Mayana, a small South American country, is poised to become the salvation of a trash-choked globe. A revolutionary device, the Vaporizer, can turn garbage into thin air and trash into cash for the beleaguered nation. But with the President scheduled to attend a global environmental summit in Mayana, Dr. Harold Smith smells trouble -- and dispatches Remo and Chiun to the scene to pose as scientists. It soon becomes clear that nobody -- not even the president of Mayana himself -- can be trusted.