VOA慢速英语2021--越来越多的美国农民种植覆盖作物

More US Farmers Plant Cover Crops

An increasing number of farmers in the United States are planting cover crops - plants used to improve soil health, increase water availability, and increase environmental health.

While some of these crops are used for fuel or fed to cattle, most are not harvested because their value is greater if they break down in the soil.

Illinois farmer Jack¹ McCormick planted around 140 hectares of barley² and radishes last fall. The crops will be killed off with a weed killer³ next spring before McCormick plants soybeans in the same dirt.

The barley and radishes will not be used for food, but Bayer AG will pay McCormick for planting them. His so-called cover crops will create carbon offset⁴ credits for the seeds and chemicals maker⁵.

A carbon offset credit is an officially approved way to show a greenhouse gas emission⁶ reduction.

These carbon credits are used by companies to offset, or make up for, the other pollution they create.

Purpose of cover crops

Increased cover crop growing shows how the U.S. agricultural industry is changing. Farmers no longer make money only by selling crops for food and animal feed. They may also be paid for the part crops can play in limiting planet-warming emissions⁷.

Cover crops are generally seen by environmentalists as an improvement over traditional agriculture.

Rob Myers is the director for the Center for Regenerative Agriculture at the University of Missouri. He estimates that by 2030 between 16 million and 20 million hectares of cover crops will be planted each year.

Companies including Bayer, Land O'Lakes and Cargill Inc have launched carbon farming programs over the past two years. These programs pay growers for capturing carbon by planting cover crops and reducing soil tillage.

U.S. federal government programs have for years paid farmers not to grow crops on some land, such as areas with a lot of wildlife.

The Biden administration plans to expand those programs. President Joe Biden's Build Back Better bill targeted some $28 billion for such programs, including up to $5 billion in payments to farmers and landowners for planting cover crops. However, the bill's future remains⁸ unclear.

Why have cover crop plantings grown?

Much of the increase in cover crop planting has been led by a small number of farmers pursuing soil fertility or water management. Program payments rarely cover the cost of seeds and labor⁹.

"You've got to want to do it," said McCormick.

He has increased his cover crop area by more than ten times in the past six years. He received his first payment from Bayer this autumn.

However, some experts caution that planting more off-season cover crops could result in smaller planting windows for farmers' main crops, particularly if climate change creates more difficult spring weather.

Cover crop seed shortages are also possible.

Jason Weller, president of Truterra, told an American Seed Trade Association meeting last month, "The demand for seed is going to exceed supply. So, there's going to be a huge supply challenge."

While emissions from destroying the crops are small, some critics say more cover crop planting will increase the use of farm chemicals.

Environmentalists say cover crop planting is still an improvement over traditional agriculture.

Amanda Starbuck, research director with Food and Water Watch, said, "Cover crops can be a really important part of ... farming systems....But it all depends on how they're being implemented¹¹."

Words in This Story

emission – n. the act of producing or sending out something (such as energy or gas) from a source

tillage – n. the activity or process of preparing land for growing crops

exceed – v. to be greater or more than (something)

implement¹⁰ – v. to begin to do or use (something, such as a plan) : to make (something) active or effective

1 jack   

n.插座，千斤顶，男人；v.抬起，提醒，扛举；n.（Jake）杰克

参考例句：

• I am looking for the headphone jack.我正在找寻头戴式耳机插孔。
• He lifted the car with a jack to change the flat tyre.他用千斤顶把车顶起来换下瘪轮胎。

2 barley   

n.大麦，大麦粒

参考例句：

• They looked out across the fields of waving barley.他们朝田里望去,只见大麦随风摇摆。
• He cropped several acres with barley.他种了几英亩大麦。

3 killer   

n.杀人者，杀人犯，杀手，屠杀者

参考例句：

• Heart attacks have become Britain's No.1 killer disease.心脏病已成为英国的头号致命疾病。
• The bulk of the evidence points to him as her killer.大量证据证明是他杀死她的。

4 offset   

n.分支，补偿；v.抵消，补偿

参考例句：

• Their wage increases would be offset by higher prices.他们增加的工资会被物价上涨所抵消。
• He put up his prices to offset the increased cost of materials.他提高了售价以补偿材料成本的增加。

5 maker   

n.制造者，制造商

参考例句：

• He is a trouble maker，You must be distant with him.他是个捣蛋鬼，你不要跟他在一起。
• A cabinet maker must be a master craftsman.家具木工必须是技艺高超的手艺人。

6 emission   

n.发出物，散发物；发出，散发

参考例句：

• Rigorous measures will be taken to reduce the total pollutant emission.采取严格有力措施，降低污染物排放总量。
• Finally,the way to effectively control particulate emission is pointed out.最后，指出有效降低颗粒排放的方向。

7 emissions   

排放物( emission的名词复数 )； 散发物（尤指气体）

参考例句：

• Most scientists accept that climate change is linked to carbon emissions. 大多数科学家都相信气候变化与排放的含碳气体有关。
• Dangerous emissions radiate from plutonium. 危险的辐射物从钚放散出来。

8 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。

9 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

10 implement   

n.(pl.)工具，器具；vt.实行，实施，执行

参考例句：

• Don't undertake a project unless you can implement it.不要承担一项计划，除非你能完成这项计划。
• The best implement for digging a garden is a spade.在花园里挖土的最好工具是铁锹。

11 implemented   

v.实现( implement的过去式和过去分词 )；执行；贯彻；使生效

参考例句：

• This agreement, if not implemented, is a mere scrap of paper. 这个协定如不执行只不过是一纸空文。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• The economy is in danger of collapse unless far-reaching reforms are implemented. 如果不实施影响深远的改革，经济就面临崩溃的危险。 来自辞典例句