46 亚洲环境问题亟待解决

 

 

Catastrophic Environmental Changes Brewing¹ in Asia

Alisha Ryu

Hong Kong

19 Jun 2001 09:55 UTC

 

Experts in Asia say 1)catastrophic environmental changes now brewing in the region could cause as many as a billion people to move into cities in the next 15 years. Concerns are mounting as mass population shifts threaten to deepen 2)poverty and sharply raise pollution levels throughout the region.

A new United Nations report blames 3)globalization for much of Asia's current environmental 4)woes.

The report says for 5)decades, many countries have 6)sacrificed their forests, air, water and land in a 7)relentless drive to become modern export economies. The 1997 Asian economic crisis further 8)hastened the environmental destruction as governments 9)slashed budgets that had been set 10)aside for 11)conservation and environmental projects.

A spokesman for the U.N.'s Asia Pacific Economic and Social Commission, Ravi Sawhney, says a myriad² of environmental and 12)ecological problems are threatening virtually every country in the region from Central Asia to the Pacific islands. "Cultivated land, which has been degraded, has increased in the region. It has some 460 million hectares which has been 13)degraded," Sawhney said. "There is also a problem of 14)deforestation and a growing problem of water scarcity³. There is a heavy dependence⁴ on solid 15)fossil fuel, which is a major source of pollution and we also see a threat to the 16)mangrove forests", Sawhney continued. "About 60 percent of the forests have become breeding grounds for fisheries." The United Nations warns that loss of arable⁵ land and water supplies could 17)accelerate the pace of migration⁶ into cities at unsustainable levels. The urban population of the region is already at about 1.5 billion, many of them desperately⁷ poor. Mr. Sawhney says future urban growth in Asia could be 18)equivalent to setting up a new city of 150,000 people, every day, for the next 15 years.

The U.N. report concludes that governmental support and funding must continue for environmental research and projects. It estimates some $10 19)trillion will be needed in the next 25 to 30 years just to maintain current conditions.

 

 

(1)      catastrophic[ 9kAtE`strCfIk ]adj.悲惨的, 灾难的

(2)      poverty[5pRvEtI]n.贫穷, 贫困, 贫乏, 缺少

(3)      globalization[9^lEJbElaI`zeIFEn;-lI`z-]n.全球化,全球性

(4)      woe[wEJ]n.悲哀

(5)      decade[5dekeId]n.十年, 十

(6)      sacrifice[5sAkrIfaIs]n. v.牺牲, 献身, 祭品, 供奉

(7)      relentless[rI`lentlIs]adj.无情的

(8)      hasten[5heIs(E)n]v.催促, 赶紧, 促进, 加速

(9)      slash[slAF]v.猛砍, 鞭打, 砍伤, 大量削减n.猛砍, (大幅度)削减

(10)      aside[E5saId]adv.在旁边, 到旁边

(11)      conservation[kRnsE5veIF(E)n]n.保存, 保持, 守恒

(12)      ecological[9i:kE`lCdVIkEl]adj.生态学的, 社会生态学的

(13)      degraded[ dI`^reIdId ]adj.被降级的, 退化的, 堕落的

(14)      deforestation n.采伐森林, 森林开伐

(15)      fossil[5fRs(E)l]n.化石, 僵化的事物adj.化石的, 陈腐的, 守旧的

(16)      mangrove[5mAN^rEJv]n.[植]红树林

(17)      accelerate[Ek5selEreIt]v.加速, 促进

(18)      equivalent[I5kwIvElEnt]adj.相等的, 相当的n.等价物, 相等物

(19)      trillion[5trIljEn]num.万亿

 

 

1 brewing   

n. 酿造, 一次酿造的量 动词brew的现在分词形式

参考例句：

• It was obvious that a big storm was brewing up. 很显然，一场暴风雨正在酝酿中。
• She set about brewing some herb tea. 她动手泡一些药茶。

2 myriad   

adj.无数的；n.无数，极大数量

参考例句：

• They offered no solution for all our myriad problems.对于我们数不清的问题他们束手无策。
• I had three weeks to make a myriad of arrangements.我花了三个星期做大量准备工作。

3 scarcity   

n.缺乏，不足，萧条

参考例句：

• The scarcity of skilled workers is worrying the government.熟练工人的缺乏困扰着政府。
• The scarcity of fruit was caused by the drought.水果供不应求是由于干旱造成的。

4 dependence   

n.依靠，依赖；信任，信赖；隶属

参考例句：

• Doctors keep trying to break her dependence of the drug.医生们尽力使她戒除毒瘾。
• He was freed from financial dependence on his parents.他在经济上摆脱了对父母的依赖。

5 arable   

adj.可耕的，适合种植的

参考例句：

• The terrain changed quickly from arable land to desert.那个地带很快就从耕地变成了沙漠。
• Do you know how much arable land has been desolated?你知道什么每年有多少土地荒漠化吗？

6 migration   

n.迁移，移居，（鸟类等的）迁徙

参考例句：

• Swallows begin their migration south in autumn.燕子在秋季开始向南方迁移。
• He described the vernal migration of birds in detail.他详细地描述了鸟的春季移居。

7 desperately   

adv.极度渴望地，绝望地，孤注一掷地

参考例句：

• He was desperately seeking a way to see her again.他正拼命想办法再见她一面。
• He longed desperately to be back at home.他非常渴望回家。