美抗旱奇招：水库投"遮阳球"

 　　The city has completed a program of covering open-air reservoirs with floating "shade balls" to protect water quality.

　　为了保护水质，洛杉矶市向露天水库投放了9600万个“遮阳球”，这些球浮在水面上，水库表面已被遮盖。目前该项目已全部完成。

　　City officials this week dumped the last 20,000 of 96 million black balls into the Los Angeles Reservoir in Sylmar, 25 miles northwest of downtown. The 4-inch-diameter plastic balls block sunlight from penetrating¹ the 175-acre surface of the reservoir.

　　本周，洛杉矶市官员将最后2万个黑色塑料球投放到洛杉矶水库，该水库位于西尔马，距离洛杉矶市中心西北部25英里。这些塑料球直径为4英寸，覆盖了水库175英亩（约71公顷）的水面，使其避免太阳光照射。

　　That prevents chemical reactions that can cause algae² blooms and other problems, allowing the Department of Water and Power (DWP) to meet U.S. Environmental Protection Agency water-quality requirements.

　　这也可以避免发生化学反应，而化学反应可能导致水藻滋生等其它问题。此举使得洛杉矶水电局达到美国国家环境保护局的水质标准。

　　遮阳球

　　They have the added perk³ of aiding with the ravages⁴ of the drought, and are expected to keep about 300 million gallons annually⁵ from evaporating.

　　此举已经缓解了干旱所带来的破坏，预计每年可以减少3亿加仑的蒸发量。

　　"In the midst of California's historic drought, it takes bold ingenuity⁶ to maximize my goals for water conservation," Mayor Eric Garcetti said in a statement, noting that the effort is "emblematic⁷ of the kind of the creative thinking we need to meet those challenges."

　　洛杉矶市长埃里克?贾西提在一次声明中说道：“面对加州史上少有的干旱，我们需要有相当大胆的创造力来帮助我们最大化地实现节水，”市长还强调，此举“体现出我们迎接挑战所需要的创造性思维”。

　　The 36-cent balls also will help prevent evaporation⁸ of 300 million gallons of water annually from the 3.3 billion-gallon reservoir, the DWP said.

　　水电局工作人员称，洛杉矶水库的储水量为33亿加仑，每个遮阳球的成本为36美分，每年可帮助该水库减少3亿加仑的蒸发量。

　　The city began using shade balls in 2008.

　　洛杉矶市自2008年开始使用遮阳球。

　　Vocabulary

　　algae: 水藻

　　perk: 额外津贴

　　evaporate: 蒸发

　　emblematic: 象征

1 penetrating   

adj.（声音）响亮的，尖锐的adj.（气味）刺激的adj.（思想）敏锐的，有洞察力的

参考例句：

• He had an extraordinarily penetrating gaze. 他的目光有股异乎寻常的洞察力。
• He examined the man with a penetrating gaze. 他以锐利的目光仔细观察了那个人。

2 algae   

n.水藻，海藻

参考例句：

• Most algae live in water.多数藻类生长在水中。
• Algae grow and spread quickly in the lake.湖中水藻滋蔓。

3 perk   

n.额外津贴；赏钱；小费；

参考例句：

• His perks include a car provided by the firm.他的额外津贴包括公司提供的一辆汽车。
• And the money is,of course,a perk.当然钱是额外津贴。

4 ravages   

劫掠后的残迹，破坏的结果，毁坏后的残迹

参考例句：

• the ravages of war 战争造成的灾难
• It is hard for anyone to escape from the ravages of time. 任何人都很难逃避时间的摧残。

5 annually   

adv.一年一次，每年

参考例句：

• Many migratory birds visit this lake annually.许多候鸟每年到这个湖上作短期逗留。
• They celebrate their wedding anniversary annually.他们每年庆祝一番结婚纪念日。

6 ingenuity   

n.别出心裁；善于发明创造

参考例句：

• The boy showed ingenuity in making toys.那个小男孩做玩具很有创造力。
• I admire your ingenuity and perseverance.我钦佩你的别出心裁和毅力。

7 emblematic   

adj.象征的，可当标志的；象征性

参考例句：

• The violence is emblematic of what is happening in our inner cities. 这种暴力行为正标示了我们市中心贫民区的状况。
• Whiteness is emblematic of purity. 白色是纯洁的象征。 来自辞典例句

8 evaporation   

n.蒸发，消失

参考例句：

• Be careful not to lose too much liquid by evaporation.小心不要因蒸发失去太多水分。
• Our bodies can sweat,thereby losing heat by evaporation.我们的身体能出汗，由此可以蒸发散热。