PBS高端访谈:随着路易斯安那海岸线的不断退缩,关于责任的政治斗争开始出现

 　　GWEN IFILL: Next: The coast of Louisiana is crumbling¹ into the Gulf² of Mexico at an alarming rate. Over the last 80 years, it's lost nearly 2,000 square miles. That's as big as all of Rhode Island. Now a political fight has broken out in the state legislature over who's going to help pay to try and repair the damage.

　　Hari Sreenivasan has our story.

　　WOMAN: I would like to introduce to John Barry.

　　MAN: Hi, John.

　　HARI SREENIVASAN: John Barry, the award-winning historian and writer, and a man who's normally holed up in a book-lined office by himself, has lately become one of the busiest men in Louisiana.

　　JOHN BARRY, Author, "Rising Tide": This is not just another piece of legislation.

　　HARI SREENIVASAN: He's been talking to rotary³ clubs.

　　JOHN BARRY: I'm John Barry.

　　HARI SREENIVASAN: Testifying before the state legislature.

　　JOHN BARRY: There is no debate, scientifically, over that fact.

　　HARI SREENIVASAN: Why? Barry is fighting a controversial legal and political battle to try and force the powerful oil and gas industry to pay billions for the role their dredging and drilling has played in the erosion of the coast of Louisiana.

　　Barry is best known for his book "Rising Tide," an account of the devastating⁴ 1927 flood in Louisiana. That bestseller made him something of a local celebrity⁵, and has given him a platform to sound the alarm about the current land-loss crisis in the state.

　　JOHN BARRY: We have lost close to 2,000 square miles of land. That loss continues every minute. Towns are going to disappear. Cities, small cities are going to disappear. New Orleans itself is going to become almost too dangerous to live in.

　　HARI SREENIVASAN: Nearly everywhere you look in coastal⁶ Louisiana, the landscape is crumbling. In the town of Leeville 80 miles south of New Orleans, structures meant to last for generations are falling apart.

　　What was once dense⁸ farmland is now gone. The main road through town now dead-ends in the water. Even the local cemetery⁹ can't hold onto the ground around it.

　　BOBBY LYNN: What's happening is, it's like a cancer.

　　HARI SREENIVASAN: Fisherman and businessman Bobby Lynn has been here 25 years, and he's seen dramatic changes all around him.

　　BOBBY LYNN: You can see the little, bitty islands. Well, 20 years ago, that was just one solid piece of lush, fertile marsh¹⁰, and now it's just little, bitty islands and very little island left now, because every year, we lose so much of it.

　　EUGENE TURNER, Louisiana State University: It's not like losing a few acres of beachfront property in Maryland or North Carolina. We're losing square miles a year.

　　HARI SREENIVASAN: Gene⁷ Turner, one of the preeminent¹¹ coastal scientists in the region, says Louisiana's coast is disappearing for several reasons:

　　First, the levees and dams built along the Mississippi to stop floods also stop crucial dirt and sediment¹² from replenishing the wetlands. Second, not only are sea levels rising, but these wetlands naturally sink down a bit every year, bringing in more saltwater and further damaging the marshes¹³.

　　And, third, ever since oil was discovered here, energy companies have dredged an estimated 10,000 miles of canals through the wetlands to move their drilling rigs into place. These canals degrade the marshes on either side of their banks, further weakening the wetlands, so when a big hurricane like Katrina comes through, the wetlands are torn up even more.

　　Virtually every coastal scientist here says dredging these canals has been a major contributor to Louisiana's land loss.

　　EUGENE TURNER: Where there's a lot of dredging, there's a lot of land loss. Where there's a little bit of dredging, there's a little bit of land loss. Where there's no dredging, there's hardly any land loss. It's an inescapable conclusion.

　　HARI SREENIVASAN: These marshes are not only a valuable ecosystem¹⁴ for the entire Gulf, but for hundreds of years, this huge network of wetlands has defended the city of New Orleans from major storms.

　　I'm on a levee in New Orleans. These are the city's last line of defense¹⁵. As the wetlands disappear along the coastline, it puts hundreds of thousands of homes here at greater risk from a catastrophic storm surge.

　　After Hurricane Katrina, John Barry was appointed to sit on a new regional flood protection authority board. Its job was to oversee¹⁶ and monitor the various flood protections being built in a part of metro¹⁷ New Orleans.

　　JOHN BARRY: We recognized that the danger was increasing.

　　HARI SREENIVASAN: Last July, alleging¹⁸ that the oil and gas industry's damage to the wetlands made flooding in the city more likely, the flood protection authority sued 97 oil and gas companies.

　　The suit argues the companies were negligent¹⁹ in how they operated in the wetlands, and it points to numerous permits requiring companies to repair and fill in the canals when they were done.

　　JOHN BARRY: They promised in the permits, which are negotiated like contracts, that they were going to do certain things. They broke their word. They didn't do them. The law requires them to do certain things. They didn't do them. They broke their word. And they certainly haven't taken responsibility for fixing the — for fixing these things.

　　GIFFORD BRIGGS, Louisiana Oil & Gas Association: This is about billions of dollars, billions of dollars that will be put on for attorneys' fees. It's not really about coastal restoration.

　　HARI SREENIVASAN: Gifford Briggs is the vice²⁰ president for the Louisiana Oil and Gas Association, which represents all but the biggest oil companies like Exxon and BP. Briggs argues that the entire nation benefited from the cheap and abundant energy his industry pulls out of those wetlands.

　　So, does the industry say that it's not responsible at all for any of the wetland damage?

　　GIFFORD BRIGGS: There's no denying that canals were cut, and so — and potentially that there may be impacts from the creation of those canals. But those canals were created with the blessing²¹ of the state of Louisiana, with the blessing of those local governments, and in partnership²² with those, contributed millions and billions of dollars into the state and to local governments for the production of those natural resources.

　　HARI SREENIVASAN: Earlier this year, the industry tried to get the lawsuit²³ thrown out in court, but a judge rejected their motion and allowed the suit to proceed. Most lawsuits²⁴ are fought in court, but this case has attracted so much attention and opposition²⁵ from the oil and gas industry, that the fight moved here, to the state capitol.

　　HARI SREENIVASAN: Governor Bobby Jindal, a strong defender²⁶ of the industry, denounced the lawsuit, saying: "These trial lawyers are taking this action at the expense of our coast and thousands of hardworking Louisianians who help fuel America by working in the energy industry."

　　And in the hallways of the state capitol in Baton²⁷ Rouge²⁸, lawmakers who support that industry have been crafting different bills to retroactively kill the lawsuit. A bill was introduced to limit which state agencies were allowed to bring lawsuits. Another bill changed how the flood control board was appointed. Another even challenged how that board hired its lawyers.

　　ROBERT ADLEY, R, Louisiana State Senator: We have, in my view, a rogue²⁹ agency of the state of Louisiana benefiting trial attorneys, and not working together with the rest of the state to solve our problem.

　　HARI SREENIVASAN: State Senator Robert Adley, who used to run an oil and gas company and now consults for the industry, has sponsored the majority of the bills seeking to derail the suit. Adley argues that a local flood protection authority has no standing³⁰ to sue an entire industry, especially when state and federal authorities permitted the industry to perform all that drilling.

　　ROBERT ADLEY: To intervene in permits that you were no party to, had nothing to do with, that's a violation³¹ of the law, in my opinion. You don't have standing to do that.

　　HARI SREENIVASAN: So — but why not just let a judge say, you don't have standing to do that? Why go through, I have heard anywhere from a half-dozen to 17 different pieces of legislation to try to stop a lawsuit? Why not just let a judge say, you don't have standing?

　　ROBERT ADLEY: Their job is clearly to interpret the law. Our job is to manage the state. We have that obligation. We shouldn't just abdicate³² our responsibility to the courts. The people I represent wouldn't like that very much, and, obviously, I don't think the state would like that very much.

　　JOHN BARRY: The real goal is not to go to court and spend 15 years before — before Exxon uses up all the appeals. The real goal is to get the people around a table, solve the problem for the state, and get money flowing and dedicated³³ to fixing the coast.

　　HARI SREENIVASAN: Barry points out that Louisiana has spent just $2 billion on restoration since 2008. Four years later, the state drafted a $50 billion master plan for coastal restoration, but it is nowhere near fully³⁴ funded. This is why, Barry says, the flood authority's lawsuit is a crucial lever.

　　JOHN BARRY: No amount of money is going to allow us to rebuild the 2,000 square miles that we have already lost. But we can save a lot of what is left. You can't do that for free, however.

　　HARI SREENIVASAN: The lawsuit suffered a blow when the state Senate passed a bill that would retroactively suspend the flood authority's ability to sue. That bill is expected to be voted on later this week.

1 crumbling   

adj.摇摇欲坠的

参考例句：

• an old house with crumbling plaster and a leaking roof 一所灰泥剥落、屋顶漏水的老房子
• The boat was tied up alongside a crumbling limestone jetty. 这条船停泊在一个摇摇欲坠的石灰岩码头边。

2 gulf   

n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂

参考例句：

• The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
• There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。

3 rotary   

adj.(运动等)旋转的；轮转的；转动的

参考例句：

• The central unit is a rotary drum.核心设备是一个旋转的滚筒。
• A rotary table helps to optimize the beam incidence angle.一张旋转的桌子有助于将光线影响之方式角最佳化。

4 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。

5 celebrity   

n.名人，名流；著名，名声，名望

参考例句：

• Tom found himself something of a celebrity. 汤姆意识到自己已小有名气了。
• He haunted famous men, hoping to get celebrity for himself. 他常和名人在一起, 希望借此使自己获得名气。

6 coastal   

adj.海岸的，沿海的，沿岸的

参考例句：

• The ocean waves are slowly eating away the coastal rocks.大海的波浪慢慢地侵蚀着岸边的岩石。
• This country will fortify the coastal areas.该国将加强沿海地区的防御。

7 gene   

n.遗传因子，基因

参考例句：

• A single gene may have many effects.单一基因可能具有很多种效应。
• The targeting of gene therapy has been paid close attention.其中基因治疗的靶向性是值得密切关注的问题之一。

8 dense   

a.密集的，稠密的，浓密的；密度大的

参考例句：

• The general ambushed his troops in the dense woods. 将军把部队埋伏在浓密的树林里。
• The path was completely covered by the dense foliage. 小路被树叶厚厚地盖了一层。

9 cemetery   

n.坟墓，墓地，坟场

参考例句：

• He was buried in the cemetery.他被葬在公墓。
• His remains were interred in the cemetery.他的遗体葬在墓地。

10 marsh   

n.沼泽，湿地

参考例句：

• There are a lot of frogs in the marsh.沼泽里有许多青蛙。
• I made my way slowly out of the marsh.我缓慢地走出这片沼泽地。

11 preeminent   

adj.卓越的，杰出的

参考例句：

• Washington was recognized as the preeminent spokesman of American Negroes by 1895. 到1895年,华盛顿被公认为美国黑人的卓越代言人。
• He is preeminent because his articles are well written. 他的文章写得很漂亮,卓尔不群。

12 sediment   

n.沉淀，沉渣，沉积(物)

参考例句：

• The sediment settled and the water was clear.杂质沉淀后，水变清了。
• Sediment begins to choke the channel's opening.沉积物开始淤塞河道口。

13 marshes   

n.沼泽，湿地( marsh的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Cows were grazing on the marshes. 牛群在湿地上吃草。
• We had to cross the marshes. 我们不得不穿过那片沼泽地。 来自《简明英汉词典》

14 ecosystem   

n.生态系统

参考例句：

• This destroyed the ecosystem of the island.这样破坏了岛上的生态系统。
• We all have an interest in maintaining the integrity of the ecosystem.维持生态系统的完整是我们共同的利益。

15 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

16 oversee   

vt.监督，管理

参考例句：

• Soldiers oversee the food handouts.士兵们看管着救济食品。
• Use a surveyor or architect to oversee and inspect the different stages of the work.请一位房产检视员或建筑师来监督并检查不同阶段的工作。

17 metro   

n.地铁；adj.大都市的；(METRO)麦德隆(财富500强公司之一总部所在地德国，主要经营零售)

参考例句：

• Can you reach the park by metro?你可以乘地铁到达那个公园吗？
• The metro flood gate system is a disaster prevention equipment.地铁防淹门系统是一种防灾设备。

18 alleging   

断言，宣称，辩解( allege的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• His reputation was blemished by a newspaper article alleging he'd evaded his taxes. 由于报上一篇文章声称他曾逃税，他的名誉受到损害。
• This our Peeress declined as unnecessary, alleging that her cousin Thornhill's recommendation would be sufficient. 那位贵人不肯，还说不必，只要有她老表唐希尔保荐就够了。

19 negligent   

adj.疏忽的；玩忽的；粗心大意的

参考例句：

• The committee heard that he had been negligent in his duty.委员会听说他玩忽职守。
• If the government is proved negligent,compensation will be payable.如果证明是政府的疏忽，就应支付赔偿。

20 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

21 blessing   

n.祈神赐福；祷告；祝福，祝愿

参考例句：

• The blessing was said in Hebrew.祷告用了希伯来语。
• A double blessing has descended upon the house.双喜临门。

22 partnership   

n.合作关系，伙伴关系

参考例句：

• The company has gone into partnership with Swiss Bank Corporation.这家公司已经和瑞士银行公司建立合作关系。
• Martin has taken him into general partnership in his company.马丁已让他成为公司的普通合伙人。

23 lawsuit   

n.诉讼，控诉

参考例句：

• They threatened him with a lawsuit.他们以诉讼威逼他。
• He was perpetually involving himself in this long lawsuit.他使自己无休止地卷入这场长时间的诉讼。

24 lawsuits   

n.诉讼( lawsuit的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Lawsuits involving property rights and farming and grazing rights increased markedly. 涉及财产权，耕作与放牧权的诉讼案件显著地增加。 来自辞典例句
• I've lost and won more lawsuits than any man in England. 全英国的人算我官司打得最多，赢的也多，输的也多。 来自辞典例句

25 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

26 defender   

n.保卫者，拥护者，辩护人

参考例句：

• He shouldered off a defender and shot at goal.他用肩膀挡开防守队员，然后射门。
• The defender argued down the prosecutor at the court.辩护人在法庭上驳倒了起诉人。

27 baton   

n.乐队用指挥杖

参考例句：

• With the baton the conductor was beating time.乐队指挥用指挥棒打拍子。
• The conductor waved his baton,and the band started up.指挥挥动指挥棒，乐队开始演奏起来。

28 rouge   

n.胭脂，口红唇膏；v.(在…上)擦口红

参考例句：

• Women put rouge on their cheeks to make their faces pretty.女人往面颊上涂胭脂，使脸更漂亮。
• She didn't need any powder or lip rouge to make her pretty.她天生漂亮，不需要任何脂粉唇膏打扮自己。

29 rogue   

n.流氓；v.游手好闲

参考例句：

• The little rogue had his grandpa's glasses on.这淘气鬼带上了他祖父的眼镜。
• They defined him as a rogue.他们确定他为骗子。

30 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

31 violation   

n.违反(行为)，违背(行为)，侵犯

参考例句：

• He roared that was a violation of the rules.他大声说，那是违反规则的。
• He was fined 200 dollars for violation of traffic regulation.他因违反交通规则被罚款200美元。

32 abdicate   

v.让位，辞职，放弃

参考例句：

• The reason I wnat to abdicate is to try something different.我辞职是因为我想尝试些不一样的东西。
• Yuan Shikai forced emperor to abdicate and hand over power to him.袁世凯逼迫皇帝逊位，把政权交给了他。

33 dedicated   

adj.一心一意的；献身的；热诚的

参考例句：

• He dedicated his life to the cause of education.他献身于教育事业。
• His whole energies are dedicated to improve the design.他的全部精力都放在改进这项设计上了。

34 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。