Meteorologist Jeff Ranieri

This week and beyond NBC Universal is “Going Green”. Through programming and advertising the network is spreading the word on how you can help the environment. As part of this initiative, NBC Weather Plus was sent into the field to talk about our planet.

While we would head to a few locations, the biggest impact for me were the live shots at the Top of the Rock. Here’s a slice of the journey.

As we climbed to the top in a high speed elevator it’s hard to miss the overwhelming population of visitors from all over. In one elevator ride I could hear German, French and Chinese. The elevator quickly launched us to the top, it was time to work.

I searched for my crew and started getting prepared to go live on MSNBC. A flurry of people were already wondering what was going to be on television. After I explained our mission to “Go Green”
the crowd was ready to speak.

Before I went live I reviewed a few facts from the research I did the night before. Here are a few of my reporter notes:

• The average person goes through 5-7 pounds of paper per week.


• 30 million trees are used to print news and then thrown away.


• Making materials from recycled material can reduce air pollution by 74% and 35% in water pollution.


• Recycling 6 feet of newspapers could save a 35 foot tree.


• Relate - Recycling - Weather - Pollution

Moments before I was on television it really started to sink in much more. While I have covered this topic before, the impact was never this strong. I was able to feel the global environmental vibe from the visitors and the stunning views from the top of the Rock simultaneously.

After interviewing many people that day, two compelling stories stuck in my brain.

The first, a young girl from Australia, described the drought and how her family can only take a 2 minute shower, they can’t wash cars, fill up swimming pools and are unable to do laundry on any given day.

Also, a visitor from England mentioned that trash is piling up so much that garbage could soon be weighed with strict penalties for those that go over a limit and do not recycle.

It was messages like this and the visual sign from Mother Nature in the brilliant sky that left me feeling much more serious about going green.

Take a look at this picture below and I think it will convince you that going green to help preserve the earth for future generations is what needs to be done.


This was my view from the top of the "Rock"

While no one knows for sure what we are in store for 20 years from now, we do know that small steps make a difference when it comes to pollution. Going green is more than just a saying, it’s an action.

For more on ways you can “Go Green,” visit the Our Green Earth section on WeatherPlus.com.

Jeff Ranieri - Meteorologist