Hello Thanks for joining For this edition of Sustaining US here on KLC s PBS I'm David Huizar Are we prepared for a monster Earthquake here in Southern California Say for example of seven or eight Point temblor somewhere like downtown L.A. Santa Monica The San Fernando Valley where millions of people live a Quake of this magnitude in a dense urban setting could cause Catastrophic injury and death and economic damage never witnessed Before However what if there are a way for us to Possibly avoid some of the carnage Well the United States Geological Survey in Pasadena is working to do just That California's famous For its great weather majestic mountains and amazing Beaches California's infamous For its earthquakes The two most Notorious Templars are still the 1986 San Francisco earthquake And the 1994 Northridge earthquake because of the massive Ocean and loss of life In July of 2019 the Golden State Was hit with a seven magnitude quake The ridge crest Earthquake however the epicenter was about 120 miles northeast Of Los Angeles a far distance from any major urban area So fortunately there were no injuries or lives lost We have earthquakes Every day in Southern California 20 to 30 earthquakes somewhere and we Feel some of we don't It's a matter of of just when it's going to Happen not a matter of if so we want people to be as ready As possible Robert de Groot is a scientist with the United States Geological Survey or USGS The group studies everything From earthquakes and earthquake behavior to risk reduction in quake preparedness He says California is due for a catastrophic temblor The big event that really put California On notice in recent times as the 1994 magnitude Six point seven Northridge earthquake It was an event that happened In a very highly populated region of the San Fernando Valley And it really put us on notice about how earthquakes Can affect very densely populated regions and the One message takeaway message from this particular earthquake of course is it wasn't The big one It was a moderately sized earthquake so it actually Did a considerable amount of damage in a number of different areas There were Something the order 57 deaths and Many billions of dollars of damage We are going to have the big Earthquake at some point in the future And so anything we Can do now anything we can do to reduce the risk to that earthquake At this point will determine how we're able to recover From that event So anything that we can build Into our resiliency toolbox into our sustainability tool Box will allow us to be much more effective once The earthquake is over USGS is building something In the hopes of sustaining us when the next massive quake hits Scientists have developed an earthquake early warning system for the United States West Coast designed specifically to target California As well as Oregon and Washington It's known as Shakil or About half the project has been completed using decades of earthquake Science and a network of sensors to monitor for the earliest Sign of a quake before sending you a warning Shakil Can give seconds and in some cases tens of seconds of Advanced earthquake warning depending upon how close or how far Where you live From a fault line the shaking earthquake early warning system Works on the principle of using seismic stations basically Seismometers in the field and when the system is complete We're looking at about one thousand six hundred seventy five stations That will allow the system to be to be fully active And the idea is you pick up the earthquake in the field Once that information Is collected they're sent immediately to a series of processing centers And from there at alert is generated in The alert gets distributed So we need to be able to detect it and Then decide whether or not an alert needs to be issued and then We get the word out to folks So one of the really Things that distinguishes shake alert from other alerting Systems is the fact that everything is automatic And then Once that alert is issued by the USGS Then it's distributed through a whole variety of pathways One of which could potentially be the integrated public Alert warning system or IPOs which is operated by FEMA And that message would show up on your phone much like an Amber Alert massive Shows up currently Our motto is by every means Available so delivery of Sheikh alerts Would be potentially on your cell phone on your car radio On your television It could come through reverse 9 1 1 Many ways possible because your phone might be turned off So the idea Is to get the message out USGS says that message Must be heard loudly and clearly in part because of the Dangerous San Andreas fault line threatening California San Andreas Fault starts way north of the city of San Francisco And actually cuts just west of the city of The peninsula and goes south through San Jose a to the west Of San was a down through the part of central California along the coast Goes through behind the San Gabriel Mountains near Los Angeles And then goes through San Bernardino ultimately Through places like Palm Springs and then Exits around the Salton Sea If you think of Southern California Much like a shattered windshield of a car we have many Many many faults in part of the reason is is the San Andreas Fault Has a kink in it a bend It's called the Big Bend That is effectively shattered the crust Of Southern California and produced many hundreds of faults And they're all capable of producing earthquakes Here's Just a sample of some of those hundreds of faults in Pasadena USGS is located there is the Raymond Fault which works its way Through that city then traveling west where the Raymond fault morphs into the Hollywood Fault here on the corner of Hollywood and bind the hill where the iconic Capital records building is located was produced from the Hollywood fault If you travel even farther west into West Los Angeles on Santa Monica Boulevard the Hollywood fault is now the Santa Monica fault And if you've ever driven through this part of the city you're familiar with the Well-known Los Angeles Mormon Temple which sits directly above The Santa Monica fault on that grassy hill the Santa Monica fault Wind its way through the historic Veterans Administration property near the corner Of Wilshire and Support Villa in West L.A.

Some of these faults Loop through miles of Southern California City's Earthquakes are one of our main focus Chloe asks why Ryan Arbor was formerly with a seismic hazards Program at Callaway yes the California Office of Emergency Services in Sacramento Callow yes coordinates mutual Aid across the state when there's a disaster working with local and state agencies And FEMA Arbus says shakily it is all about resiliency And sustainability We have the secular technology That allows us once an earthquake begun to detect The earthquake at its earliest stages and to send an alert before shaking occurs So because earthquakes are infrequent which we're very fortunate For but we know they're going to happen This will hopefully just give us that extra Boost so that everybody can receive that alert Take that protective action before the shaking starts Overarching all of That is the concept of being resilient and it's it's a way Of empowering our communities in order to Take responsibility for that and to make sure that they're Safe during that so what secular does not only for those Individuals but also allows these large systems that our society Relies on the electric grid natural gas Water other transportation routes in And out for say all of our goods or goods Come into a port they go to other parts of the country or they come in from other parts of the country All of those different segments of society have an opportunity Shake alert to look at their operations potentially introduce an Automated shut off which could then help resume the Services faster This isn't the magic solution It's not going to It's not going to save everything That said it will save Some people's lives and will prevent a lot of injuries and hopefully it'll prevent a lot of Damage as well And that's important enough to us and especially The sustainable future of California that California State government is investing in this We're working with everyone to get this Online as soon as possible We're looking at in terms Of destruction as thousands of lives lost in this earthquake Destruction across southern California It's about two hundred ten Billion dollars of losses of this magnitude seven point eight earthquake Give you a sense of the shaking that went on during the Northridge earthquake You're talking maybe somebody's order of 10 to 15 seconds of shaking Whereas this earthquake will have shaking that's going to last for two and a half Minutes Really And if you've ever driven around downtown recently you've noticed All the new towers and skyscrapers around Staples Center in that area There are in fact more tall tower projects being built Here in L.A. County than almost any other major urban U.S.

Question is are they safe Well joining me Now to discuss is how Bastion how is Executive Vise President of Major Properties and he's one of the leaders Of the downtown L.A. Renaissance for over twenty five years Thanks for Being here Hal It's great to be with you David So there Is your question are these monster towers safe Yes There you go You said yeah you In all seriousness I've been in downtown since 1990 for And we're in a place with pretty big buildings relative To New York and Shanghai We don't have a lot of tall buildings But the issue is that we have great Engineering that has been going on all over the world for For earthquake earthquake engineering for tall buildings And so this isn't our first time to the rodeo and buildings are built With lots of thought mind because people that build buildings don't want People Obviously Every area of the country how has Their natural disasters Would you rather have a hurricane A wildfire or an earthquake because those buildings Listen those are tall buildings Well I'll tell you what I have been here since 1960 I was Nineteen seventy one summer the Sylmar earthquake I was in The 1994 Northridge earthquake so I've had to really Big events in 60 years and I'll take that all day long You deal with so Developers city leaders community leaders real estate Folks Is there any concern Do they talk Among themselves and say you know what Hey maybe we just should not be building These giant monstrosities of towers here in earthquake Country Yeah well the first thing is I would take exception to the word Monstrosity because I happen to think that they're beautiful They're very very tall buildings But relative to other ruled areas for instance Tokyo which has a lot more seismic activity than we do they have Tall buildings here and there and we have them here And you know some of my best friends are structural engineers In getting ready for this interview I talked to them a little bit and The bottom line is we don't design these tall buildings Earthquake proof and sustained no damage They're designed To save human lives and keep any kind of structural failure from happening And your initial question is are they safe Well I've In around downtown L.A. since 1994 and if I didn't feel safe I wouldn't be here and I wouldn't be going into tall towers So Basically what you're saying is these towers are not earthquake proof But they are earthquake safe Correct Talk a little bit about what this L.A. downtown Renaissance is As I mentioned At the beginning of this interview I had left L.A. for About 10 years and I returned and now it looks like Manhattan I mean this is crazy what's happening in downtown Los Angeles Well I'll tell you it may seem crazy to you But it's an overnight wonder I've been working on for 25 years so we've Working on it for a long time you know in nineteen twenty four one hundred thousand People lived in downtown Los Angeles and until just after World War Two downtown was the center of everything it was a center of commerce Retail and law and the courts and just everything and then These suburban guys out we kind of lost our way And in the 99 We thought you know what we want it we want to get back And so a number Of us in the community that believed in downtown started working to help recruit More investment into downtown So retailers moving here and Restaurants and bars and nightclubs and office buildings and tenants and we Really hard and I'm really proud to tell you that it worked When I got here in nineteen ninety four We had eighteen thousand People David living in downtown down from one hundred thousands of people Nineteen twenty four Today we're at eighty thousand people Are on our way to one hundred thousand people so maybe we'll get parity by 2020 For a hundred thousand few years ago I spoke With renowned seismologist Lucy Jones and I remember she was concerned about all these tall towers she had told me we met her In Pasadena at the USGS and she said look if these Builders developers real estate folks would simply Invest maybe a hundred thousand or a few hundred thousand dollars more Into the buildings they would be more earthquake safe What do you say to that Well you know all I can tell you is that Everybody is concerned about human life A lot Times the developers of these buildings occupied the buildings So do you think they're going Build a building that they think is going to fail around them No A lot of time Effort is spent with with engineering their Our world events ruled earthquakes every year that We learn from and we incorporate into our engineering So I'm a little bit more optimistic than Dr. Jones And we have to remember too In terms of business and investment et cetera Do you think People would invest hundreds of millions and sometimes billions of dollars If they thought they were going to build a building that was going to fail I don't Think so Good point In closing how Where does the downtown Los Angeles skyline Go from here What is the future Is this sustainable As I said it's amazing what is happening in this area with Construction Yes Well I certainly It's sustainable and we live in a region Of 18 million people in You know there's an infinite demand for housing We have Housing a housing problem So I think it's totally Sustainable What is happening right now during Covered 19 though is We're trying to understand well people learned that they can work from home so Maybe they don't need to have to come to the office every day There's a lot of moving Parts Here's the one thing I know God stopped making land In downtown Los Angeles and the population is growing So the demand is There Thank you How bash an a leader with downtown L.A. Renaissance really appreciate the interview Thanks Thanks So much David it's always good to see you And now from Underground to under water the US Navy routinely uses sonar in various parts of the ocean during Maneuvers and exercises But at what cost to Whales and marine life can vital military training And marine mammals coexist Steve Walsh with PBS Station K PBS in San Diego has our Story The Navy destroyer USS Higgins navigates The congested waters of Southern California during a recent training Mission They deploy a Kingfisher a type of active sonar That trails behind the ship on a long tether they use it to hunt For mines But the sound can seriously injure whales As they leave San Diego Bay below deck The Two monitors a map on a computer screen Lieutenant Eileen Allegra says that map tells them whether it's safe to turn on the sonar He came up he said there's no restrictions He tells us You know if I will see this close to You make sure you pronounce on her by this much The Navy created This detailed protocol over several years in response to lawsuits Brought by environmental groups Some of the Navy's most intense Training happens in the waters between California and Hawaii Carrier groups train here before deploying to the Pacific The Marines Practice amphibious landings along the California coast But these sounds Can disrupt marine life Brett Hartle is with the Center for Biological Diversity Many marine mammals so beaked whales blue whales Humpback whales there they rely on sound we can't even hear because they're communicating At levels we can't fathom with our ears and we can't detect it But If they can't hear if their hearing is damaged their Basically as good as dead it's the way they communicate it soften The way they find food A 2015 settlement in a federal Lawsuit required the Navy to reduce the use of active sonar Certain habitat is also off limits to the military during parts Of the year including a blue whale foraging area off the coast of San Diego But the Navy's proposed plan loosens some of those Restrictions Alex Stone is the Navy's project manager For the new plan instead of in the context of litigation We've looked At everything new using science using What is practical for us to implement in terms of mitigation Stone Says the new plan will still take into account sensitive habitat and lays Out when and where the Navy can use sonar and detonate explosives But environmentalists say the plan raises some of the progress they've fought For over the years Brett Hartle with the Center for Biological Diversity The Navy has made progress in the past they have restricted some Of their activities in the past Now they're sort of backsliding a little bit and We're concerned about that because there are reasonable ways of Dealing with both military training and protecting marine mammals environmental Want the Navy to limit explosions and sonar in more areas where They know marine mammals congregated certain times of the year But that would likely mean fewer exercises close to Shore And the Navy resists moving exercises farther Out to sea at the end of their first day of exercises The USS Higgins was still close enough to shore that a group of visiting midshipmen From the Naval Academy could still go back to San Diego Onboard A small landing craft Stone says going farther From shore isn't practical We want to be as efficient as We can with our training and having our forces Aim you know hundreds of miles out before they can even start training Just doesn't work Well the Navy's own studies have shown the Impact active sonar has on marine mammals even large Blue whales will turn away from ships using it Most of the time The ships use passive sonar essentially listening to the ocean But active sonar is more accurate It bounces high Intensity sound off an object The Navy trained spotters Scan the horizon for marine mammals They're supposed to shut Down exercises if they see a whale breaching nearby But Hartl says even trained spotters Kansas he was under the water Species like the endangered beak whale aren't easy to locate I've been on the ocean I've done whale surveys They're hard to find Whales are only 10 and 15 feet long and in a big Ocean it's easy to miss them In June the California Coastal Commission unanimously rejected the Navy's plan The two sides say they're still talking The Navy actually doesn't need California's approval The National Marine Fisheries Service Does have to approve the plan The current plan expires December 25th and of course the new plan like The last one could end up in court Steve Walsh Cape CBS News Thank you Steve Walsh with PBS Station K PBS In San Diego for that report Well the nation's large Just nuclear power plant located in western Arizona is working on A unique project to reduce the amount of wastewater Used to cool the nuclear reactors This next story is Brought to you through a special collaboration with KLC s PBS And Arizona State University's Cronkite School of Journalism Mass Communications As we partner with and mentor students Seeking to explore the environment through their reporting here is Madison statement with Cronkite News Water Is critical for keeping the largest nuclear generating station In the country running behind me is the Palace Verdes New Killer Generating Station and that's not smoke you're seeing It's a water vapor Forty two thousand gallons Per minute are evaporated into the atmosphere from this plant Alone That was on the day we visited but that Number can climb even higher depending on the time of year in The winter we can use up to 40 thousand Gallons per minute And that makes up for The evaporation rate of the cooling towers at the nuclear plant In the summer it's more it's up to 60 thousand gallons per minute The Water is used to cool the plant Heat is converted From nuclear reactions into electricity The boiling Water created by the steam is then cooled and condensed Treated wastewater is used to do this It Comes mostly from the 90 First Avenue sewage treatment facility But those like Sandy Barr believe using wastewater isn't Enough The utilities say well OK we're using their treated wastewater like somehow it's Not a big deal that it's using so much water but In wastewater it can be used for All kinds of other things and including habitat Restoration and so it is water that is Not available for other uses The growing competition over wastewater is one reason why Apollo Verde Is exploring other water options They have partnered With Sandia Labs a national nuclear research and development laboratory In New Mexico and it found even dirtier water To use the other water sources that we've been looking at ha poor Quality groundwater sources that come from the Buckeye waterlogged area Groundwater is high in salt high in minerals However we are able to use some of that water instead of effluent Because of the tertiary treatment system that we have here at pellet Verde The plant is also looking at developing more advanced Cooling technology The current target is to reduce wastewater By 20 percent Right now we use about seventy five thousand Acre feet of water every year That equates to About twenty six billion gallons of water If We can save 20 percent of that that's a huge savings not In water but a huge savings in terms of cost Palos Verdes plans To start using this dirtier water within the year We plan On this year being able to start pumping water We have funding And sightings for the wells We just need approval From the from the state and we're working with the state and the farmers in The area to work through issues and get that get that in place Thanks Madison State Cronkite School Journalism and mass communications for that report For more information About our program just click on KLC s dot org and then click Contact us to send us your questions and comments or story So we can hear from you Thank you so much for joining us For this edition of Sustaining US here on KLC s PBS I'm David David on