISTONO: And those tiny particles can wreak havoc on your health – even if you’re not a part of a population at higher risk, which includes people with asthma, C-O-P-D, diabetes, and heart disease.
<<MORTENSON: People will experience possible wheezing, shortness of breath. They might find that they’re having difficulty taking a good breath, chest heaviness, lightheadedness, and any dizziness.>>
VOICE TRACK: According to Mortenson, these symptoms could appear up to two days after smoke exposure. Mortenson’s advice for people is to stay indoors, shut windows and fire dampers, and run your air conditioner to circulate healthy air around your house. If you have a condition that puts you at higher risk, Mortenson says, make sure you have your health insurance information and equipment, like medication and delivery devices, close at hand in case you need to leave home. Speak to your doctor if you experience any effects of smoke inhalation. For Cronkite News, I’m Deanna Pistono.
CN2Go Host: The Arizona Department of Environmental Quality website has up to date information on air quality and information about the smoldering fire.. Click on the Air Quality heading for information about Phoenix area conditions.
<<FADE OUT>>
CN2Go Host: Arizona wildlife had to adapt to unprecedented temperatures this recent summer. Kiersten Edgett has more on how Arizona Game and Fish is providing places around Arizona for desert dwellers to get a quick sip of water.
<<nat sound – desert ambi, fade under introduction>>
EDGETT: At the center of all life is water. But, for wildlife in the hot deserts of Arizona, finding it isn’t so easy. That’s where water catchments come in.
Water catchments are systems that collect rainwater and use it to fill a drinking hole for the desert dwellers – everyone from honey bees to Bighorn Sheep use the catchments.
<<nat sound – bees at drinker>>
The catchment looks like a large tin roof on the ground, with one side at a slight incline, known as an apron. Along the lowest side of the apron is a gutter, which feeds any water caught into large tanks below the tin apron.
<<nat sound – water running>>
Water stored in the underground tanks then feeds into and automatically refills a small drinking hole nearby, which looks like a small cement hole with a side ramp for smaller animals to take a drink.
<<fade out water running sound>>
According to Arizona Game and Fish, there are roughly 3000 catchments across Arizona since the start of the program in the 1940’s. The catchments are managed by three different agencies across the state – Arizona Game and Fish, the U.S. Forest Service, and the Bureau of Land Management.
Although some of the water catchment systems are self-sustaining, others require refills using large water trucks, hauling up to 1,700 gallons of water.
<<nat sound – truck pulling up>>
<<Solmon 00:00: The hardest part is figuring out the logistics and then also where we’re going to get the water from.>>
That was Nate Solmon, Habitat Construction Field Crew Supervisor with Arizona Game and Fish. Based on the area the catchment is located, Arizona Game and Fish could get their water from different sources, such as fire departments closest to the catchment sites.
<<Solmon 00:00: Sometimes you know we go we can be all the way up past Kingman or we can be all the way down past Tucson.>>
Solmon’s team that fills the catchments runs on an EIGHT DAY long shift, keeping their gear in the truck and camping near places where catchments may need to be filled.
On an easier day for drivers, they will drive the water truck up to the site, empty the water tank onto the catchment apron, and then wait for the next call to come in. However, for places too difficult to reach using just the water truck, it could require the help of a helicopter.
<<Solmon 00:00: We’ll truck water out, we have to find a staging area, that’s we have to try to get as close to the catchment as we can because obviously helicopters are really expensive. So we get we drive in on two track roads, and we get as far back as we can. And we’ll set those dip tanks down. We’ll fill those up. And then the helicopter hooks, what they call a Bambi Bucket onto the it’s a belly hook, they just put it right onto the bottom of the helicopter a lot what you know the same thing they do for fires.>>
Depending on the temperature, local wildlife and catchment system, Solmon’s team could be taking trips to a specific catchment every four to six weeks.
<< nat sound – water turning on from the truck and running>>
Joseph Currie, Habitat Planning Program Manager with Arizona Game and Fish, says 2023 was different from past years.
<<Currie 00:15: This summer was not as bad for us, for hauling water, and the only reason was because we had that really wet and cool winter and spring.>>
Currie said Arizona Game and Fish hauled an estimated one million gallons of water this year.
<<Currie 00:15: And so that allowed all these to fill up and some of the natural waters to fill up and do their job also. So … we didn’t haul nearly as much as like a couple years ago, where we had a really bad winter AND a really bad summer.>>
During drier years, Arizona Game and Fish could be hauling up to 2.6 million gallons of water. Currie said there was an increase in wildlife using water catchments this year, mainly throughout July and August where Arizona saw record-breaking temperatures.
<<Currie 00:08: Our summers are super hot and dry and populations will fluctuate and die off drastically if we’re not able to give them a stable source of water because water is the most important thing in life.>>
With that in mind, Arizona Game and Fish currently builds one or two new catchments every year, but is primarily focusing on making pre-existing catchments self-sustaining.
<<nat sound – quail in the distance>>
From gambel’s quail to mountain lions, all of Arizona’s wildlife need water.
Reporter’s Last Name: For Cronkite News to Go, I’m Kiersten Edgett.
<<fade out nat sound of quail>>
CN2Go Host: RINGTAILS… DOES THIS RING A BELL?!
NOT MANY KNOW THAT RINGTAILS ARE LEMUR-LOOKING ANIMALS OF THE RACOON FAMILY. THE PHOENIX ZOO WELCOMED TWO NEWBORN RINGTAILS TO THE FAMILY BACK IN MAY. OUR REPORTER MADISON PERALES (Pear-ral-ez), TELLS US MORE ABOUT THESE FURRY MAMMALS.
((**REPORTER**))
AMBI: 5 SECS
<FOOTSTEPS>
OVER THE CREEK…
AMBI: 5 SECS
<CREEK>
PAST THE CONDORS…
AMBI: 5 SECS
<FLAPPING ITS WINGS>
YOU’LL HERE NOTHING BUT SILENCE. THAT’S WHERE YOU’LL FIND THE RINGTAILS. THE TWO THEN NEWBORNS ARE NOW FOUR MONTHS OLD AND ACTIVE AS EVER…BUT NOT IN THE DAYTIME AS THESE ARE NOCTURNAL ANIMALS. THE TWO SIBLINGS WERE NAMED AUSTIN AND SEDONA…JUST LIKE THE CITIES. CARNIVORE KEEPER AT THE PHOENIX ZOO, ALYSSA BARGREN, SAYS THEY LIVE IN THIS ENCLOSED ENVIRONMENT WITH THEIR MOM, SLATE.
((**SOT**))
TRT: 6 SECS
<ALYSSA BARGREN/CARNIVORE KEEPER>
“Slate just kind of knew what to do as soon as the kids were born. Instinct kicked in and she’s been doing a great job.”
AFTER A FEW MONTHS…BARGREN STARTED TO SEE AUSTIN AND SEDONA’S PERSONALITIES PEAK THROUGH.
((**SOT**))
TRT: 18 SECS
<ALYSSA BARGREN/CARNIVORE KEEPER>
“Austin is definitely the more adventurous one. He’s kind of rambunctious. And when we’re in the exhibit, he likes to see what we’re doing. As Sedona kind of just hangs back a little bit and likes to observe she likes to stay in the boxes doesn’t really come out when we’re in there. But she’s, she’s still very personable.”
THESE CREATURES ARE FULL OF FUN FACTS.
((**SOT**))
TRT: 9 SECS
<ALYSSA BARGREN/CARNIVORE KEEPER>
“They’re the Arizona State mammal, which a lot of people don’t realize. These guys have been seen all over the state. They’re kind of an elusive species, so not many people even know they exist.”
GABRIELLA MALAMED…AN A-S-U STUDENT WHO’S BEEN HERE FOR FOUR YEARS…IS ONE OF MANY PEOPLE WHO DIDN’T KNOW ABOUT THE SPECIES.
((**SOT**))
TRT: 10 SECS
<GABRIELLA MALAMED/ASU STUDENT>
“I did not know that ringtails existed nor that they were from Arizona specifically. Based off the pictures of them I’m shocked they’re from the desert. They look like jungle animals, but they look cute.”
MAKE SURE TO VISIT THE RINGTAILS DURING THE PHOENIX ZOO’S REGULAR HOURS.
FOR CRONKITE NEWS TO GO…I’M MADISON PERALES.
((**ANCHOR TAG**))
THE ARIZONA STATE MAMMAL IS KNOWN FOR THE BLACK AND WHITE RINGS ON THEIR TAILS. THE RINGTAILS ARE FOUND AT THE “ARIZONA TRAILS” NEAR THE ENTRANCE OF THE ZOO.
CN2Go Host: And this was your CN2Go. This show was produced by Deanna Pistono. Special thanks to Kiersten Edgett and Madison Perales for their stories in this episode. I’m your host, Deanna Pistono. Until next time!