VOA标准英语2009-India, China Want West to Take Lead on Globa

Asian giants want Western countries to take lead in reversing global warming, but are reluctant to accept legally binding¹ cap on their emissions³ of greenhouse gases

Anjana Pasricha | New Delhi 27 November 2009

 
Traditional Kashmiri boats make a formation that reads 350 on the International Day of Climate Action, on the Dal Lake in Srinagar, India, 24 Oct 2009

"Be very clear, the issue of climate change is connected to development, it is connected to growth, and no country in the world can accept a freeze on its development," says Sunita Narain, director of the Center for Science and Environment in New Delhi

Among the countries most closely watched at December's United Nations climate-change summit in Copenhagen will be India and China - two populous⁴ and fast growing nations that are among the world's top polluters.  The Asian giants want Western countries to take the lead in reversing global warming, but are reluctant to accept a legally binding cap on their emissions of greenhouse gases.

In a sprawling⁵ slum in the Indian capital, 25-year-old Rakesh Kumar has only the most basic amenities⁶ in his one room tenement⁷ - a single electric bulb, and a fan.

But Kumar is determined⁸ to give a good education to his three-year-old son, so that when he grows up, he can live in a bigger house, and afford a car.

A child waits to fill up drinking water from a government water tanker⁹ at a slum resettlement colony at Ghevda (File)

India points to the aspirations¹⁰ of millions of poor people like Rakesh in sprawling urban slums and villages when it refuses to commit to any caps on its carbon emissions.

More than half its billion plus people still have no electricity.  Others are just small consumers.  But as they are lifted out of poverty, they will want to live like the more prosperous half of India and own cars, washing machines and air conditioners.

The director of the Center for Science and Environment in New Delhi, Sunita Narain says India has to supply energy to all its people.   

"Be very clear, the issue of climate change is connected to development, it is connected to growth, and no country in the world can accept a freeze on its development," said Narain. 

But climate change negotiators worry that without quick action, the carbon footprint of countries like India and China will rise dramatically as their fast-growing economies propel millions into the middle class. China is the world's largest polluter, India is the fourth largest.

They also warn that these countries are among the most vulnerable to climate change.  Studies say rising temperatures will melt glaciers¹¹ on the high Himalayas, cause devastating¹² floods, heatwaves, and make monsoon¹³ rains more erratic¹⁴, resulting in smaller farm yields.

New Delhi and Beijing say they are aware of the magnitude of the problem, and are taking steps to slow the growth of emissions.

In China, Fuqiang Yang, the director of climate issues at the Beijing office of the World Wide Fund for Nature, says his country has already what he calls an ambitious target to cut carbon gasses.

"My understanding is that, from 2005 to 2020, China can cut four giga-tons to four-point-five giga-tons of CO2 emissions - that is huge," he said.

India is preparing to harness solar energy, and has promised to set domestic goals to reduce carbon emissions.

But Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has repeatedly told foreign delegates that his country cannot yet say how far it can go.  

"Now the question arises whether we can quantify it into a precise emission² reduction targets number. We have not reached that stage yet," he said.

New Delhi and Beijing signed an agreement in October to jointly¹⁵ work on climate change and stand united at the Copenhagen conference.  Both countries have joined with other developing countries to demand money and technology from rich countries to make the transition to a greener energy mix.

India and China have been vocal¹⁶ in demanding that rich, developed countries, such as the United States, take the lead in cutting carbon emissions, which exceed theirs on a per capita basis.    

Environmentalists here call these industrialized countries the "historic polluters" of the planet.  Sunita Narain says the carbon dioxide emissions of people in USA are 17 times that of India.

"So we are really talking about drastic reductions, and they must come from countries which have overused their share of the global atmospheric¹⁷ space, which have a natural debt that must be paid, and I think if countries like India are asking for that, it is not wrong. It is the first step toward an effective agreement on climate change," said Narain.

Whether such an agreement is negotiated will only be known when the world's leaders convene¹⁸ in Copenhagen for the United Nations climate change summit early next month. 

But observers say India and China remain wary¹⁹ of accepting legally binding emission cuts at a time when they are making their presence felt on the global economic scene.

1 binding   

有约束力的，有效的，应遵守的

参考例句：

• The contract was not signed and has no binding force. 合同没有签署因而没有约束力。
• Both sides have agreed that the arbitration will be binding. 双方都赞同仲裁具有约束力。

2 emission   

n.发出物，散发物；发出，散发

参考例句：

• Rigorous measures will be taken to reduce the total pollutant emission.采取严格有力措施，降低污染物排放总量。
• Finally,the way to effectively control particulate emission is pointed out.最后，指出有效降低颗粒排放的方向。

3 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。

4 populous   

adj.人口稠密的，人口众多的

参考例句：

• London is the most populous area of Britain.伦敦是英国人口最稠密的地区。
• China is the most populous developing country in the world.中国是世界上人口最多的发展中国家。

5 sprawling   

adj.蔓生的，不规则地伸展的v.伸开四肢坐[躺]( sprawl的现在分词 )；蔓延；杂乱无序地拓展；四肢伸展坐着（或躺着）

参考例句：

• He was sprawling in an armchair in front of the TV. 他伸开手脚坐在电视机前的一张扶手椅上。
• a modern sprawling town 一座杂乱无序拓展的现代城镇

6 amenities   

n.令人愉快的事物；礼仪；礼节；便利设施；礼仪( amenity的名词复数 )；便利设施；（环境等的）舒适；（性情等的）愉快

参考例句：

• The campsite is close to all local amenities. 营地紧靠当地所有的便利设施。
• Parks and a theatre are just some of the town's local amenities. 公园和戏院只是市镇娱乐设施的一部分。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 tenement   

n.公寓；房屋

参考例句：

• They live in a tenement.他们住在廉价公寓里。
• She felt very smug in a tenement yard like this.就是在个这样的杂院里，她觉得很得意。

8 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。

9 tanker   

n.油轮

参考例句：

• The tanker took on 200,000 barrels of crude oil.油轮装载了二十万桶原油。
• Heavy seas had pounded the tanker into three parts.汹涌的巨浪把油轮撞成三载。

10 aspirations   

强烈的愿望( aspiration的名词复数 )； 志向； 发送气音； 发 h 音

参考例句：

• I didn't realize you had political aspirations. 我没有意识到你有政治上的抱负。
• The new treaty embodies the aspirations of most nonaligned countries. 新条约体现了大多数不结盟国家的愿望。

11 glaciers   

冰河，冰川( glacier的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Glaciers gouged out valleys from the hills. 冰川把丘陵地带冲出一条条山谷。
• It has ice and snow glaciers, rainforests and beautiful mountains. 既有冰川，又有雨林和秀丽的山峰。 来自英语晨读30分（高一）

12 devastating   

adj.毁灭性的，令人震惊的，强有力的

参考例句：

• It is the most devastating storm in 20 years.这是20年来破坏性最大的风暴。
• Affairs do have a devastating effect on marriages.婚外情确实会对婚姻造成毁灭性的影响。

13 monsoon   

n.季雨，季风，大雨

参考例句：

• The monsoon rains started early this year.今年季雨降雨开始得早。
• The main climate type in that region is monsoon.那个地区主要以季风气候为主要气候类型。

14 erratic   

adj.古怪的，反复无常的，不稳定的

参考例句：

• The old man had always been cranky and erratic.那老头儿性情古怪,反复无常。
• The erratic fluctuation of market prices is in consequence of unstable economy.经济波动致使市场物价忽起忽落。

15 jointly   

ad.联合地，共同地

参考例句：

• Tenants are jointly and severally liable for payment of the rent. 租金由承租人共同且分别承担。
• She owns the house jointly with her husband. 她和丈夫共同拥有这所房子。

16 vocal   

adj.直言不讳的；嗓音的；n.[pl.]声乐节目

参考例句：

• The tongue is a vocal organ.舌头是一个发音器官。
• Public opinion at last became vocal.终于舆论哗然。

17 atmospheric   

adj.大气的，空气的；大气层的；大气所引起的

参考例句：

• Sea surface temperatures and atmospheric circulation are strongly coupled.海洋表面温度与大气环流是密切相关的。
• Clouds return radiant energy to the surface primarily via the atmospheric window.云主要通过大气窗区向地表辐射能量。

18 convene   

v.集合，召集，召唤，聚集，集合

参考例句：

• The Diet will convene at 3p.m. tomorrow.国会将于明天下午三点钟开会。
• Senior officials convened in October 1991 in London.1991年10月，高级官员在伦敦会齐。

19 wary   

adj.谨慎的，机警的，小心的

参考例句：

• He is wary of telling secrets to others.他谨防向他人泄露秘密。
• Paula frowned,suddenly wary.宝拉皱了皱眉头，突然警惕起来。