公众呼吁采取行动保护环境

 　　"I think environment has everything to do with everyone. But I also think it's OK if I don't focus much attention on water pollution. I can afford purified water. But emissions¹ pumped out in China do pollute the food we eat."

　　From PM 2.5 to the so-called APEC Blue, environmental issues have been a growing topic of discussion in China for the past few years.

　　China's central government has been working to strike a balance between protecting the environment and keeping the country's economy on-track.

　　But while the government is taking a proactive approach to environmental protection, a new survey suggests the same cannot be said for the average person on the street.

　　公众呼吁采取实际行动保护环境

　　The survey, conducted by a private Chinese firm, now shows one-third of those asked use a vehicle at least once a week.

　　This is up from the roughly 8-percent who were asked the same question in the survey 5-years ago.

　　Professor Feng Yinchang with Nankai University suggests apathy², China's modernization³ and a lack of public education about environmental issues are the main reasons behind this.

　　"We need to change our lifestyles when confronted with the problems, such as lighting⁴ firecrackers and purchasing high-emission vehicles. In terms of the public, raising environmental protection awareness⁵ is not enough. The public's self-awareness of living a green lifestyle is relatively⁶ low. Education and publication should be lifted to promote modern lifestyles."

　　Even though the government has been moving to try to change people's habits through various initiatives, many say they feel it isn't going far enough.

　　One of the main contributors to China's pollution problems is vehicle emissions.

　　Numerous Chinese cities have brought in changes to try to promote the use of public transportation.

　　However, many of these same cities have also been increasing fees to use the systems.

　　Professor Feng Yinchang says better urban planning will be needed to make cities in China more environmentally-friendly.

　　"We always talk about how the automobiles⁷ are polluting the environment and air quality. But the problem is our city planning, city construction and its layout fail to create an ideal condition for people to love taking public transportations, riding bicycles or walking. The government still has a lot to do, such as creating an atmosphere in which the public would voluntarily contribute to environment governance and choose a green lifestyle."

　　New government statistics show only 16 of the 161 Chinese cities which have air quality monitoring met the national standards this past year.

　　Of the roughly 49-hundred points around the country which have groundwater testing, close to two-thirds have been deemed "poor" or "extremely poor".

　　For CRI, I'm Sophie Williams.

1 emissions   

排放物( emission的名词复数 )； 散发物（尤指气体）

参考例句：

• Most scientists accept that climate change is linked to carbon emissions. 大多数科学家都相信气候变化与排放的含碳气体有关。
• Dangerous emissions radiate from plutonium. 危险的辐射物从钚放散出来。

2 apathy   

n.漠不关心，无动于衷；冷淡

参考例句：

• He was sunk in apathy after his failure.他失败后心恢意冷。
• She heard the story with apathy.她听了这个故事无动于衷。

3 modernization   

n.现代化，现代化的事物

参考例句：

• This will help us achieve modernization.这有助于我们实现现代化。
• The Chinese people are sure to realize the modernization of their country.中国人民必将实现国家现代化。

4 lighting   

n.照明，光线的明暗，舞台灯光

参考例句：

• The gas lamp gradually lost ground to electric lighting.煤气灯逐渐为电灯所代替。
• The lighting in that restaurant is soft and romantic.那个餐馆照明柔和而且浪漫。

5 awareness   

n.意识，觉悟，懂事，明智

参考例句：

• There is a general awareness that smoking is harmful.人们普遍认识到吸烟有害健康。
• Environmental awareness has increased over the years.这些年来人们的环境意识增强了。

6 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。

7 automobiles   

n.汽车( automobile的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• When automobiles become popular,the use of the horse and buggy passed away. 汽车普及后，就不再使用马和马车了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Automobiles speed in an endless stream along the boulevard. 宽阔的林荫道上，汽车川流不息。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》