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CNN Live At Daybreak

Hydrogen A Promising Alternative to Gas; Got Gas?; Cutting Cancer Risk

Aired August 24, 2005 - 06:29   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

ANNOUNCER: From the Time Warner center in New York, this is DAYBREAK with Carol Costello and Chad Myers.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: And good morning to you. Thank you for waking up with us.

Coming up this half-hour, Pat Robertson can't stand him. Wants him dead. But just who is Hugo Chavez? And why is he making some people so mad?

And stop guzzling gas. There might be a better way to quench your car's thirst. We'll show you why a lot of people are high on hydrogen.

But first, "Now in the News."

Nearly 40 people are dead after a Peruvian passenger plane crashes in a jungle near the airport. Several Americans were on board that plane. The pilot was apparently trying to make an emergency landing in a storm.

Rescuers are trying to save an Alabama construction worker this morning. He got trapped after a sewer line collapsed at a construction site near Birmingham yesterday afternoon. Officials believe he's more than 20 feet underground.

One Tucson, Arizona, resident says it's the worst flooding he's ever seen. The area got four inches of rain yesterday. More than 40 people had to be rescued from stalled cars and flooded homes.

And more flooding overseas. This frightened woman had to be rescued from her car in Austria. Oh, my! Flooding and landslides across central and southern Europe have killed more than two dozen people. And the woman is fine, this morning.

(WEATHER REPORT)

COSTELLO: We start this half-hour with the money in your wallet. With gas prices going through the roof, many of you might be asking this question: Is there an alternative? Well, there is. It's hydrogen. But can you buy a hydrogen-fueled car? And where do you go to get one?

Our Sumi Das has some answers. She's at a one-of-a-kind gas station in Washington.

Good morning.

SUMI DAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, Carol.

Well, it is indeed one of a kind. Hydrogen vehicles are actually already running on roads here in the U.S. and, in fact, around the world.

And at this Shell station, hydrogen and traditional gas are sold side by side. It's all part of the effort to introduce the public to hydrogen technology.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAS (voice over): During rain, sleet and snow, Steven Yates (ph) delivers the mail. But instead of a mail truck, Yates drives a hydrogen fuel-cell minivan.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's just as powerful as a combustion engine.

DAS: At Fort Belvoir, Virginia, a hydrogen-powered truck helps Sergeant Antonio De La Fuente complete Army missions.

SGT. ANTONIO DE LA FUENTE, TRUCK MAINTENANCE: If I was looking for the gear shift here, well, on this one, it don't have one. It has a push button.

DAS: Both vehicles come from the General Motors test fleet. The carmaker is one of many companies developing hydrogen technology as a possible alternative to gasoline-powered vehicles.

PATRICK SERFASS, NATIONAL HYDROGEN ASSOCIATION: The three main reasons that we're developing hydrogen are to reduce our dependence on imported fuels, to improve the environment and to drive economic growth.

DAS: Officials at Shell Hydrogen say 50 million tons of hydrogen are produced globally every year. This hydrogen pump at a publicly- accessible Shell station, the country's first, shows how stations can be upgraded.

Opponents of the technology say that pressurizing hydrogen for transport and extracting it require more energy than the hydrogen produces.

SERFASS: The process by which you use the hydrogen is normally much more efficient than the combustion process with fossil fuels. With hydrogen, that process can be two to three times more efficient. Hydrogen is a long-term proposition. It's a marathon, not a sprint. But already industry is well beyond the starting line.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

DAS: The National Hydrogen Association estimates that hydrogen vehicles will actually be available in showrooms by the year 2020.

Live in Washington, I'm Sumi Das -- Carol. COSTELLO: Maybe you already said it and I missed it, but how much is, like -- I don't know what the measurement would be. But how much is the hydrogen that you put in the tank, so to speak?

DAS: Well, right now it's an artificial price. Basically, it is on par with the amount that you pay for gas per mile. So, it's not going to be any cheaper. So, if you're looking to save a lot of money, that's not going to happen. But, of course, this is better for the environment in the long run -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Thank you so much, Sumi Das, live in Washington, D.C., this morning.

The price of gas is certainly the talk of towns across the country, and we will continue talking about it with Miles O'Brien on "AMERICAN MORNING."

Good morning.

MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: I still don't know. How much is a gallon of hydrogen? She didn't say, did she?

COSTELLO: She said somewhere around the price of a gallon of gas...

M. O'BRIEN: Somewhere.

COSTELLO: ... which would be 2.60.

M. O'BRIEN: Per mile or something, yes.

COSTELLO: Whatever that is.

M. O'BRIEN: Something like that. We're going to talk about gas prices today. How about that?

COSTELLO: What's the price?

M. O'BRIEN: You know, I like fly my little airplane every now and then.

COSTELLO: Yes.

M. O'BRIEN: Do you know how much I paid for a gallon of gas over the weekend?

COSTELLO: How much?

M. O'BRIEN: Take a guess. What would you think would be high?

COSTELLO: Three dollars would be high.

M. O'BRIEN: Five, 40. Five, 40. Of course, if you're going around flying your own little plane, do you have a right to complain too much about that? But, you know, it is the point that's double what I paid last year. How long will it be before businesses start passing on the cost of all of this to consumers? That's one of the questions on our mind this morning. We'll get three perspectives: a moving company, a sightseeing business and the U.S. Postal Service. And you just heard my perspective on it as well. Lots of pain at the pump right now.

And then, Gene Krantz (ph), you know Gene Krantz (ph), right?

COSTELLO: NASA?

M. O'BRIEN: The great flight director. Of course, a whole generation of people think of Ed Harris from the movie "Apollo 13." There is the real guy right there, you know, the crew cut, the vest, the whole thing. We're going to talk to him about a couple of things. An interesting documentary that the History Channel has coming out later this week. But also I wanted to ask him about where NASA is right now with the shuttle grounded, all kinds of issues about what is next, return to the moon, Mars, all of that kind of stuff with Gene Krantz (ph).

That's just a few of the items that are ahead on "AMERICAN MORNING."

COSTELLO: All right. Thank you, Miles.

Let's talk about Pat Robertson, because Pat Robertson isn't exactly taming the rhetoric. On the heels of his assassination comment, he used the Bible to speculate about Islamic extremists on his "700 Club."

Noting that Muslims see themselves as Abraham's son, Ishmael, Robertson said -- quote -- "The Bible talks about Ishmael as being a wild ass. He's just uncontrollable. And it's almost like this seed of rebellion and uncontrolled anger has, you know, seeped into these people."

Earlier, Robertson said the United States should assassinate Venezuela's leftist president, Hugo Chavez.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PAT ROBERTSON, CHRISTIAN BROADCASTER: He has destroyed the Venezuelan economy, and he's going to make that a launching pad for communist infiltration and Muslim extremism all over the continent. You know, I don't know about this doctrine of assassination, but if he thinks we're trying to assassinate him, I think that we really ought to go ahead and do it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: As for Chavez, he says he doesn't even know who Pat Robertson is and couldn't care less about his opinion.

New York City commuters will see some beefed-up security in a few years. The city's transit system plans to spend more than $200 million to upgrade security on trains and buses. Defense contractor Lockheed Martin will put in thousands of surveillance cameras and sensors.

New York is also trying to get cell phone coverage for its subway stations.

Boston's Logan Airport isn't going as high tech with its security. According to the "Boston Herald," city officials are building a 10-foot-high concrete wall around the airport perimeter. They say it will prevent any trucks from driving on to the airfield. The wall, by the way, will be topped with razor wire.

CIA Director Porter Goss has hand-delivered his agency's report on the September 11 attacks to Congress. The document looks at the bureau's actions and failures leading up to the attacks. Lawmakers will have to decide how much of the highly-classified and critical information should be made public.

Still to come on DAYBREAK, wouldn't we all like to get more bang for our buck at the gas station? We'll look at the government's new plan to help you maximize your mileage.

And later, the simple things you can do to cut your cancer risk.

But first, here's a look at what else is making news this Wednesday.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Talk about brand loyalty. A Michigan neighborhood had a chance to become famous, but it turned it down. Toyota wanted to film a TV commercial and put a Toyota in every single driveway, but the community of Canton said, no thanks, this is Ford country, and refused to do the commercial.

The average price per gallon of gas stands at $2.60 this morning, according to AAA. And Americans are not so happy about that. So, the Bush administration has come up with a way to save you money in the long run.

Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta wants to force the auto industry to make more fuel-efficient vehicles, including SUVs.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NORMAN MINETA, TRANSPORTATION SECRETARY: Our plan will require light trucks to be more fuel-efficient regardless of size. Now, this plan is good news for American consumers, because it will ensure that the vehicles that they will buy get more miles to the gallon and ultimately save them money.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Mineta says eventually this will save drivers as much as 10 billion gallons of gas per year. It sounds pretty good, doesn't it? But will it bite you in the long run?

Vahan Janjigian from "Forbes" magazine joins us now to help us figure this out.

Good morning -- Vahan.

VAHAN JANJIGIAN, "FORBES" MAGAZINE: Hi, Carol. How are you?

COSTELLO: First some information. Right now, the government requires new cars to get 27.5 miles per gallon, light trucks to get 21.2 miles per gallon. There's the graphic. And commercial vehicles or large SUVs are exempt.

So, they want to sort of change those requirements, and they would like to change the method of calculating fuel economy compliance into six categories as it applies to light trucks. I know that sounds complicated. But is that a good idea?

JANJIGIAN: Well, yes, basically what they're doing is they're changing the way they measure it for light trucks only. So, this has nothing to do with cars and larger vehicles.

Right now, they have this fleet-wide industry standard that the manufacturers have to meet. And all they're really proposing is to create six categories of light trucks based on the size of the vehicle. And they would have different requirements for each category.

So, for example, by 2011, model year 2011, the range would be anywhere from 21.3 to 28.4 miles per gallon.

So, whether it's a good idea or not, I'm a firm believer in market forces, and I think the best way to encourage people to conserve gasoline is to raise the price.

COSTELLO: Interesting.

JANJIGIAN: And now, we're at a point where gasoline prices are almost $3.00 per gallon, and we're starting to see a change in behavior.

COSTELLO: Well, before we get into that, let's talk about this plan just a little more, because, you know, if all vehicles were brought up to the level of cars, if all vehicles had to get 27.5 miles per gallon, let's see, the Energy Information Agency says that would cut our energy needs by 5 percent, which would be a big deal, right?

JANJIGIAN: Yes, it would, but it's not really feasible. I mean, to a large extent, the efficiency of a car depends on a number of factors, including its weight. So, a large vehicle is not going to be as efficient as a passenger car.

COSTELLO: If the auto industry agrees to these changes, because I know that it has a big problem with those changes, wouldn't that, like, up the price of cars and SUVs and trucks?

JANJIGIAN: Yes, it would. In fact, the Department of Transportation has estimated that the incremental cost of this reform would be approximately $275 per vehicle for model year 2011. But they also estimate that the incremental savings would be $315 per vehicle.

Now, they make this assumption by assuming that gasoline prices will be somewhere between $1.51 to $1.58 per gallon. Now, right now it looks very likely that gasoline prices are going to be much higher than that, so the incremental benefit is also likely to be much higher.

COSTELLO: So, will these new requirements ever take place?

JANJIGIAN: Well, these are just proposals right now, and what they're doing is seeking comments. So, we might see a little bit of tweaking, but my guess is that these will go into effect with very minor changes.

COSTELLO: Vahan Janjigian from "Forbes" magazine. Thank you for joining DAYBREAK this morning.

And still to come, a simple way to ward off cancer. It may already be in your medicine cabinet.

But first, it's time to say happy birthday.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: A bipartisan group of California politicians is coming together to support a federal bill that would ban reproductive human cloning without shutting down embryonic stem cell research. Advocates believe stem cell research has the potential to provide new treatments and cures for a number of diseases.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER (R), CALIFORNIA: I support Senate Bill 1520, because it will ban human reproductive cloning, as we have already done here in California without placing restrictions on therapeutic stem cell research.

MAYOR ANTONIO VILLARAIGOSA, LOS ANGELES: We need Congress to pass SB 471, the Stem Cell Research Enhancement act, to open up new stem cell lines. And we need to stop fooling the American people to thinking that we're cloning humans in California. We are not.

CANDACE COFFEE, FORMER "MISS BAKERSFIELD": It's the chance for me to live a normal life that's not regulated by pills and doctors and fear. I'm making a plea to our elected officials, please, do not limit scientific freedom and major branches of embryonic stem cell research. Don't take away my hope.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: California is one of many states pursuing stem cell research programs.

It's 6:50 Eastern, and here is what will be making news today.

In the Washington area, the commission deciding which military bases to close or realign begins voting today and hopes to complete its work before the weekend.

Researchers say a human fetus is unlikely to feel pain before the third trimester when human consciousness begins to form at 28 weeks along. The new report is expected to add to the debate over proposed abortion legislation. The bill would require doctors to inform women seeking abortions after the 22nd week of gestation that their fetus feels pain.

U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan is in Niger to see firsthand the effects of the food crisis there. Annan is expected to meet with the country's president today. He's already visited an emergency feeding center run by Doctors Without Borders.

Well, you only have to look at the DAYBREAK in-box this morning to know people are fired up about Pat Robertson's comments that the U.S. should take out the Venezuelan president.

Soledad O'Brien joins us now for a look at what's coming up on "AMERICAN MORNING.

We got 500 e-mails on this topic.

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Yes, it doesn't surprise me at all. Good morning to you, Carol.

I think because some people are responding to it on a political front, and some people are responding to it on a religious front. We're going to follow up, in fact, this morning on "AMERICAN MORNING" about that controversy surrounding Pat Robertson. As you well know -- and you've been reporting all morning -- he called for the assassination of the Venezuelan president, Hugo Chavez.

Well, the Bush administration has distanced itself from those comments. But could the remarks still spell some trouble for the White House? We'll take a look at that this morning.

And then, we're continuing our special series called "School Days." Today, we're going to take a look at your kids' personal safety. Obviously, you can't child-proof your whole neighborhood, but there are some specific steps that you can take to keep your child safer on the way to school and when he or she is on the playground and when they're coming home and if they're home alone. Lots of really practical tips. We were sitting around talking about it this morning.

Those stories and much more ahead on "AMERICAN MORNING." Carol, we'll see you right at the top of the hour in a couple of minutes.

COSTELLO: We'll be there. Thank you.

It's not something that anybody really wants to talk about: colorectoral cancer. But it is the third leading cause of cancer deaths among women. A new study suggests regular long-term use of aspirin, though, reduces the risk of colorectoral cancer in women.

Lisa Drayer is with "Women's Health" magazine. She joins us again. So, what is this, an aspirin a day can keep cancer away?

LISA DRAYER, "WOMEN'S HEALTH" MAGAZINE: Maybe, but it comes with some risks. So, we're talking about a study that involved over 82,000 women.

COSTELLO: Wow!

DRAYER: They were followed for over 20 years, part of a nurse's health study, that large body of nurses that were finding different relationships about disease.

Anyway, some of those women who took at least two standard aspirin per week had a 23 percent reduced risk of colorectoral cancer. Specifically if they took at least two aspirin per week for more than 10 years, they had a 33 percent reduced risk. And if they took more than 14 standard aspirin per week, they had a 53 percent reduced risk. That's more...

COSTELLO: Fourteen aspirin per week?

DRAYER: For more than 10 years of very high doses there, Carol.

COSTELLO: How could anyone stick to that?

DRAYER: Not only is it difficult to stick to, but it happened to be that they were taking these aspirin. But what happened was they found that those who were taking these high doses of aspirin had a greater risk of gastrointestinal bleeding. So, that was the major side effect seen with this increased aspirin use.

And because of this, researchers and the American Cancer Society are not suggesting that we start popping aspirin in the hopes of preventing colorectoral cancer.

COSTELLO: Fourteen aspirin a week!

DRAYER: Yes, it's a lot. So, right now we can't make any practical recommendations.

COSTELLO: But it is interesting.

DRAYER: Yes.

COSTELLO: And just two a day, that was a 23 percent decrease.

DRAYER: That's right.

COSTELLO: Right?

DRAYER: Yes.

COSTELLO: How does this compare to aspirin use for heart disease?

DRAYER: Right. Some individuals may have been recommended by their doctor to take a baby aspirin, 81 milligrams. That's compared to 325 in a standard aspirin, a much lower dose. But this study found that much greater doses would be needed to provide protection against colorectoral cancer. So, more than 14 standard per week.

COSTELLO: So, besides aspirin -- and we don't really know if that's really true yet, but it's promising -- what else can you do, though, to protect yourself against getting colorectoral cancer?

DRAYER: Right. There are a lot of things. Most important is screening at the age of 50. It's really important for men and women to get screened for colorectoral cancer. I know. There are a lot of different options.

COSTELLO: I know.

DRAYER: They don't sound so pleasant. But it's really important, because it can detect the disease earlier when it's easier to treat. It can also prevent it by removing colon growths that can become cancerous.

Also, you want to avoid a high consumption of red meat. There has been a relationship between red meat and increased colorectoral cancer risk.

Also, obesity and smoking are associated with increased risk, and exercise is associated with decreased risk.

Also, a lot of interesting research on folate found in oranges and leafy green vegetables. Yes, in the case of women who have a higher consumption of folate, not only from foods, but perhaps from vitamins containing folate as well, these women seem to have a reduced risk of colorectoral cancer.

Also, interesting research on calcium and vitamin D. Specifically in supplement form of the calcium, there was a clinical trial here that showed that these two -- this mineral and the vitamin D did provide protection. So, that's looking promising as well.

And, of course, fruits and vegetables have been shown to be protective. And, you know, Carol, we don't know why. We don't know if it's the antioxidants in fruits and vegetables, whether it's the folate or the fiber.

COSTELLO: And they're good.

DRAYER: And it's a good idea to eat them.

COSTELLO: So eat them up.

DRAYER: There you go.

COSTELLO: Lisa Drayer from "Women's Health" magazine joining us this morning. Thank you.

DRAYER: Thanks.

COSTELLO: When we come back, a look at your travel forecast. You're watching DAYBREAK for a Wednesday.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: I can't hear Chad.

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: There it is. There it is.

COSTELLO: OK. It's time to give away a mug.

MYERS: And we are giving away a mug for tomorrow, because we didn't ask any questions yesterday. We got interrupted by all of that breaking news.

And the questions for today. What is the proposed mileage for new cars under the new fuel economy plan? And who is the chairman of the BRAC panel?

Go to cnn.com/daybreak. And give your answers there. We'll hand out a mug tomorrow.

COSTELLO: All right. We have some making up to do. You know, we did that report on hydrogen-powered cars, and we didn't know how much a kilogram of hydrogen was.

MYERS: OK.

COSTELLO: We have the information now, Chad.

MYERS: OK.

COSTELLO: Five dollars and 50 cents per kilogram of hydrogen. And guess what? Fifty-seven miles per kilogram.

MYERS: Fifty-seven miles per kilogram. OK. A kilogram of gasoline is about 80 cents or maybe a little less. So, let's say you get 20 miles per gallon. That's about 60 miles, not very far from it, almost exactly the same price actually.

COSTELLO: OK.

MYERS: Per mile.

COSTELLO: But as Sumi Das says, it's good for the environment.

MYERS: It is good for the environment. You know, where is all of that hydrogen going to come from if you only can gas up in one spot, though? It kind of makes for some short trips.

COSTELLO: Good point.

MYERS: We need a lot more pumps.

COSTELLO: We do. From the Time Warner center in New York, I'm Carol Costello along with Chad Myers. "AMERICAN MORNING" starts right now.

S. O'BRIEN: Thanks, Carol. I'm Soledad O'Brien.

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