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Costing the Earth

Factual: Science & Nature: Nature & Environment

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Costing the Earth: Delivering Clean Air

Delivering Clean Air

07/03/2017

BBC Radio 4 - Costing the Earth, Delivering Clean Air

More delivery trucks means more air pollution in our cities. Tom Heap looks for an answer.

Internet shopping has brought more delivery vans and more pollution to cities. Tom Heap looks for greener alternatives.

Internet shopping continues to rise worldwide. That means a lot more delivery vans on the streets of our towns and cities. Those vans and trucks, often powered by dirty diesel engines, are contributing to air pollution problems that can cause significant increases in premature death and great discomfort for people suffering from heart and lung conditions.

As part of the BBC's 'So I Can Breathe' season Tom Heap sets out to find innovative solutions. Could drones or robots be the answer? Could we cut out the middle man and use 3D printers to create everything we want at home? Perhaps it's simply a matter of converting all those vans to electric or gas power or even carrying out the majority of home deliveries by bike. 

With the promise of ever-quicker delivery times the search for a solution becomes ever more urgent if we're to prevent our consumer addiction becoming an air pollution crisis on every doorstep.

Producer: Helen Lennard.

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