FINLAND’S CLIMATE WARRIORS
Produced by SBS Dateline

Reporter: Calliste Weitenberg

7933

ONE-LINER: As the world’s economies recover from COVID19, Finland is pushing forward with the most ambitious climate emission reduction goal in the world: to be completely carbon neutral by 2035. A local fisherman turned scientist says he holds the key to the country’s success. But to get there, the nation needs to take on the peat industry and its dirty legacy.

STRUCTURE/

2035 GOAL /BUT CAN IT GET THERE WTH PEAT FORGOTTEN FOSSIL FUEL

CARBON SINK CREATION > TERO
 

STRUCTURE:

1.      PTT/OPENER

2.      TERO FISHING / NATURE IS ALREADY CHANGING

3.      POLITICS ARCHIVE/GOAL SET UP

4.      II MUNICIPALITY-MAYOR/

5.      TERO REWILDING WORK

6.      PEAT FARMER

7.      MINISTER IV –PEAT PROBLEMS

8.      TERO PEAT DAMAGE

9.      TERO DOING GAS MEASUREMENTS

10.  TERO REWILDING BIG PIC END

xTIME CODES

VOICEOVER

PROGRAM TITLES

STORY TITLE:

FINLAND’S CLIMATE WARRIORS

BY CALLISTE WEITENBERG, JOHANNA  KOKKOLA AND VILLE ??????

1.      INTRO BIG PIC

DRONE SHOTS OF FINNISH WILDERNESS + MAYBE SPLICED WITH SOME COVID ARCHIVE?

MUSIC - INTRIGUING + MYSTICAL VIBES

THOUGHT TRACK - DAY 06 TERO MASTER IV/ (00:22:25):………../ It's not always nice to hear the truth, but I think in some ways we heard now the truth.

(00:19:17):……../ COVID19, is really a warning………../ it is a tremendous message to say, stop, take stock and come to your senses. (00:20:17):

The kind of actions that we are doing on the planet are causing so much damage and so tremendous disruptions, that we need to alter them very fast.

DRONE OF FINNISH WILDERNESS/LAKE

As the world tries to recover from COVID19, Finland is on a carbon cutting crusade and its refusing to let a pandemic stand its way.

MINISTER GRAB

Speaker 2 (36:13):The climate just hasn't been cancelled,

The COVID-19 has learned us that yes, we can act together. And now it's really time to act together to make certain that we solve the climate crisis.

And we can do it if we want to.

DRONE OF WIND TUBRINES

The nation’s chasing one of the most ambitious emission reduction targets in the world, doing what Australia won’t and pledging to go carbon neutral by 2035.

But to get there – it needs to confront a dirty secret and take on a fossil fuel that’s worse than coal. 

DATELINE BUMPER HERE

21.28 – BEAUTIFUL DRONE SHOT OF WILDERNESS

TITLE:

FINLAND’S CLIMATE WARRIORS

11. TERO FISHING/LOCAL KNOWLEDGE HOLDERS

Establish what’s at stake > establish finnish connection with nature. Land of a thousand lakes + by listening to elder they understand that it’s already in decline.

Tero is just a fisherman. 

DRONE SHOTS OF SELKIE FORESTS

MUSIC + NATSOT

GFX – SELKIE, FINLAND

MEN WALKING THROUGH FOREST

UPSOT WALKIGN THROUGH WOODS /00.27.20 T / The border is somewhere on the right. This land belongs to Tapio. 00.27.37

MEN PUTTING BOAT IN WATER/

VO TRIMS

FINLAND IS KNOWN AS THE LAND OF A THOUSAND LAKES, BUT THAT’S AN UNDERSTATEMENT. IT’S COVERED BY OVER 180,000 LAKES, RIVERS AND WETLANDS.

AND HERE IN SELKIE, WATER IS AT THE HEART OF LIFE.  

UPSOT FISHING/[00:36:42] L/ No need to row so fast! [00:36:48] 

ROWING OUT INTO WATER

DAY 02 THOUGHT TRACK TERO/ [01:09:24]

TERO: The lake is very deep topic for Finnish people really at the centre of our old culture. 

[01:05:16] Here in Karelia and eastern areas of Finnish speaking people's - fishing is the oldest way of life we know.  

[01:08:49] I strongly believe every lake has its own being and kind of a way of existence. [01:08:59] And you have to spend a considerable time - many years to learn to co-exist and have good relations with those lakes and rivers. [01:09:05]

MORE ROWING ON LAKE SHOTS

MEN HAWLING IN TRAPS

IN SPRING THE CATCH COMES FROM FISH TRAPS CALLED FYKE NETS.

A TRADITION THOUSANDS OF YEARS OLD, BUT IT HOLDS CLUES TO UNDERSTANDING THE IMPACTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE.

DRONE SHOTS OVER BOAT ON LAKE

00:46:06] To have people out fishing and hunting in the forests daily acts like human senses. [00:46:14] They are our nodes of observing how does the change look like. [00:46:21]

[00:46:46] For most of the marsh mires and lakes and rivers, there is no scientific data that goes beyond the 1960s, so it's actually the only way to know how things used to be in the past. 

NEED TO SEE TERO OVER START OF THIS THEN SHOW EINNARI

ALT/ Over the past few decades, village leader Tero Mustonen has been recording the knowledge of Selkie’s elders, like Einari. (EH-NARI)

EINNARI ON SHORE

[00:53:53] CU UP EINARI/ The winter net yielded something this time – a little less than from lake Palojavi. [00:54:03] \

CU Einnari watching on/

BOAT PULLED UP ON SHORE

Busy recording local knowledge of the land.

WALKING TO HUT

SEQUENCE AS IT IS IN THE EDIT

Einari has been fishing this lake since the 1950s and his memories reveal significant changes to the natural habitat here.

UPSOT: Lets go to the hut and get coffee

DAY 02

[00:11:54] E/ It's like a gift from nature that you forget the bad summers and only remember the good summers. When you were a child the summers were always beautiful and the strawberries were always sweet and there we strawberries all over the field. [00:12:05] E/There was a lot of snow in winter at that time. [00:12:09] There was no snow ploughing, there were sled tracks that went from house to house. And in spring you had to dig new tracks for the horses becasue the old track had too much compacted snow and the sled would not stay on the track any more. The winters have become shorter. [00:12:32]

Go to GVs here and drone shots of lakes, rivers, wetlands, ducks etc

But show Tero is speaking – cut to him in IV

[00:46:57] The present is of course the sum of all that happened. [00:38:24] But if we don’t know what happened in the past especially in these local scales and using oral histories - especially regarding environmental change - we are in unknown waters. [00:38:37]

[00:38:37] And that is why it is very crucial to speak with Einari. [00:38:44]

See EINARRI in IV 100%

00:10:20] E/ During last two or three years ice conditions have been much worse. [00:10:28] Now you have to wait until January to set the fkye nets. [00:10:34]

WS TERO + EINNARI CHATTNG IN CABIN /

DAY 02 [00:34:22] T / We are going to be pushing up the daisies soon. [00:34:31] E/ Ah we don’t know how tough we are. [00:34:34] 

TERO MASTER IV DAY 06

100% Tero IV

USE SHOT AT 21’50 of Drone pulling away from lake which signifies moving away from this chapter of the story

MASTER IV TERO DAY 06 ……./ In a way it's a train headed at full speed to a wall. (00:11:14):

Things are of course moving into a very dangerous stage. We just learned that there has been the highest recorded temperature in the Arctic, in Northeastern Siberia. In the same region we found out that there are oil spills because of collapsing infrastructure resulting from the melting permafrost. And all of these actions combined with the forest fires, Tundra fires, what's going on in Brazil and Australia over the past few years, and even last year, are what's often known as tipping points. (00:09:25):

Tero (00:17:05):The only way to summarize it is that it's a clear and present danger of urgent proportions. So there is no more time at all…….

WHY FINLAND IS TAKING ACTION / MINISTER

USE ARCHIVE HERE OF PROTESTS

UPSOT CLIMATE  PROTEST CHANTS/ What do we want, climate action! When Now! When now! https://twitter.com/AksuLehikoinen/status/1177494618541178881?s=20/

HELSINKI GVS

+ PHOTOS / VISION OF FEMALE LEADERS

In parliamentary elections in 2019 - the climate crisis emerged as the number one concern for Finnish voters.

CLIMATE PROTESTER UPSOT/ We have the right to be angry that the planet is already in this situation. And that enough has not been done before now for our future.

While the left-leaning social democrats received the most votes, it wasn’t enough votes to rule outright, so a coalition government was formed. It happens to be all female  -  led by prime minister Sanna Marin. [SANNA MA-RIN) (LIKE SAND)

RTV CLIMATE CHANGE EU ARRIVALS @03.30 (SOUNDBITE) (English) FINNISH PRIME MINISTER, SANNA MARIN, SAYING:

The new generation is expecting us to act, and we have to fulfil the expectations of the people…../We have to do more. We have to do it faster. It's about the future of our children."

HELSINKI GVS + MINISTRY EXTERIOR  

It’s now the job of these women to do what Australia refuses to.

Slow down the speeding train of climate change and make Finland carbon neutral in just 15 years.

MINISTER IV FULL SCREEN

DAY 07 MINISTER IV/ (00:20): Uh, well, if you think about, uh, Finland's emissions in the whole, you, you can say that globally, it's not so big, but if you count it per citizens, it's among the biggest ones. And we say that every country needs to do its part.

SHOTS OF FOSSIL INDUSTRIES

Finland’s ended years of austerity – using tax levies to fuel a renewables boom.

To hit its ambitious carbon neutral target Finland plans to cut back on logging investments, radically reduce its consumption of fossil fuels and kickstart a renewables boom.

MINISTER IV FULL SCREEN

Speaker 2 (43:35): We know that those countries who are, who are among the first ones they can do the business for the new solutions. And at the moment, the whole world is crying out for a good solution for reduction to emissions. Get rid of the fossil fuels. And if you can have those solutions, that's a huge opportunity for the business.

TOWN OF II

DAY 3 II DRONE FOOTAGE +

QUAINT II GVS

GFX LI

NATSOT /MUSIC

About, 5 hours north of Helsinki lies the municipality of Ii, a poster child for how the government plans to reach its carbon neutral goal.

[00:00:02] TEACHER w kids

DAY 04 [00:00:02] TEACHER/ Today we have in our program an excursion to a forest, a forest you know very well and Tiina is the leader. Yay! [00:00:11]

[00:01:23] TEACHER AND KIDS WALKING ALONG

Ii is reducing its carbon emissions faster than any other community in Finland, thanks to a number of climate actions that start young.

IN SITU IV WITH TEACHER

+

OLAY OF KIDS PASTING FLOWERS ON CONTACT

DAY 04 TEACHER IV IN SITU

[00:34:35] L/ We want to teach the children that it is good to respect nature, and it's a natural activity environment/ [00:35:15]

[00:36:00] L/ We just start from small things. We talk about recycling with the children, [00:36:09] and why it is important not to purchase too much or buy too much, [00:36:14] just these kind of little things - every day practical little things. [00:36:18]

TEACHER + KID

DAY 04 UPSOT/ [00:22:45] T Do you still remember

the name of the purple flower? 

[00:22:50]... It is the craneís bill.. 

IN SITU IV WITH TEACHER

+

OLAY OF KIDS PASTING FLOWERS ON CONTACT:

DAY 04 TEACHER IV IN SITU

[00:37:57] It's hard to understand the big picture but in our opinion it is important to teach children now.

ALT/ [00:41:29] Then it comes naturally to them when they get older.

DAY 04 MAYOR LEAVES HOUSE + WALKS INTO TOWN

 Finland also aims to increase the share of renewable energy to at least 51 % of the final energy use and to 30 % of the final energy use in road transport.

NATSOT

A big part of THE 2035 target is a massive shift to RENEWABLE ENERGY.

HERE IN II, THEY’VE SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCED THEIR USE OF FOSSIL FUELS AND RELY ON ENERGY FROM WIND, SOLAR AND GEO-THERMAL SOURCES

IV WITH MAYOR IN SITU IN FRONT OF TOWN HALL

DAY 04 [00:44:53] MAYOR: Okay now we are at the heart of the administrational centre in Ii town…./

[00:46:03] On that side we can see the church and our library - and in the roof of the library is solar panels, Last year we produced 3% of our energy by using solar panels.

Ari Alatossava is Ii’s mayor. He says the town’s on track to reduce its carbon emissions by 80% this year, 15 years ahead of the nation.

So [00:50:12] To reach that kind of target, 80%, everyone should be involved. And everyone is - public organisations, companies, other businesses, and also, also, people who are living here - you need all those and their actions.

[01:01:17] MAYOR DRIVES OFF 

Ii is now home to one of the biggest wind farms in the country.

SOME ARGUE THESE ENOURMOUS WIND TURBINES ARE A BLIGHT ON THE LANDSCAPE, BUT AS WELL AS BRINGING POWER - THEY BRING PROFITS, TAXES AND JOBS – WHICH HAS WON OVER LOCALS.

[01:03:32] DRIVING SHOTS 

[01:18:09] DRIVING ACTUALITY, WIND TURBINES/

01:05:24] We now can say that we are driving by using local wind. Because the electricity used in this car is produced here in a local wind farm.

01:14:16] [01:14:20] MAYOR; There are several wind parks in our region, these turbines are producing [01:14:46] more energy than is used here in Li…. so the companies are exporting the energy to the other regions and the other buyers in Finland. 

WIND PARK DRONE SHOTS

01:42:07 ARI CLIMBS LOOKOUT

DAY 04 ARI IN SITU IV ON LOOKOUT

+

01:41:35 WIND TURBINES OVERLAY

01:45:26 So in this park AH… with 40 turbines, the tax revenue is about one million annually to the municipality. 01:45:50 So it’s big money to us and all citizens in Ii. Because with that one million we produce the services to people who live here. Then in Ii these 50 turbines mean about 50 new jobs. So it also brings good for the workers here. 01:46:26 These are very positive things to Ii and people here. And that’s one main reason or one very important reason why people here, people, have accepted these wind parks. 01:46:53

ACROSS FINLAND THERE ARE POCKETS OF CLIMATE WARRIORS LIKE THE RESIDENTS OF II USING EVERY DAY ACTIONS TO HELP PROPREL THE NATION TOWARDS ITS 2035 GOAL.

2. TERO REWILDING WORK

Intro Tero + rewilding mission + wants to turn carbon polluter into carbon capture >

DRONE SHOTS OF REWILDING SITE

GVS OF REWILDING SITE + ICE MELTING

TERO + STAFF BRIEF MEETING 

MUSIC BREATH

BUT IN THE FISHING TOWN OF SELKIE – VILLAGE LEADER TERO MUSTONEN HAS AN EVEN BIGGER IDEA

USPOT 00:00:10 TERO - Right, morning all.  Now we are at the end of the season, so last working days

UPSOT 00:00:15 TERO - Today we’ll start with the unloading of the lime.  The lime has to be unloaded by the ATV at that new basin over there.

In April as COVID19 swept across the world Tero was in a race against the melting ice.

TERO AND TEAM GET TOOLS/PREP 

[01:42:18] TERO IN SITU MAIN IV/ So today we are in a bit of a rush because we are at the tail end of the winter or ice season and the ground has to be frozen especially at night time to withstand the diggers and our equipment.

MELTING ICE/MUD GVS

UPSOT [00:22:31] T/ look at the ice it's almost - even during this time it has vaporised. [00:22:42] 

TERO AND TEAM MEETING WRAPS UPS /

Not just a fisherman, doctor Tero Mustonen is also a leading climate scientist, writing for the International Panel for Climate Change.

Today, along with his team, Tero’s trying to turn a carbon polluter into a carbon capture in a process called rewilding.

[01:38:32] So we are building new wetlands that will slowly emerge as carbon sinks - meaning they are trapping carbon from the atmosphere/…../ 

15.14  so a lot of early design will have to do with how the water will behave and what do we want to do with water on this site. [00:15:23]

TERO IN SITU IV W DIGGER DOING WORK IN MUD

THOUGHT TRACK / [01:43:35] At the beginning of the work - we have to do some of the human actions or interventions - like creation of wetland but then very quickly after that when we are done we let the sites be. [01:44:06] And nature has the power speed and possibility to come back. [01:44:12]

[00:39:21] TERO OFF CAMERA/ Keep up the good work guys! Little bit faster Laure! I notice your rate is dropping. [00:39:36] Laure why are you so slow? 

Formed over thousands of years, these peatlands have been destroyed by mining. 

Every second the land stays like this, it’s leaking carbon into the atmosphere.      

TERO IN SITU IV 01:37:56] T/

TERO IN SITU/……./Ultimately if you don't restore these sites they remain as carbon emission sources. [01:51:34] For example this Linnunsuo - if we didn't do this work it could be in theory releasing over 900,000 kilos of carbon every year. [01:51:41]

TERO IN SITU ON SITE/ [01:41:10] There are millions of hectares of damaged wetlands and marsh mires in Finland. [01:41:26]

[01:51:41] And that's why this work is highly needed we should be moving very fast through the country and also other parts where this kind of work can happen. [01:52:05] But unfortunately this is a slow process for the national conversation. [01:52:05] 

DRONE SHOT OF BROWN EXPANSE + MAN IN TRACTOR TRAVELLING ACROSS MOONSCAPE

ALT/ Despite the incredible promise of Tero’s idea, rewilding carbon sinks isn’t yet part of the government’s 2035 plan.

 OVERLAY THIS WITH DRONE ?

THOUGHT TRACK DAY 06 MASTER IV/ Here's a map of all of our sites. Um, it has not been supported by the government at all. Tero (01:18:50): And, and when I have spoken with the ministers about that, their view has been that currently the government has no, um, no possibility to finance such work.[CW1] 

TERO ACTUALITY

UPSOT OK we are done for the day.

REVEAL TERO IN FULL FOR END OF THIS

DAY 06 TERO MASTER IV/ Tero (00:38:57):So it's, it's the wonderful goal of getting to carbon neutrality that I fully support, but it's the means, and the actions that the government has decided to take of, which I'm very concerned about.

5. PEAT FARMER

Peat industry economic importance + fears

DAY 05 // DRONE FOOTAGE OF PEAT FIELD

BREATH/TRANSITION

Tero’s idea could help unlock Finland’s carbon neutral goal.  

But it means confronting a dirty secret and a nation wide reliance on what’s been called the forgotten fossil fuel.

[00:06:49] CU OF FRAMED PICTURE (PEAT LAND?) 

[00:08:52] CU OLD COUPLE PHOTO 

[00:08:14] CU OF MAN ON WALL + PEATLAND 

DAY 05 MASTER IV/ HEIKKI 00:38:28] some people say it’s a bad smell but for me its one of the most pleasant smells [[00:39:04] It's some kind of a drug, everything about peat, for me. [00:39:20]

OLAY LOOKING AT PHOTOS

01:06:14] CU OF PHOTO IN ALBUM 

North of Selkie, Siikalatva remains peat industry heartland. And Heikki Juntunen  has been in the business all his life. (hayki yun-tunen)

FULL FRAME MASTER IV IN HOUSE

[01:12:24] CU OF TRACTOR PHOTO /HIM AND DAD 

DAY 05 MASTER IV/ [00:32:11] I had my childhood but I did peatwork instead of playing. I haven't had time to learn how to swim yet. [00:32:23]

[00:52:51] Mari/ Even when he was really young, he was so young he could only draw squiggles and when he was asked what it means he would say peat. [00:52:59] 

USE ARCHIVE VISION HERE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TlKmz0Z3YZo (VAPO AD) BEST PIX 02.09-02.24 + 03.16

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zGzUcJpdelo BEST PIX AT START AND 01.32-1.55

https://www.power-technology.com/videos/1388415918001/

003:20– 003:27

In the marshes, there is the Finnish Sampo (a magical artifact in the Finnish folklore that brings riches and good fortune) and prosperity for all of us, for the whole nation.

002:02– 002:05

THERE IS POWER IN PEAT

002:10– 002:15

We cannot go back to the past and to burning shingles for their dim light.

002:16– 002:21

Heat and electrical energy are a necessity for the Finns of today.

002:22– 002:27

The marshes of our country contain a massive amount of energy

00.0       (RUN VAPO LOGO AT START OF VID)

000:10 – 000:13

In the beginning there were the marsh, the hoe and Jussi.

000:14 – 000:16

This is how it starts in the book

000:17 – 000:19

‘Under the North Star’ by Väinö Linna

Peat is Finland’s version of coal.  

Since the 1940s, it’s provided heat and energy. Dug up by farmers like Heikki, to help fuel the nation’s power plants and its wealth.

002:53– 002:55

The Norwegians have their oil.

002:56– 002:57

Are they entitled to become wealthy with it?

003:04– 003:07

Or the Poles, why are they selling their coal?

003:08– 003:15

But how about us the Finns? Can we exploit the green gold of our forests and brown gold of our marshes?

003:16– 003:19

Yes, yes and yes

So while lakes and rivers lie at the core of Finnish identity, so does peat.

HEIKKI WITH WORKERS BEFORE TRUCKWORK START

SHOTS OF HEIKKI WITH WORKERS: SOMETHING LIKE 02.23.55

02.21.07

NEED TINY UPSOT OF HEIKKI TALKING TO WORKERS/

SHOW HEIKKI ON SCREEN

THEN SHOTS OF TRACTORS/WORKERS IN FIELD AT WORK ON CAM A

DAY 05 UPSOT 2.53.57 HEIKKI – We have many kinds of people driving those tractors, there are young people and older people, students,

2.55.40 – HEIKKI – many people have thanked me later for having been able to work here. Many engineers have started here and even politicians.  This has been their first experience with realities of working life.

DRONE SHOT REVEALING TRATOR AT WORK IN FIELD – USE HIS HERE

With 8 production areas covering 600 hectares, Heikki is the main contractor in town.

Thanks to workers like him, Heikki says around a million finnish homes are still heated in part by [CW1] burning peat.

HEIKKI WALKING THROUGH PEAT FIELD + DUST FLYING

But to become carbon neutral, all this will have to end.

EXTRACTING PEAT generates more than 23 million tons of carbon dioxide every year, more than twice the emissions of Finnish road, rail, boat, and air traffic.

DRONE SHOTS OF PEAT LANDS

01.59.01 primarily at the moment I feel a bit of anxiety and some kind of anger against decision-makers and politics. 

……/Clearly  this is the work we have the skills to do and what peat entrepreneurs are able to do. We can do many things, that’s not a problem, but we would like to do what we do well and enjoy doing and also what is profitable and sensible. 

However, no use by date has not been set for peat and hopefully it will never be set.

9. NEWS ARCHIVE POLITICS + IV WITH MINISTER

Fragile gov coalition + green agenda being held hostage by far right party

DAY 07 GVS - HELSINKI GVS/COAL PILE

UPSOT NEWS ARCHIVE

THE government says that burning peat for energy must be halved by 2030.

But scientists and activists say it needs to be ended entirely.  A move the government’s already begun for coal.

DAY 7 GRABS FROM IV WITH ENVIRO MINISTER MINISTER

DAY 07 Reporter (12:07): So scientists and environmentalists say that one of the quickest and easiest ways to reach your goal is by ending the peat industry, which you admit yourself, I believe it's responsible for about 12% of Finland's greenhouse gas emissions. Why haven't you been able to do that yet, considering that you've done it already for coal?  

Uh, that's a good question.

15.44 it's very important that when we are cutting down the usage of peat, we need to do it very wisely and make sure that those people who, who are for whom the peat is important for living, we need to make sure that after, um, getting rid of the peat they are not left alone. And so it's, it's very symbolic also, and I think that's why it makes it harder when we even talk about it. There's some fears that what's gonna happen. 16.23

12.53 But I have said that I think that peat has been kind of a blind spot for Finland for years

GVS OF HELSINKI

The Finnish government still supports the peat industry each year with a tax subsidies it also continues to issue new peat mining licences.

NOT ALL PARTIES IN THE 5-PARTY COALITION CAN AGREE ON A WAY FORWARD ON PEAT.

7. TERO IN CABIN/MAPS

How he’s taking on industry + expanding[CW1] 

DRONE - SUMMER SHOTS OF TERO REWILDING AREA

MUSIC + NATSOT 

DAY 6 TERO ENTERS CABIN 03.17.45

For now peat sits like a thorn in the side of the nation’s carbon cutting campaign

And what’s more, mining it is causing enormous collateral damage.

Day 6 TERO IN SITU WITH PHOTOS OF MINING DAMAGE/COURT DOCS

DAY 06 INSITero (02:36:28): damage is from peat mining come in three forms.

Let's start from the fact that the site itself marsh mire, fin or bog will have to be destroyed in order to start the industrial production on peat mining……/

Tero (02:37:21): Secondly, there is a large amount of pollution that happens as a result of peat mining.

Tero (02:38:43):…../ So it's a real killer on many fronts. It's affecting thousands of Lake systems and river systems and in all these different ways.

CU SHOTS OF MAPS/PHOTOS ON IPHONE

One day in 2010, Tero and other local fisherman spotted hundreds of fish floating belly up on the surface of Selkie’s rivers.

A result of acidic discharge, at first there was no explanation as to why.

TERO WITH PHOTOS

UPSOT WITH PHOTOS [02:58:37]  T/ This that Upa Einokii? river after the fish death happened there was a lot of humus organic material and they got some close pictures where you can see that it was very acidic and the water was strangely clear. [02:58:59

[02:59:50] And here you can see those peat particals, where the fish deaths happened that's what the water looked like. [03:00:02

I WILL REQUEST THE ORIGINAL JPEGS OF THE FILES SO WE CAN RUN THEM FULL SCREEN HERE 

Tero approached the state-owned peat company, VAPO, who told him it was caused by falling leaves.

But Tero suspected the acidic waters were a result of run-off from the peat field.

WITH LIVLIHOODS RELIANT ON FISHING, TERO AND his village took the company to court and won.

TERO DESCRIBING PHOTOS

[03:01:10] It says death fish came back and its seems i'm there... [03:01:15]

UPSOT WITH PHOTOS/

DAY 06 [03:01:45] And you know from the heading the information that peat production will be stoppped at Linnunsuo. And this was the first historical moment. [03:02:00] Never before had peat production been stopped before.. [03:02:07] This was a really incomprehensible turn of events becasue we thought nothing would ever be done about this problem. [03:02:35] 

ADD EXT SHOT OF CABIN  DAY 06 @ 02.34.16

AND THEN MOVE TO DRONE SHOTS OF THE REWILDING SITES

TERO IN SITU MAIN IV (ON SITE) I [CW1] think we are witnessing a transformation in Finland. Vapo itself is now losing lots of money they are now selling a lot of these sites away. The old style of peat mining that used to be for example in 1960s 70s 80s this site began in 1984 - [02:00:59] has come to its end. The climate impact is so immense that the public is slowly demanding and waking up to the fact this kind of activity cannot go on any more.[02:01:08] This leaves the company and the whole business of peat mining with very profound questions, what to do? [02:01:15

8. TERO DOING GAS MEASUREMENTS

Proves the success of rewilding/carbon capture

DRONE SHOTS

NATSOT + MUSIC 

The International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) calls peatlands the largest natural carbon store on earth. 

01:32:47 CLOSE UP OF EQUIPMENT/ TEAMS

ITS NOW THE HEIGHT OF SUMMER IN SELKIE AND TERO AND HIS TEAM ARE HEADING BACK TO THE SITE THEY STARTED RE-WILDING AT THE TAIL END OF WINTER.

THEY WANT TO SEE IF THEY’RE WORK IS PAYING Off.

DAY 06 TERO TEAM WALKING TO SITE

[01:36:31] T/ Tero writes report, Tero measures the gas,... Tero analyses gases... [01:36:43] especially my own methane! [01:36:47] 

DAY 06 TERO INTERVIEW IN SITU

DAY 06 01:38:02 TERO IN SITU – So today we are visiting a former peat mining area that has been restored a rewilded. And one of the key questions on sites like these is the question of what are they in terms of green house gases? How much are they releasing or trapping? And what happens before restoration and afterwards?

01:38:25 TERO – And today we are using a very high-end, scientific equipment – something called trace gas analyser. It’s one of the first in the global area that can conduct precise methane and greenhouse gas carbon dioxide measurements as a mobile unit.

01:41:34 MAN USING MACHINE TO MEASURE GREENHOUSE GASES

01:59:42 CLOSE UP CIRCLE IMPRINT ON GROUND

02:06:46 KAISU - Gently Antoine, gently.

02:06:52 TERO - Like on the first date.

This unit is worth $60,000 dollars, Tero’s hoping it can provide crucial data to bring the nation – and the world - on board with his rewilding scheme.

Alt/ This unit is worth $60,000 dollars, Tero’s hoping it can provide crucial data to prove just how effective rewilding peat sites can be.

DAY 06 TERO IN SITU IV

CUT AWAYS OF TEAM DOING GAS MEASUREMENTS /

02:03:38 KAISU - How does it look like Antoine?

02:03:40 ANTOINE - It's OK. A lot of methane because it's wetter here.

02:04:13 TERO - Yeah it's very reflective of the vegetation.

02:02:55 TERO - And what's going on with the CO2? Can we see? Yeah OK so that's pretty steady.

02:16:21 TERO - So we are identifying that there are some pockets of methane and releases that are then immediately showing on the screen and instant data or real-time.

02:02:34 TERO - Was there a drop in the methane just a minute ago?

02:02:39 KAISU - It was just a little bit unsteady but it was okay because CO2 was acting as it was supposed to be acting.

Ville (02:26:34):What do the numbers tell ?

Tero (02:26:38): the soil based emissions are ending when they are, uh rewetted and the wetland is expanding. And that's already a major action for climate because it's ending an active emission source.

But on these very early years, we will have to stomach and accept the fact that some methane will be released as a result of a rewilding.

But that will dissipate. And it will then meet with the way carbon dioxide is being trapped. And once we get to that point, it then over the next century transforms into a major natural sink.

01:43:41 WIDE SHOT OF TEAM WORKI

MUSIC HERE /ACTUALITY UPSOT

12. TERO END SCENE

Big pic end showing the return of biodiversity + rare birds + what a green future could look like

DRONE SHOTS FLOODED LINNESEUL

RUN DRONE SHOTS OVER THIS VO + THEN GO TO PM

MUSIC + NATSOT

On the road to 2035/carbon neutrality, the effectiveness of Tero’s work isn’t in doubt – the much bigger question remains whether Finland’s government can phase out peat before its too late.

It’s now under significant pressure to end its peat subsidies.

Amid the pandemic in July, Prime Minister Sanna Marin addressed the United Nations, urging political resolve.

2.55 Your excellency, ladies and gentleman. Our generation of global leaders will be judged by the decisions we make over the course of this year. Our children’s destiny must not be shaped by accelerating climate change, more global inequality and human suffering on an unforeseen scale. 3.12 We must be determined to make choices we can make on best available science. 3.18

5.38 Without political decisions, change will not happen.

SHOW TERO W BINOCULAR  + NATURE SHOTS HERE

Until that happens, what counts for Finland’s climate warriors, are the early signs their efforts are paying off.

ALT/But the nation is leagues ahead of any other industrialised nation, and what counts for Finland’s climate warriors, are the early signs their efforts are paying off.

DAY 6 DRONE SHOTS OF LINNONSUL SITE IN SUMMER/

DAY 06 TERO MASTER IV/ We can see it every day. How immensely beautiful the come back is. [02:07:33]

So we should not, uh, always think we are destroying nature completely. If it has the time and a possibility to make a comeback often it will. It may not be the same prime nature that used to exist after ice age, but it’s still the same nature, the same mother Earth that’s coming back. 00:25:06) And there in lies, probably the greatest source of all solutions and wisdom, which we just have forgotten as a global society.

DAY 06 MASTER IV

THOUGHT TRACK TERO/ FINLAND CALLI CAMA/ The human mind and nature are very deeply connected. And when we are restoring these kind of sites after a century of damages when nature comes back we are also healing our mind…

we are reconnecting our minds with the true world. And there is nothing more beautiful than the sounds of the geese that we just heard or the swans or the waders. [02:09:23] This is the only ultimate hope i see for the planet. [02:09:27

This hope…could be the new start - it's not the end but it could be a new start that we urgently need. 

THE END