Curiosity Quest Goes Green

Gr 4–8—Host Joel Greene spotlights a program in Oregon that "fishes for energy." Local fishermen, working with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), collect derelict fishing gear from the ocean and turn it in for recycling and conversion into energy. Following the entire process, Greene goes out on a crab boat where, in addition to collecting the working crab pots (or traps), the fishing crew also gathers broken lines, damaged crab pots, and old nets. During the course of the trip, viewers learn about crab fishing, ocean weather patterns, NOAA, ghost fishing (where sea life is caught in abandoned nets and pots), and the sea life caught by mistake in crab pots. After coming ashore, Greene and the abandoned fishing gear travel to a processing center where the metal is sorted from the organic material, and what's left is chopped into small pieces. These pieces are taken to a waste-to-energy plant where they are burned, and the resulting steam powers generators. The videography is excellent, but the sound quality on the fishing boat is spotty. Fortunately, Greene's good cheer and energy overcome this small technical issue. His general enthusiasm, the funny "kid-on-the-street" interviews, and the bright graphics interspersed throughout make this a lively, fun, and educational program.—Geri Diorio, The Ridgefield Library, CT