VOA慢速英语2021--冰川消融将损害旅游业和电力供应

Losing Glaciers² Will Hurt Tourism and Power Supplies

As worldwide temperatures continue to rise, thick sheets of ice called glaciers are going away. Some are melting, while others are evaporating³.

This will hurt the people and nations that depend on glaciers. They provide water for hydroelectric power. They bring in visitors – and money from visitors. And their layers of ice keep a record of climate history. In some places, people consider the ice on top of distant mountains to be representations⁶ of spirits.

The melting ice means trouble for people in Africa, Europe, South America and Indonesia.

The Rwenzori Mountains in Africa are on the border of Uganda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. There once were 40 glaciers but less than half remained by 2005. Experts believe all the glaciers in the Rwenzori Mountains will be gone in 20 years.

Richard Taylor is a professor who studies hydrogeology at University College in London. He said Uganda will have trouble if the water does not flow as usual. Uganda depends on the melting ice for hydroelectric power.

In Tanzania, Mount⁵ Kilimanjaro has lost about 90 percent of its ice. Some of the ice turns directly into water vapor⁴ and does not produce any water as it goes away.

People are worried that the lack of ice and snow on the mountain will mean fewer visitors. Tourists made up about 10 percent of Tanzania's economic output in 2019.

Rainer Prinz studies glaciers at the University of Innsbruck in Austria. He said people in Tanzania see the snow and ice on top of the mountains as "the seat of god. It has a very spiritual meaning," he said. Prinz added that the loss of glaciers might also affect the religious beliefs of the people who live near the mountain.

In Europe, on the border of Germany and Austria, less than half a square kilometer of ice remains⁷ on five glaciers combined. Scientists estimate that is an 88 percent loss compared to 1850.

Christoph Mayer is a scientist at the Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities⁸ in Munich, Germany. He believes the economy will be hurt when travel companies can no longer tell visitors they can see and walk on high mountains with glaciers.

"People living around these regions really live from tourism ... there will be an impact on them if they lose these glaciers," Mayer said.

Scientists are also concerned about the loss of history as glaciers melt.

R. Dwi Susanto is an oceanographer, or ocean scientist. During a 2010 visit to the Carstensz glacier¹ in Indonesia, he took samples from the ice. But the samples only let scientists examine climate records dating back to the 1960s.

He said the loss of the glacial ice is "sad because it's not only a loss of local or national heritage⁹ for Indonesia, but this is also the loss of climate heritage for the world."

Disappearing glaciers are also a problem in South America. Scientists are concerned that the Humboldt Glacier in Venezuela could be gone in 20 years. They are studying what is happening to the land around the glacier.

The scientists want to be able to warn other communities that still depend on large glaciers for water and power.

Lauren Vargo studies glaciers for the Antarctic Research Center in Wellington, New Zealand. She said losing glaciers will badly hurt Peru, which depends on melting ice as a water source. Peru already lost about 30 percent of its glaciers between 2000 and 2016.

Mayer, the scientist in Germany, said losing the glaciers will affect more than just the local communities. It will cause problems around the world – from higher sea levels to changes in usual weather.

He said losing the glaciers "is really a warning sign of what is coming in the future."

Words in This Story

tourist – n. a person who travels to a place for pleasure

region – n. a part of a country, of the world, etc., that is different or separate from other parts in some way

impact – n. a powerful or major influence or effect

sample – n. a small amount of something that gives you information about the thing it was taken from

heritage – n. the traditions, achievements, beliefs, etc., that are part of the history of a group or nation — usually singular

1 glacier   

n.冰川，冰河

参考例句：

• The glacier calved a large iceberg.冰河崩解而形成一个大冰山。
• The upper surface of glacier is riven by crevasses.冰川的上表面已裂成冰隙。

2 glaciers   

冰河，冰川( glacier的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Glaciers gouged out valleys from the hills. 冰川把丘陵地带冲出一条条山谷。
• It has ice and snow glaciers, rainforests and beautiful mountains. 既有冰川，又有雨林和秀丽的山峰。 来自英语晨读30分（高一）

3 evaporating   

adj.蒸发用的，蒸发作用的v.（使某物）蒸发掉( evaporate的现在分词 )；消失，不复存在；使脱水

参考例句：

• She went on separating, bolting, evaporating, filtering and mixing. 她不断地进行分离、熬煮、蒸发、滤清、调制。 来自辞典例句
• You transfer the solution to an evaporating basin. 转移溶液至一蒸发皿中。 来自辞典例句

4 vapor   

n.蒸汽，雾气

参考例句：

• The cold wind condenses vapor into rain.冷风使水蒸气凝结成雨。
• This new machine sometimes transpires a lot of hot vapor.这部机器有时排出大量的热气。

5 mount   

n.山峰，乘用马，框，衬纸；vi.增长，骑上（马）；vt.提升，爬上，装备

参考例句：

• Their debts continued to mount up.他们的债务不断增加。
• She is the first woman who steps on the top of Mount Jolmo Lungma.她是第一个登上珠穆朗玛峰的女人。

6 representations   

n.陈述，投诉，抗议；表现( representation的名词复数 )；陈述；表现…的事物；有代理人

参考例句：

• Naturally, we tend to use old representations in our new environments. 同样很自然的，在新的环境里，我们习惯于采用旧的表达方式。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓
• They made representations to the college cook about the bad food. 他们向学校厨师抗议伙食太差。 来自辞典例句

7 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

8 humanities   

n.人文学

参考例句：

• Dalian University offers courses in science and in the humanities. 大连大学开设自然科学和人文科学课程。
• She has a background in humanities and modern languages. 她学过人文学科和现代语言。

9 heritage   

n.传统，遗产，继承物

参考例句：

• The ancient buildings are part of the national heritage.这些古建筑是民族遗产的一部分。
• We Chinese have a great cultural heritage.我们中国人有伟大的文化遗产。