时代周刊:力挽狂澜(6)

The higher goal can be reached only by establishing protected areas in the high seas,

更为远大的目标只能通过在公海上建立保护区才能实现，

which are open to all nations and will require a broad consensus¹.

而公海是对所有国家开放的，要建立公海保护区就需要达成广泛的共识。

Negotiations² to forge a U.N. treaty for the oceans had been scheduled for March 2020 but were postponed³ because of the coronavirus.

缔结联合国公海保护区条约的谈判原定于2020年3月举行，后因疫情搁浅。

Protecting areas of the high seas, which account for 60% of the oceans, won't be an easy undertaking⁴.

公海占世界海洋总面积的60%，在公海上设立保护区绝非易事。

For proof, you need only look south to the seas surrounding Antarctica,

要论证据，大家只需将目光往南，投向南极洲周围的海洋便可，

home to some of the most rare, vulnerable and critical ecosystems⁵ in the world.

那里有着世界上最稀有、最脆弱也最关键的部分生态系统。

Coldwater currents spiraling away from the continent push the region's nutrient-rich waters across the planet,

从南极洲向外逐渐荡开的冷洋流将该地区营养丰富的水流推向世界各地，

pumping life into coastal⁶ fisheries even north of the equator.

不断地为沿途的沿海渔场，甚至是赤道以北的沿海渔场注入活力。

Rising temperatures threaten this precarious⁷ environment.

不断上升的气温对本就缺乏稳定性的这一环境无异于一种威胁。

In January, a team of scientists with New York's Stony⁸ Brook⁹ University

今年一月，纽约石溪大学的一群科学家

conducted a census¹⁰ of chinstrap penguins¹¹ on the rocky islands and rugged¹² shores of the Antarctic peninsula,

对生活在南极半岛的岩岛及崎岖海岸上的帽带企鹅进行了一次普查，

braving pounding surf, howling winds and piles of knee-deep guano to count nesting birds by hand.

他们冒着狂风骇浪，在一堆堆齐膝深的鸟粪中手工清点了这些巢居鸟类。

These birds feed exclusively on krill,

这些企鹅只以磷虾为食，

the tiny shrimp-like creatures that form the backbone¹³ of the entire ocean food chain,

而磷虾这种迷你虾一样的生物堪称挑起了整个海洋食物链的顶梁柱，

and their condition gives a picture of the overall health of the region.

它们的状况便能反映出该地区生态的整体健康状况。

They are the canaries in the Southern Ocean's coal mine, and they are starting to disappear.

它们就相当于南大洋这一矿藏里的金丝雀。问题是，它们已经开始消失了。

The researchers found that most colonies they surveyed had declined over the past 50 years, some by half and others up to 77%.

研究人员发现，过去50年里，他们调查的大多数磷虾种群都在缩小，有些已经锐减了一半，另一些甚至缩减了77%。

"This big of a drop means that there is something broken in the Southern Ocean,"

“如此大的萎缩幅度就意味着南大洋有什么东西坏了，”

said ornithologist¹⁴ Noah Strycker, as he paused to watch a pair of fluffy¹⁵ gray chicks waddle¹⁶ through his survey site on Snow Island.

正停下来看着一对毛茸茸的灰色小企鹅摇摇晃晃地穿过他在雪岛的勘测点的鸟类学家诺亚·斯特里克说。

"Climate change is potentially driving shifts in krill populations,

“气候变化可能就是正在推动磷虾种群发生变化的推手之一，

and then that's rippling¹⁷ its way up the food web and affecting the penguins."

而磷虾种群的变化又会引起涟漪反应，顺着食物链影响到企鹅的生态。”

The continent of Antarctica is protected from exploitation by international agreement, but the waters around it are not.

根据国际协议，南极洲大陆是受保护，不允许开发的，其周边的水域例外。

The Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine¹⁸ Living Resources (CCAMLR),

南极海洋生物资源保护委员会(CCAMLR)，

a body made up of 25 countries and the European Union,

一个由25个国家与欧盟组成的机构，

committed in 2009 to establish a network of nine large-scale marine protected areas around the continent.

该委员会于2009年承诺，围绕南极洲大陆建立九个大规模海洋保护区，形成一个网络。

The one in the Ross Sea, twice the area of Texas, is the largest such region in the world.

最大的保护区则是罗斯海的保护区，面积相当于德克萨斯州的两倍。

1 consensus   

n.(意见等的)一致，一致同意，共识

参考例句：

• Can we reach a consensus on this issue?我们能在这个问题上取得一致意见吗？
• What is the consensus of opinion at the afternoon meeting?下午会议上一致的意见是什么？

2 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。

3 postponed   

vt.& vi.延期，缓办，（使）延迟vt.把…放在次要地位；[语]把…放在后面（或句尾）vi.（疟疾等）延缓发作（或复发）

参考例句：

• The trial was postponed indefinitely. 审讯无限期延迟。
• The game has already been postponed three times. 这场比赛已经三度延期了。

4 undertaking   

n.保证，许诺，事业

参考例句：

• He gave her an undertaking that he would pay the money back with in a year.他向她做了一年内还钱的保证。
• He is too timid to venture upon an undertaking.他太胆小，不敢从事任何事业。

5 ecosystems   

n.生态系统( ecosystem的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• There are highly sensitive and delicately balanced ecosystems in the forest. 森林里有高度敏感、灵敏平衡的各种生态系统。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Madagascar's ecosystems range from rainforest to semi-desert. 马达加斯加生态系统类型多样，从雨林到半荒漠等不一而足。 来自辞典例句

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 precarious   

adj.不安定的，靠不住的；根据不足的

参考例句：

• Our financial situation had become precarious.我们的财务状况已变得不稳定了。
• He earned a precarious living as an artist.作为一个艺术家，他过得是朝不保夕的生活。

8 stony   

adj.石头的，多石头的，冷酷的，无情的

参考例句：

• The ground is too dry and stony.这块地太干，而且布满了石头。
• He listened to her story with a stony expression.他带着冷漠的表情听她讲经历。

9 brook   

n.小河，溪；v.忍受，容让

参考例句：

• In our room we could hear the murmur of a distant brook.在我们房间能听到远处小溪汩汩的流水声。
• The brook trickled through the valley.小溪涓涓流过峡谷。

10 census   

n.(官方的)人口调查，人口普查

参考例句：

• A census of population is taken every ten years.人口普查每10年进行一次。
• The census is taken one time every four years in our country.我国每四年一次人口普查。

11 penguins   

n.企鹅( penguin的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Why can penguins live in cold environment? 为什么企鹅能生活在寒冷的环境中？ 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Whales, seals, penguins, and turtles have flippers. 鲸、海豹，企鹅和海龟均有鳍形肢。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

12 rugged   

adj.高低不平的，粗糙的，粗壮的，强健的

参考例句：

• Football players must be rugged.足球运动员必须健壮。
• The Rocky Mountains have rugged mountains and roads.落基山脉有崇山峻岭和崎岖不平的道路。

13 backbone   

n.脊骨，脊柱，骨干；刚毅，骨气

参考例句：

• The Chinese people have backbone.中国人民有骨气。
• The backbone is an articulate structure.脊椎骨是一种关节相连的结构。

14 ornithologist   

n.鸟类学家

参考例句：

• That area is an ornithologist's paradise.那个地区是鸟类学家的天堂。
• Now I know how an ornithologist feels.现在我知道做为一个鸟类学家的感受了。

15 fluffy   

adj.有绒毛的，空洞的

参考例句：

• Newly hatched chicks are like fluffy balls.刚孵出的小鸡像绒毛球。
• The steamed bread is very fluffy.馒头很暄。

16 waddle   

vi.摇摆地走；n.摇摆的走路(样子)

参考例句：

• I am pregnant.I waddle awkwardly and my big stomach pressed against the weight of the world. 我怀孕了，我滑稽可笑地瞒珊而行，大肚子上压着全世界的重量。
• We waddle and hop and have lots of fun.我们走起路来摇摇摆摆，还一跳一跳的。我们的生活很有趣。

17 rippling   

起涟漪的，潺潺流水般声音的

参考例句：

• I could see the dawn breeze rippling the shining water. 我能看见黎明的微风在波光粼粼的水面上吹出道道涟漪。
• The pool rippling was caused by the waving of the reeds. 池塘里的潺潺声是芦苇摇动时引起的。

18 marine   

adj.海的；海生的；航海的；海事的；n.水兵

参考例句：

• Marine creatures are those which live in the sea. 海洋生物是生存在海里的生物。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。