英语听力：自然百科 非洲沙漠化威胁民生

 When Amna Ment Mohamed opens a window in her home, a fountain of sand tumbles to the floor.

 

“I am always afraid as our house can fall on our heads. The sand comes in from all sides and the windows.”

 

To reach her front door, she must climb over the sand dune¹ at the side of her house. She lives in a Mauritanian village of Erebine. And the Sahara Desert sand is taking over the village. Desertification has increased dramatically over the last 40 years. Today, sand covers about forty percent of the country, which is twice the size of France.

 

Government data for 2007 showed that dunes² are shifting at an estimated 4 to 6 miles per year. Tops of houses are submerged by dunes and many people have moved to the cities. Some scientists blame global climate change for increased desertification, while others point fingers at poor agricultural practices and uprooting³ trees for firewood and insulation⁴, leaving nothing to bind⁵ the sand.

 

The Mauritanian government in 2004 proposed a series of measures from the creation of a greenbelt around threatened cities to planting sticks and formations that halt the flow of sand.

 

A representative from the government’s department for the protection of nature shows vegetation they hope to plant to help combat the advancing sand.

 

“Every year, we bring up approximately a hundred or so thousand plants...of different species, local and indigenous⁶ and introduced species... (amazing!!!)”

 

The United Nation's program for development in Mauritania works to help the people adapt economically.

 

“We have the loss of livestock⁷, because we have lots of Mauritanians who are depending on animal husbandry. We had the decrease of agricultural production, and this led to...(a) rural exodus⁸ from the people living in rural areas to bigger cities.”

 

And as the people abandon the villages in the countryside, it leaves them even more vulnerable to shifting sands.

1 dune   

n.(由风吹积而成的)沙丘

参考例句：

• The sand massed to form a dune.沙积集起来成了沙丘。
• Cute Jim sat on the dune eating a prune in June.可爱的吉姆在六月天坐在沙丘上吃着话梅。

2 dunes   

沙丘( dune的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The boy galloped over the dunes barefoot. 那男孩光着脚在沙丘间飞跑。
• Dragging the fully laden boat across the sand dunes was no mean feat. 将满载货物的船拖过沙丘是一件了不起的事。

3 uprooting   

n.倒根，挖除伐根v.把（某物）连根拔起( uproot的现在分词 )；根除；赶走；把…赶出家园

参考例句：

• He is hard at work uprooting wild grass in the field. 他正在田里辛苦地芟夷呢。 来自互联网
• A storm raged through the village, uprooting trees and flattening crops. 暴风雨袭击了村庄，拔起了树木，吹倒了庄稼。 来自互联网

4 insulation   

n.隔离；绝缘；隔热

参考例句：

• Please examine the insulation of the electric wires in my house.请检查一下我屋子里电线的绝缘情况。
• It is always difficult to assure good insulation between the electric leads.要保证两个电触头之间有良好的绝缘总是很困难的。

5 bind   

vt.捆，包扎；装订；约束；使凝固；vi.变硬

参考例句：

• I will let the waiter bind up the parcel for you.我让服务生帮你把包裹包起来。
• He wants a shirt that does not bind him.他要一件不使他觉得过紧的衬衫。

6 indigenous   

adj.土产的，土生土长的，本地的

参考例句：

• Each country has its own indigenous cultural tradition.每个国家都有自己本土的文化传统。
• Indians were the indigenous inhabitants of America.印第安人是美洲的土著居民。

7 livestock   

n.家畜，牲畜

参考例句：

• Both men and livestock are flourishing.人畜两旺。
• The heavy rains and flooding killed scores of livestock.暴雨和大水淹死了许多牲口。

8 exodus   

v.大批离去，成群外出

参考例句：

• The medical system is facing collapse because of an exodus of doctors.由于医生大批离去，医疗系统面临崩溃。
• Man's great challenge at this moment is to prevent his exodus from this planet.人在当前所遇到的最大挑战，就是要防止人从这个星球上消失。