国家地理 保护着海岸和生命的消失的森林(2)

Haldar, a meticulously¹ dressed widow of about 50, had at least had some inkling of what was to come. She'd watched as the nearby Sundarbans, a vast mangrove² forest that flanks the village, had retreated, its trees looking increasingly weedy. She'd noted³ how the water appeared to draw strength from the forest's weakness. The only surprise, Haldar insisted, is that the village's earthworks held out for so long. "The trees defended us, but we treated them very badly," she said. "So now we are all suffering the consequences."

哈尔达是个寡妇，今年50岁，总是穿戴的很整齐，对于即将发生的事，她心里多少有数。她看过孙德尔本斯上那片广袤的守卫着村子侧翼的红树林是怎样逐渐退去的，因为那些树变得越来越瘦弱。她也知道那些水流是怎样带走了树木的生命力。唯一令哈尔达感到惊讶的是，村子居然坚持了这么久。她说：“那些树保护了我们，但我们并没有善待他们。所以我们现在就要承担后果。”

In Bangladesh and the neighboring Indian state of West Bengal, there are thousands of villages like East Dhangmari -- places that are losing their natural defenses against climate change just as it is intensifying⁴. The land is paper-flat and crisscrossed by rivers bulging⁵ with meltwater from the Himalaya. Cyclones⁶ frequently roar in off the Bay of Bengal, sometimes killing⁷ thousands. Flooding is pervasive⁸.

在孟加拉国和邻近的印度西孟加拉邦，有成千上万个东当马里一样的村子--在气候变化加剧的时代，它们却在逐渐失去自己的天然屏障。那里地形平坦，其上十字形交错着喜马拉雅山上融化的雪水汇成的河流。飓风时常从孟加拉湾席卷过来，有时会造成上千人的死亡。随之而来的就是肆虐的洪水。

1 meticulously   

adv.过细地，异常细致地；无微不至；精心

参考例句：

• The hammer's silvery head was etched with holy runs and its haft was meticulously wrapped in blue leather. 锤子头是纯银制成的，雕刻着神圣符文，而握柄则被精心地包裹在蓝色的皮革中。 来自辞典例句
• She is always meticulously accurate in punctuation and spelling. 她的标点和拼写总是非常精确。 来自辞典例句

2 mangrove   

n.(植物)红树，红树林

参考例句：

• It is the world's largest tidal mangrove forest.它是世界上最大的红树林沼泽地。
• Many consider this the most beautiful mangrove forest in all Thailand.许多人认为这里是全泰国最美丽的红树林了。

3 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

4 intensifying   

v.（使）增强， （使）加剧( intensify的现在分词 )；增辉

参考例句：

• The allies are intensifying their air campaign. 联军部队正加大他们的空战强度。 来自辞典例句
• The rest of the European powers were in a state of intensifying congestion. 其余的欧洲强国则处于越来越拥挤的状态。 来自英汉非文学 - 历史

5 bulging   

膨胀； 凸出（部）； 打气； 折皱

参考例句：

• Her pockets were bulging with presents. 她的口袋里装满了礼物。
• Conscious of the bulging red folder, Nim told her,"Ask if it's important." 尼姆想到那个鼓鼓囊囊的红色文件夹便告诉她：“问问是不是重要的事。”

6 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

7 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

8 pervasive   

adj.普遍的；遍布的，(到处)弥漫的；渗透性的

参考例句：

• It is the most pervasive compound on earth.它是地球上最普遍的化合物。
• The adverse health effects of car exhaust are pervasive and difficult to measure.汽车尾气对人类健康所构成的有害影响是普遍的，并且难以估算。