2006年VOA标准英语-Lebanese Oil Spill - Collateral Damage of the B

By Paul Sisco
Washington, D.C.
18 August 2006
 
watch Oil Spill report

A ceasefire in the Middle East is allowing officials to assess some of the environmental damage from the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah.  Some experts say the long-term environmental effects of the conflict could be devastating¹. 

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Oil has spread to more than 80 kilometers of the Lebanese coast  
  
World attention has focused on the fighting and human casualties of the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah.  But environmental damage in the region appears severe. Many of the once-pristine beaches in Lebanon are black with oil.  

 
Oil tanks at the power plant burned and leaked oil for weeks
  
A bombed power plant about 30 kilometers south of Beirut and within 100 meters of the sea burned for over three weeks. It polluted the skies with black smoke and leaked thousands of barrels of oil into the sea. 

Wael Hmaidan   
  
Environmentalist Wael Hmaidan says, "If there wasn't other issues covering this problem this would be the story of the year in the Mediterranean² region."

Satellite imagery shows rapid spreading of the oil slick. More than 80 kilometers of coastline have been affected³. There are reports of problems all the way to Syria.  Berj Hatjian is with Lebanon's environmental ministry⁴.

 
An aerial image of the Lebanese coast shows the black oil in the blue Mediterranean
  
"What we have here is the equivalent of a tanker⁵ sinking into the sea and 20 to 30,000 tons reaching the shore line."

Edgar Cherab is with the United Nations Environmental Program. He worries about what can be done. "We don't have the equipment nor the proper knowledge in the country."

An oil-soaked crab⁶ walks along the shore  
  
Fishermen and marine⁷ life are feeling the first effects of the spreading oil.  Estimates differ wildly on the amount of oil spilled and the extent of the destruction. United Nations' experts coordinating⁸ damage and clean-up efforts say any oil slick of this magnitude will have serious ramifications⁹ for the environment.

1 devastating   

adj.毁灭性的，令人震惊的，强有力的

参考例句：

• It is the most devastating storm in 20 years.这是20年来破坏性最大的风暴。
• Affairs do have a devastating effect on marriages.婚外情确实会对婚姻造成毁灭性的影响。

2 Mediterranean   

adj.地中海的；地中海沿岸的

参考例句：

• The houses are Mediterranean in character.这些房子都属地中海风格。
• Gibraltar is the key to the Mediterranean.直布罗陀是地中海的要冲。

3 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

4 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。

5 tanker   

n.油轮

参考例句：

• The tanker took on 200,000 barrels of crude oil.油轮装载了二十万桶原油。
• Heavy seas had pounded the tanker into three parts.汹涌的巨浪把油轮撞成三载。

6 crab   

n.螃蟹，偏航，脾气乖戾的人，酸苹果；vi.捕蟹，偏航，发牢骚；vt.使偏航，发脾气

参考例句：

• I can't remember when I last had crab.我不记得上次吃蟹是什么时候了。
• The skin on my face felt as hard as a crab's back.我脸上的皮仿佛僵硬了，就象螃蟹的壳似的。

7 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。

8 coordinating   

v.使协调，使调和( coordinate的现在分词 )；协调；协同；成为同等

参考例句：

• He abolished the Operations Coordinating Board and the Planning Board. 他废除了行动协调委员会和计划委员会。 来自辞典例句
• He's coordinating the wedding, and then we're not going to invite him? 他是来协调婚礼的，难道我们不去请他？ 来自电影对白

9 ramifications   

n.结果，后果( ramification的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• These changes are bound to have widespread social ramifications. 这些变化注定会造成许多难以预料的社会后果。
• What are the ramifications of our decision to join the union? 我们决定加入工会会引起哪些后果呢？ 来自《简明英汉词典》