VOA慢速英语--建立鲸鱼保护区的提议未获通过

Proposal to Create Whale Sanctuary¹ Defeated

A proposal to create a whale sanctuary in the South Atlantic Ocean was defeated this week at a meeting in Brazil of the International Whaling Commission, or IWC.

Whales are mammals that live in the sea and some are among the largest animals ever to have lived.

The proposal received support from 39 countries but was opposed by 25. That was just a little less than the three-quarters majority needed for approval. Brazil first introduced the proposal in 2001.

Japan and other nations argued that the sanctuary was not needed because countries are not currently doing commercial whaling in the South Atlantic.

Environmental groups and conservationists argued that the sanctuary would protect whales from being hunted, trapped in fishing gear or struck by ships.

Brazilian Environmental Minister Edson Duarte promised to fight for the proposal at future meetings.

“It (is) so important for the conservation of whales around the world but especially in the South Atlantic,” he said.

In addition to Japan, countries opposing the sanctuary included Iceland and Norway. They are pushing for the return of some sustainable whaling and are unlikely to change their vote unless their demand is met.

The commission banned commercial whaling in the 1980s. Japan is proposing to bring it back this year with catch limits. Japan has hunted whales for hundreds of years as a less costly² form of meat.

Daven Joseph is ambassador-at-large for Antigua and Barbuda, another nation which voted against the measure. He said the proposal has some value but “is failing year after year because there is a lack of respect for the views of everyone in this organization.”

Joseph said sustainable commercial whaling could provide an important food for developing island nations. And, some countries have a cultural and nutritional³ use for whale meat that should be respected.

Conservationists say commercial whaling has proved difficult to supervise in the past. They say it threatens whale populations. Some countries say there is simply no place for whaling in the modern world.

But Joseph predicted that progress on many conservation measures would be impossible without compromise.

Several native or ethnic⁴ groups also spoke⁵ Tuesday in support of their own subsistence hunting. Such hunting is permitted by commission rules. Catch limits for subsistence hunting are up for renewal⁶ this year.

“Since childhood, I have been trained to hunt,” said Vladimir Piny, a native Chukchi whaling captain from northern Russia. “I cannot grow tomatoes or bananas. The Arctic would never allow me to do so.”

Japan accuses the IWC of supporting anti-whaling nations rather than trying to reach a compromise.

The subject of commercial whaling has split the IWC for many years and neither side has appeared to be willing to compromise.

The conference ends Friday, September 14.

I’m Lucija Millonig.

Words in This Story

sanctuary – n. a place where someone or something is protected

commercial – adj. concerned with earning money

whaling – n. the act of hunting whales

conservationist – n. someone who works to protect animals, plants, and natural resources

sustainable – adj. able to be used without being completely used up or destroyed

subsistence hunting – n. hunting that is done only to provide food for people

allow – v. to permit

1 sanctuary   

n.圣所，圣堂，寺庙；禁猎区，保护区

参考例句：

• There was a sanctuary of political refugees behind the hospital.医院后面有一个政治难民的避难所。
• Most countries refuse to give sanctuary to people who hijack aeroplanes.大多数国家拒绝对劫机者提供庇护。

2 costly   

adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的

参考例句：

• It must be very costly to keep up a house like this.维修这么一幢房子一定很昂贵。
• This dictionary is very useful,only it is a bit costly.这本词典很有用，左不过贵了些。

3 nutritional   

adj.营养的，滋养的

参考例句：

• A diet lacking in nutritional value will not keep a person healthy.缺乏营养价值的饮食不能维持人的健康。
• The labels on food products give a lot of information about their nutritional content.食品上的标签提供很多关于营养成分的信息。

4 ethnic   

adj.人种的，种族的，异教徒的

参考例句：

• This music would sound more ethnic if you played it in steel drums.如果你用钢鼓演奏，这首乐曲将更具民族特色。
• The plan is likely only to aggravate ethnic frictions.这一方案很有可能只会加剧种族冲突。

5 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

6 renewal   

adj.(契约)延期，续订，更新，复活，重来

参考例句：

• Her contract is coming up for renewal in the autumn.她的合同秋天就应该续签了。
• Easter eggs symbolize the renewal of life.复活蛋象征新生。