the james web space telescope and those rocket boosters that you see on the side of the spacecraft have been filled with some 480 metric tons of solid fuel propeller just enough to blast off and send the payload. so one and a half 1000000 miles away from her with a rocket now sitting on its launch pad, fingers are crossed and collective breaths are being held for weather conditions to be optimal on the day of launch. manuel wrap a little al jazeera crew, french korean. ah, what you know there with me it's a whole romney reminder of all told stories more than 4000 flights have been cancelled worldwide. throwing christmas travel plans into chaos. behind the transmissible, alma kong berry into the crow virus is affected flight crews of major airlines. gabriel is under has moved from new port in new jersey del so one of the major

carriers here in the us announced over a 125 cancellations on friday. united airlines to another major airline here in the u. s. over a 160 cancellations, they say this is all due to a pilot flight attendant and other staff shortages staff that have been hit by the new army cranberry. and that is hitting the northeast of the united states in jersey. washington dc. new york, particularly hard new york city, and that is the us epicenter of the re cranberry, and at least 13 people have drowned for carrying migrants capsized in the g and c. the said such disaster in greek waters and as many days bringing the combined death toll to 27 smugglers are increasingly using a dangerous route from turkey to italy to enter europe the gambia. the truth and reconciliation commission has recommended former president the shamay son trial for murder, torture, and rape. my fled to exile in 2017 after refusing to accept defeat in presidential

elections around military commanders. the military drills conducted the suite by wrong lo intended to send a warning to israel. general mohammed behavior says 16 ballistic massage of different classes of 5 in the gulf. around said it conducted the drills with concerns of a possible plans by israel to attack it. for your site, at least 4 people in the barbara had been killed after a bus collided with a fuel tanka, the crunch sharpened near the eastern city of la tara pope frances, as as the well to look beyond the lights and decorations. during the festive season, i remember the pull. it was the 2nd time christmas eve mass has been held us in peters basilica, the vatican. since the pandemic become. as you follow those headlines on a website such as ever dot com more news in half an hour. do stay with us. coveted beyond? well, he can without hesitation. fulton died for political

power defines aloud the laws lou babies were dying. i did it. nothing about it. neglected babies to deck people in power investigates. expose is and question. so the use and abuse of power around the closing on al jazeera, i hello, i'm sam is a dan. this is counting the cost and al jazeera, your look at the world of business and economics this week, billionaires in space, we go beyond tourism to see how the world's richest men are making a grant to control the space industry. our cows, the new coal. i recall to accounts for a 3rd of all global greenhouse gases,

or where are the targets to cost emissions. and the small iranian town lanes oil production pollution for killing its people. now for decades space was the preserve of governments and accessible only by taxpayer funded rockets. its exploration was politicized by cold war rivalries. it was the old tourist who occasionally though hitched a ride to help out a cash strapped nation. but in the last month, privateers have wrestled attention away from the government sponsored launches. now, billionaires are accelerating our passion for the heavens. first 70 year old serial and drop a know richard branson ended his 17 year quest to travel into space on board. his reusable plane, it's not known how much has been spent to reach this stage,

but the recently new york listed company burned through 250000000 dollars in 2000 been 20. however, it doesn't have that. then there's the question as to whether brands and actually cross the threshold for space. the common line. rival billionaire, jeff pays off, succeeded in doing that. the world's richest man initially invested $500000000.00 of his own money in 2014. as of 2016, it's been caching in in is ever increasing amazon stock to spend $1000000000.00 a year on blue origin. and of course there's a lot mosques, space, ex, it's already one contracts and has flown astronauts to the international space station. his company's estimated to be worth $46000000000.00 base off and mosque deploy, re usable rockets, the staff of science fiction dreams to calm down on the cost of getting men into safe. whatever your feelings about these endeavors, you could argue

a lot of money is being wasted by 1000000000. as for other billionaires to enjoy a few minutes of weightlessness, what of the carbon footprint of sending the wealthy into space is also much more to space. according to morgan stanley, the global space industry could generate revenue of more than one trillion dollars in 2040. that's up from the 350000000000 currently. yet it might not be space tourism, that's the cash cow. rather, satellite internet service may not surprise you. that long mosque is already deploying $1500.00 satellites to blanket the us and provide internet access that could cost up to $10000000000.00 to get it opperation or. but it could bring in revenue of $30000000000.00 a year. it's already in testing, costing $909.00 a month for the subsidized antenna to receive a signal costing $499.00. what's the purpose of that? what are the insatiable appetite for internet links services,

and there's more demand coming as autonomous vehicles of rolled out. but they also faced competition from the british government's rival, one way of which was rescued from bankruptcy. and unsurprisingly, virgin galactic is one company that will be using its boost the technology to put satellites into space from a spaceport near you. one of those sites could be space, port cornwall. delighted to say the head of the venture melissa thought joins us via skype from true row in the u. k. good. have you with us? so melissa spaceport, cornwall will be a horizontal loan site, right where modified planes will be launching satellites into orbit why horace zone to launch though? i. yes. so we're going to launches is kind of what we feel is the way forward for satellite launch, because he can use the christine airports and existing runways, anywhere in the world that has a long enough from way. and here at cool airport nuclear, we have

a long run way that goes direct over the sea with low residential build up around it. that means that the systems like virgin orbit, who are working with, can take off at the end of the runway, go out over the sea and deploy the rocket mid air. so it's a different way of doing it, but it's, it is using an existing asset, an existing airport, rather than a launch pad, you know, some re, really remote. i will tell us more about the 1st launch that's planned in the spring of 2022 with virgin orbit. right? yes, that's the time about this time next year. actually we're hoping to have our 1st launch with virgin orbit. that will be the 1st launch from u k soil ever so, so the very exciting for us here in the u. k. and that will be a 3 day event. it's going to be really big festival and celebration of the space industry in the u. k. and to get the satellites up to space for the 1st time here, because he's never been able to launch from the u. k. and we build huge majority of the world small satellites here, but we can't launch them at the moment. so it is a big, big, big opportunity for the u. k. you've also recently signed

a deal with sierra space, haven't you? how soon will that translate into a launch sheer spaces? it was very different system for us, so it will take off vertically somewhere else in the world, but it needs a horizontal spaceport to land that will run way to, to return from space. so that will be their return location and where they'll be bringing amazing r and d and research back from microgravity that we can process here in the u. k. and we're looking at doing it out in the next 5 or so years. they're due to have their 1st launch out and in colorado in 2023. so it's a few years away still, but it's something that we're working on the concept of operations for at the moment. we've san m o u with them. so the relationship will develop over the next 2 years and we hope to be able to have the landing in the near future. now we've talked a little bit about satellites. what about space tourism could resume that from spaceport? at the moment we're just focused on satellite launch that hard enough, i would say get up and running for the 1st time that will be really focusing on

that over the next few years. but human space flight and base tourism being part of that is, is all the really exciting and get for the headline. for us. i think the future will be in that humans based white element. so looking at that microgravity research, putting more humans and researchers into space to test different health care solutions, up in lower orbit, i think is a really exciting opportunity. and space tourism, who knows as a, as the market develops and is more launches happen over the, in the us. maybe that's something that you might look to do in the future. but you know, hats off to the companies doing it because we know how difficult it is. and congratulations, obviously to blue origin and introvert galactic. he did recently. we've seen a lot of billionaires in the headlines recently. you're right about that. would the commercialization of space, the progress that's taking place with any of that be possible without 1000000000 as like branson mosse conveys us. you know, i think it's actually taking place of what governments used to do in the space

industry, government, and state lead enterprises used to put most of the funding into space. and now what you're seeing in the new space industry today is entrepreneurs, billionaires and private companies actually doing a lot of the pioneering activity. and i think that's really interesting for the industry because what you're seeing is, is new entrance into the market with, obviously different ideas, different background, different industries, making the most, the space to help benefit life here on earth. so i think they are pioneering and they're opening up space and access to space for, for more businesses and more people. so i think it is a good thing. is it worth it? is the carbon footprint though worth it for? what? for at least some of it when we talk about space tourism is going to be alton at least some might say about putting billionaires in space to have a little bit of fun. i think there's 22 sides to that story. i think the impact of launch has been something that's been quite secret over the years. and that something that we're trying to change here is facebook home also responsible launch

launching these technologies. the space cleaner and greener i think is something that spaceports around the world need to be challenged on and not something that we want to be doing here. but also, i think you put some of the most influential people into space and that overview of fact they call it for them to see the curvature of the earth and maybe challenge and change their perceptions about with their activities on earth. i think could be actually really powerful as i think there's 2 sides to i think if we decrease the impact of that launch work together all not. but also, you know, trying to in tech have a reason for these people going to space and that the come back to her and maybe make some changes and action to climate change. let's hope so. it's always good to be optimistic. suppose tourism has grabbed a lot of the headlines recently, but it's unexpected to be in a $1000000000.00 industry right. when you look at the total value of the space industry right now, $350000000000.00, it's obviously just a drop in the bucket. what is the rest of the bucket made off of one of the biggest market for space is pretty much everything we do and daily life,

modern life. now here it's from going and getting money out of an atm to ordering prescriptions online to health care. it's agriculture and driverless tractors, making other industries more efficient from space technology. that's where the value of space really is. so going and getting better access to space for satellites, for space technology is huge because we can get some of these in amazing innovative technologies to where they need to bay and make our lives on earth more efficient. and also to provide the imagery and unbiased information from space about earth, down to change policy and to influence policy to start to tackle some of the biggest global challenges that we have. so i think the real value of space is as exciting as the tourism side is the real value is, is, is benefiting life on earth with making, you know, our lives more efficient and, and more environmentally friendly. these technologies is space, say, so in the hands of billionaires making

a grab for what is ultimately trillion dollar market. i mean may be the richest people on earth, but they don't always have the best track cra, holds in people of business management. i think from opening up space commercially, and i think with all these new entrants, whether it's billionaires or businesses that you can't forget that they're still are, it's still a domain of government. and i think the united nations, for instance, is working incredibly hard on getting some fundamental policies to go into space that we protect democracy in space and we protect peace in space. and that's something that i think the industry is actually collectively working on together. and from what i've seen, you know, it is, it is moving in a positive direction, but there still is a lot of work to be done on how space will be used. and who, you know, fundamentally is, is responsible for their practices in space. and we see that with space to pay for instance, and that is something that is starting to change in a positive way. so i think it is up to us as spaceports to maybe be as a gateway to space or what we are putting into space. and have

a responsibility there as well. so i think the ethics of space is something that is, is growing and moving in the right direction. but like i said, a lot of work to be done. all right, thanks so much for talking to us, melissa. i'll thank you. ah, people in a small town in southern iraq say pollution from all production is killing them. they're blaming the process of gas flaring. that's when oil is extracted and access natural gas is burned off for leasing c o 2 in the fine. the rocky government is investing billions in an attempt to use the gas for electricity. but as the fashionable name reports from babylon village in basra, many say it's already too late. ah. people living in the village of bought la take visitors here. they say gas flaring from oil production decimated their generations old palm trees leaving behind nothing but trunks. when we

met the village elders, they said every one, no some one who is diagnosed with or who has died from cancer. so i know i already have cancer and only god helps me. we continue to be worried about our families and loved ones. the bus for health department in southern iraq says the pollution from oil production is making people and animals in the area sick. the rocky high commission for human rights says, due to the high rate of cancer in basra, it's demanding the government work with oil companies to combat pollution. there is no stability for 6 or 7 years every 2 years. there is some chilling to coach unsecured, cajoling gases, long term investment. it needs some stability on it, need some cash on come, which meant the world bank ranks. iraq, number 2 behind russia when it comes to gas flaring, instead of polluting the air, the gas could be recovered and sold or used to generate electricity for millions of

people. the bus for gas company is investing $3000000000.00 to do just that. at the remailer oil field, iraq's largest, anything that the iraqi government can do or, or its neighbors can do to create in a stable environment is, is good for capturing will guess. and for creating a better environment for the iraqi people. the people of butler say the land, their families have been tied to for 200 years is toxic, and they wonder how many more of them will get sick before the government can help them. natasha name l. g 0. basra, iraq. ah cows. the new coal, that's the question. a 40 trillion dollar investor network is asking why? because farming represents a 3rd of all harmful greenhouse emissions, yet no gee, 20 country has a plan to cut the balancing jobs and livelihood. this proving

a tough cell for government. thousands of farmers recently protested in the netherlands against the government effort to cut nitrogen emissions. intensive, agriculture and fertilizer use have made the netherlands, one of europe's largest emitters, stuff often reports from the hague. ah, not an unusual sight in the netherlands. these days. tract was on the streets of the hague, joining a protest, as the police try to block them. it becomes clear that stopping a tractor isn't easy. i, we hope that the government will understand that the netherlands can't exist without farmers the little and need farmers. we are producing the most sustainable food world, right? so without us, i don't know who will feeds old these people. after milking his couse dairy farmer, young from the wind, left his farm to get some answers from the government for generations. his family as farmed in an area where experts now say there's no future for large farms. it's

just not sustainable. if a government target of nitrogen emission reduction is to be met by us board of the logo, so don't want the environment to be polluted. there is no debate about that, but that the netherlands wants to take drastic steps and farmers are the 1st to be targeted. and i am concerned that in 10 years when farms are gone, we will regret this. like more than $50000.00 dutch farmers, his 17 year old son, tom was keen to continue. the farm has no idea what lies ahead. o, young farmers driving for hours on their tractors to demand certainty about their future. if ecologists and fire mantle groups and increasingly politicians have their way farming, as we know it in the netherlands, can't exist any longer. a message many here, i'm not ready to here. and here you see a lot of dead trees and dying trees with fairly low. if i tell it to you with fairly low leaves,

an expert on the effects of nitrogen emissions research or roland bobbing bowden alarming report for greenpeace. his conclusion, large part of the dutch ecosystem have been so badly affected, that they will be lost if the government does not act. now, i think at this if fairly urgent and i meaning you can do it in one or 2 years. you need maybe 5 to 10 years, a really high reduction of the night and the position, maybe 50 to 70 percent. and therefore you need to difference echo goes all system in the netherlands. greenpeace. have threatened to take the dutch stay to court for violating european regulations. if the government does not reduce nitrogen emissions much further amidst all the pressure, some farmers are starting to realize that business as usual won't be an option for much longer pharma the organization thing, billions of years and needed to save dutch farms and make them and fire mental friendly, steadfast, and al jazeera bake,

reaching net 0 emissions will be impossible without a radical overhaul of the agricultural sector says my next guest. teneo quandary is the head of investor outreach at the fair initiative, which represents investors with 40 trillion dollars on the management could have with us 20. so why have g 20 nations left out any plans for a cut of emissions from farming? yes, great to be here. thanks me, sammy. well, 1st of all, just wanting to mention that climate obviously is a huge issue that was facing globally. and since inception of that, we have been looking at climate risks that then we'll focus on that. and we've been seeing that companies are doing more about trying to engage on this topic. and investors as well. we just need regulators to step forward and do a little bit more here as well. now in terms of why the g 20 nations have left this out, i think it's more that historically it has been a really difficult sector when it comes to the colonizing. obviously it has very

close links with livelihood and income for a majority of people. and also there is still a lack of disclosure and it's been difficult in the back. she tried to measure climate impact and measuring mission and trying to understand who is responsible for specifically what kinds of kinds of emission. and so what we're saying is that the need to be a significant reduction and the significant reductions are impact possible. but we just need it to be that's comments and policy makers. the regulators are really starting to put the eyes on this and address this body. so we say when you say the needs to be reductions, what are we talking about, what they need to do, what they need to con? yes. well, there's so much that, that, that so many different areas within agriculture that can be reduced by emissions moody. so if you think about the feed that they give the animals, for example, trying to reduce the emissions that actually are generated within the animal. when you think about the volume of animal that have been produced,

we have found that over the last year there was actually been an increase in emissions from a, from animal agriculture. and really that is logic as a, as part is result of the fact that more animals are being produced. and so emitting that me then needs to be an adoption of electric vehicles for example. and really trying to stop the mission that happened. so there are lots of areas in the production of the animal and bit of animal protein that we could start to see reductions happen. we just need to see that there's more am regulations and more incentivized ation of farmers to actually do things like this is the a happy balance between livelihoods and farming emissions. absolutely. i believe that there, that there is, it's not that we are not as little client vent cuz i'm either her mother, either couches, a big money generator, isn't it? exactly it is. and so that's why i think is going back to in terms of the emissions coming from the sector. that's why so much needs to be done in terms of if we're going to meet the pass agreement,

let's make sure agriculture part about solution as well because it is a huge money generated, but it is also shoot behind the imaging as well. so it needs to be that balance between likely has an emissions that not all factory, not all annual funding needs to end in the speed that we are empowering farm is to be part of building a more robust and sustainable solution. so where we've seen biden, for example, the administration bite in administration announcing $30000000.00 of incentive to farmers when it comes to carbon capture all last week we had the u. k. national future to announce which is again, incentivizing pharmacy to actually be part of building the sustainable systems. so if the can't soil improvement, blood prevention, carbon sequestration, so that's promise feel that they are part of the solution as well. and on the flip side, we also have to recognize that with the huge emissions that we see there is that increase in climate risk, which is impacting likelihood already. so in texas you seen about to just under $230000000.00 of losses this year from g to the plotting that we've seen. there

been the animal, the stress on the animals. and so the heat stress leading to death of animals means that this is already costing palm as their livelihood, which is why that needs to be more response in terms of trying to address the mission from this area. i'm glad you mentioned animals there. if we look at some of the figures on this 2340000000 tons of meat globally produced every year, how do we convince people to change their diet? i think it's making sure that it's not that people feel that they are being dictated to. i think if there's one thing that has come out some globally from the last 18 months is that people do not want to feel as if the choices are being actively taken away from them and that they're being restricted more more. so we need to make sure that people are more informed and that they've given choices, but it has to be that they able to make an informed decision on what it is that they are consuming. whether in this case, look at food or, or anything else really when it comes to the kids and services that we need to

survive and thrive. so i think that it's helping to ensure that supermarket, but supermarkets as well as regulators are playing that part in giving consumers information they need. so are we actually aware of the reduction that's at the health benefit, for example, that has when you reduce your meet consumption, as well as the environmental benefits that, that comes with that as well. so then you see the ship do away from dictating and saying consumers must do this on, must not do that, but helping them to see well, what all those settings. how can we move towards a more plant based diet? and what benefits is that have for people or planets and for the animals as well. the more successful though, that sort of messages tenny, the less income revenue there will be for big beef suppliers in a world like argentina and brazil. what kind of proposal do you have for them? now we are seeing already that they are starting to understand that the shift is happening. and so it's pots, it's almost a case of well gets on board the ship to get left behind. you are seeing more,

more of the cloud based alternatives thought to really move up the agenda when it comes to consumers, purchasing power. and you see, for example, in the u. s. at last year i think those are busted to 100 percent increase in plant based products being bought there. and so you're seeing these big beef players thought to move towards satisfying that need as well as that they're not losing out on the new customers, the potential revenue and profitability bear. but they're starting to set up own plant based protein products as well. and don't plot base brought brands as well. and so as we see this thought to happen, more of them could more to be produced as lexy start to recognize that this is something that they need to be involved in as well, in order to make sure they are parts of that they are strategically moving in the right direction for the future of what consumers actually picking up and choosing to do with that wallet as well. all right, it's been lovely talking to thanks so much for coming to the show tenny. yes, it's been great being here. thank you so much. and that's all i show for this week

. there's more for you online though, down to 0 dot com slash c t. c. that'll take you straight to our page, which has entire says view to catch up on. i'm sammy's a than from the counting the cost team here. thanks for joining us. the news on al jazeera is next americans are increasingly saying authoritarianism might not be so bad. there were several steps along the way where the chain of command, it seemed like tried to cover what's your take on why they've gotten this so wrong . that to me is political malpractice, the bottom line on us politics and policy, and the impact on the wealth on al jazeera african stories by african film making trouble out that it doesn't drive up with that. all. we're the biggest room mother law, really short documentary from 14 of fossil

n. finnegan to do with wonderful the man who plants bow. bob and a rest mystery africa direct on how just there. mm. oh, jim, in the city in vietnam, once i go the old capital of south vietnam at its heart, islam, sonya square, where journalists diplomats, military staff and spies rub shoulders in its famous hotels during the vietnam war . and i was assigned to vietnam by the associated press and i arrived queued at 962. the caravel hotel burst under the headlines in november, 1963 when those of number to recruit a tower which led to the assassination of president problem. and over 24 hour period, the center of shai gone, was a war zone. the press retreated in effect of the car val

hotel and many of the story is mentioned what we were saying was from the caravel. ah, hello. this is al jazeera ah, hello, i'm emily. ang, when this is the news, our live from doha. coming up in the next 60 minutes, we see what happens. oh, more for it. and johnson ami cron throws travel plans into disarray, rising cases of the burying force of thousands of flight cancellations world wives . a commission in the gabby calls for former president, ga jamie to be prosecuted for crimes against humanity.