VOA标准英语2009-Slow Climate Change, Improve Health, Says Ne

International doctors and health professionals say it’s their duty to speak out

Joe DeCapua | Washington, DC 27 November 2009

"...the health dimension in the climate change negotiations¹ is conspicuous² by its absence."

Senior doctors and health professionals from around the world say major health improvements would result if world leaders tackle climate change.  They’ve formed the International Climate and Health Council to present their case for going green.

Members say while politicians may fear to push for radical³ changes in greenhouse gas emissions⁵, doctors are under no such constraints⁶.  The council includes colleagues from Africa, Australia, Asia, Europe and the Americas and was formed in advance of next month’s major climate change conference in Copenhagen, called COP 15.

Healthy earth, healthy inhabitants

Professor Mike Gill, co-chair of the British Climate and Health Council and spokesman for the new group, outlines why it was formed.

“The first reason is that the health dimension in the climate change negotiations is conspicuous by its absence. And yet, it is one of the very few good news stories….  It’s good news because everything we should be doing to mitigate⁷ climate change is good for health,” he says.

He says many people, including health professionals and politicians, don’t realize that connection between climate change and health.

“The second reason is much of the climate change debate was initially⁸ 20 years ago framed very much in environmental terms.  And then it’s moved increasingly to economic terms, but actually economics is not the bottom line here. It’s health,” he says.

Gill likens the new group to the alliance formed by doctors during the 1980s to campaign against nuclear weapons.  In 1985, the Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War.

“Faced with the reality of climate change, we feel that we really would be failing in our professional duty if we didn’t step forward and show some leadership,” he says.

Effects on health   

“Most of the problems caused by climate change are through the indirect effect of huge effects on food security, water security and population movement,” he says.

“It’s these indirect effects making those already very vulnerable even more vulnerable, which are the most sinister⁹.”

There are also direct effects from climate change, he says, such as redistribution of disease patterns, including malaria¹⁰ and tick-borne diseases and “of course all the major events, such a heat waves and cyclones¹¹.”

Gill believes the International Climate and Health Council can get past the economics of the climate change debate by looking at the four “domains” that are affected¹².

“Electricity generation, transport, agriculture and domestic energy.  In all of those, the very things that we know we need to do to mitigate climate change are going to produce huge health benefits not just in high income countries, but in low income countries, as well,” he says.

For example, the group recommends a reversal in the rising trend of meat consumption.  Large amounts of methane¹³ gas are produced by livestock¹⁴.  He says meat consumption worldwide has “gone up five times in the last 50 years,” a growth rate far surpassing the world’s population increase.

“We know full well that reducing meat consumption actually is going to be extremely good for health because cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death,’ he says.

However, it’s not just the food, but how it’s cooked.

“The provision, say, of 150 million clean cooking stoves in India will produce dramatic effects over the next 10 years on the amount of CO2 emission⁴, as well as saving very many, many lives from respiratory disease and many other childhood illnesses that are a direct result of people not living in a very polluted environment inside their own homes,” he says.

As for transport, he says, the very act of more people walking or riding bicycles in many cities reduces pollution and improves health, such as reducing the obesity¹⁵ epidemic¹⁶.
 
“The point about them all is that actually these effects will be immediate¹⁷ and local.  They won’t be distant,” he says.

Gill says the council has very prominent and senior professional members from all over the world. 

In addition, he says it recently started a pledge campaign “inviting health professionals to say we as individuals will do what we can to try and persuade our governments to sign a meaningful deal in Copenhagen.  And we’ve got sign-ups from health professionals in 120 countries.”

 

1 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

2 conspicuous   

adj.明眼的，惹人注目的；炫耀的，摆阔气的

参考例句：

• It is conspicuous that smoking is harmful to health.很明显，抽烟对健康有害。
• Its colouring makes it highly conspicuous.它的色彩使它非常惹人注目。

3 radical   

n.激进份子，原子团，根号；adj.根本的，激进的，彻底的

参考例句：

• The patient got a radical cure in the hospital.病人在医院得到了根治。
• She is radical in her demands.她的要求十分偏激。

4 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。

5 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。

6 constraints   

强制( constraint的名词复数 )； 限制； 约束

参考例句：

• Data and constraints can easily be changed to test theories. 信息库中的数据和限制条件可以轻易地改变以检验假设。 来自英汉非文学 - 科学史
• What are the constraints that each of these imply for any design? 这每种产品的要求和约束对于设计意味着什么？ 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓

7 mitigate   

vt.（使）减轻，（使）缓和

参考例句：

• The government is trying to mitigate the effects of inflation.政府正试图缓和通货膨胀的影响。
• Governments should endeavour to mitigate distress.政府应努力缓解贫困问题。

8 initially   

adv.最初，开始

参考例句：

• The ban was initially opposed by the US.这一禁令首先遭到美国的反对。
• Feathers initially developed from insect scales.羽毛最初由昆虫的翅瓣演化而来。

9 sinister   

adj.不吉利的，凶恶的，左边的

参考例句：

• There is something sinister at the back of that series of crimes.在这一系列罪行背后有险恶的阴谋。
• Their proposals are all worthless and designed out of sinister motives.他们的建议不仅一钱不值，而且包藏祸心。

10 malaria   

n.疟疾

参考例句：

• He had frequent attacks of malaria.他常患疟疾。
• Malaria is a kind of serious malady.疟疾是一种严重的疾病。

11 cyclones   

n.气旋( cyclone的名词复数 )；旋风；飓风；暴风

参考例句：

• The pricipal objective in designing cyclones is to create a vortex. 设计旋风除尘器的主要目的在于造成涡旋运动。 来自辞典例句
• Middle-latitude cyclones originate at the popar front. 中纬度地区的气旋发源于极锋。 来自辞典例句

12 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

13 methane   

n.甲烷，沼气

参考例句：

• The blast was caused by pockets of methane gas that ignited.爆炸是由数袋甲烷气体着火引起的。
• Methane may have extraterrestrial significance.甲烷具有星际意义。

14 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。

15 obesity   

n.肥胖，肥大

参考例句：

• One effect of overeating may be obesity.吃得过多能导致肥胖。
• Sugar and fat can more easily lead to obesity than some other foods.糖和脂肪比其他食物更容易导致肥胖。

16 epidemic   

n.流行病；盛行；adj.流行性的，流传极广的

参考例句：

• That kind of epidemic disease has long been stamped out.那种传染病早已绝迹。
• The authorities tried to localise the epidemic.当局试图把流行病限制在局部范围。

17 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。