VOA标准英语2008年-Spain's Water Fair Tackles Conservation with In

The northeastern Spanish city of Zaragoza is hosting an international water fair to highlight the importance of this vital and increasingly threatened resource. Spain is no stranger to water scarcity¹. The country is juggling² competing demands of urban development, tourism, agriculture - and climate change. Lisa Bryant takes a look at the problems - and the solutions - for VOA from Zaragoza.

Running until September, Zaragoza's international water fair is enormous. Countries from all over the world are hosting exhibits. Local musicians stage concerts throughout the day and well into the night.

Straddling the Ebro River, one of Spain's major tributaries³, this ancient city is a good place to showcase the importance of water. Water scarcity is a reality in the coastal⁴ and southern regions of Spain, and even in parts of the Aragon region in the country's northeast, where Zaragoza is located. Experts say climate change is compounding the problem, with longer spells of dry weather.

The Mediterranean⁵ city of Barcelona was even forced to import water from Marseille France, this year - until major rains swept across the region. But they amount to only a short-term reprieve⁶.

Kevin Parris, an economist⁷ at the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development in Paris, says somehow politicians have to find a way to resolve competing demands for water.

"Clearly national and regional governments in Spain have a problem when it comes to water," Parris said. "Primarily because of the intensifying⁸ competition between agriculture, tourism and urban development - particularly along the coastal areas of Spain. And also the increasing impact of climate change which looks to be slightly worse [than predicted] in the next 10 to 20 years."

Spain's water woes¹⁰ are shared by other Mediterranean countries in Europe, such as Greece and Portugal. Experts say others in the Middle East and North Africa may be heading toward a real water crisis - especially when climate change is factored in.

International water expert Eduardo Mestre, who coordinates¹¹ conferences at the Zaragoza fair, says the solution lies with better technology and better water management.

"People are going to have to work harder to make water be used more effectively than before and the way to share water among different users and communities has to be the rule of thumb," Mestre said.

Spain is already exploring some of those options. The government has already built two large desalination¹² plants, converting seawater into drinking water. There are plans for five more.

Also under construction are plants to recycle wastewater. Frederic Certain, managing director for Veolia Agua, which runs the plant and several others in Spain, says the country is a leader in Europe when it comes both to desalination and recycling water.

"Desalination is a very important thing," Certain noted¹³. "When the (national) program will be achieved, probably there will be a pause and after that water recycling will be the work to be done in Spain. The spanish have worked a lot in the past years, especially to have water for irrigation. But new uses are forecast, mainly for industry, in many cases to release water for drinking water. This exchange will probably take place a lot along the Spanish coast. And for us in Veolia, this is a fantastic opportunity to work and to invest."

At the plant, wastewater undergoes a series of purification stages before emerging clean enough for agricultural or industrial uses, or to replenish¹⁴ water bodies - but it is not considered clean enough to drink. The leftover¹⁵ sludge is used to generate energy used in the plant.

But wastewater recycling and desalination are only part of the solution. Desalination is also controversial, since it uses a lot of energy. Some environmentalists fear it may damage marineland and coastal habitats.

Experts like Victor Vinuales also say the other part of Spain's water solution is conservation and sharing water. Vinuales is head of the Ecology and Development Foundation, a non-governmental organization based in Zaragoza.

Vinuales believes Spain needs to create a social pact⁹ for water use. It should be based on what is appropriate for the region - and that does not mean using water for golf courses or lawns more suitable for northern Europe.

Part of Spain's problem is that water is cheap - or at least it is priced that way. Like many other countries, water here is heavily subsidized, especially in the agricultural sector¹⁶, which is by far the country's largest water user. Unless prices rise, people have little incentive¹⁷ to conserve¹⁸.

Another option: transfering water from water-rich areas to water-poor ones - also faces hurdles¹⁹. Many residents in the Aragon region, for example, are against the possibility of transfering water from the Ebro River to the Mediterranean city of Valencia, which has less water. That includes Zaragoza resident Carlos Kil, who attended the water fair.

Kil says his region needs the water. Why should it transfer it to Valencia, where it will just be used for golf courses?

It is hard to imagine Zaragoza will ever have a water problem. Pedestrian and bike paths line the Ebro River. Fountains splash in the city's center. But experts warn that in the future water scarcity could trigger conflicts among different regions in Spain - and maybe water wars in some parts of the world. Unless it is treated like the precious resource it is.

　

 

1 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。

2 juggling   

n. 欺骗, 杂耍(=jugglery) adj. 欺骗的, 欺诈的 动词juggle的现在分词

参考例句：

• He was charged with some dishonest juggling with the accounts. 他被指控用欺骗手段窜改账目。
• The accountant went to prison for juggling his firm's accounts. 会计因涂改公司的帐目而入狱。

3 tributaries   

n. 支流

参考例句：

• In such areas small tributaries or gullies will not show. 在这些地区，小的支流和冲沟显示不出来。
• These tributaries are subsequent streams which erode strike valley. 这些支流系即为蚀出走向谷的次生河。

4 coastal   

adj.海岸的，沿海的，沿岸的

参考例句：

• The ocean waves are slowly eating away the coastal rocks.大海的波浪慢慢地侵蚀着岸边的岩石。
• This country will fortify the coastal areas.该国将加强沿海地区的防御。

5 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。

6 reprieve   

n.暂缓执行（死刑）；v.缓期执行；给…带来缓解

参考例句：

• He was saved from the gallows by a lastminute reprieve.最后一刻的缓刑令把他从绞架上解救了下来。
• The railway line, due for closure, has been granted a six-month reprieve.本应停运的铁路线获准多运行6 个月。

7 economist   

n.经济学家，经济专家，节俭的人

参考例句：

• He cast a professional economist's eyes on the problem.他以经济学行家的眼光审视这个问题。
• He's an economist who thinks he knows all the answers.他是个经济学家，自以为什么都懂。

8 intensifying   

v.（使）增强， （使）加剧( intensify的现在分词 )；增辉

参考例句：

• The allies are intensifying their air campaign. 联军部队正加大他们的空战强度。 来自辞典例句
• The rest of the European powers were in a state of intensifying congestion. 其余的欧洲强国则处于越来越拥挤的状态。 来自英汉非文学 - 历史

9 pact   

n.合同，条约，公约，协定

参考例句：

• The two opposition parties made an electoral pact.那两个反对党订了一个有关选举的协定。
• The trade pact between those two countries came to an end.那两国的通商协定宣告结束。

10 woes   

困境( woe的名词复数 )； 悲伤； 我好苦哇； 某人就要倒霉

参考例句：

• Thanks for listening to my woes. 谢谢您听我诉说不幸的遭遇。
• She has cried the blues about its financial woes. 对于经济的困难她叫苦不迭。

11 coordinates   

n.相配之衣物；坐标( coordinate的名词复数 )；（颜色协调的）配套服装；[复数]女套服；同等重要的人（或物）v.使协调，使调和( coordinate的第三人称单数 )；协调；协同；成为同等

参考例句：

• The town coordinates on this map are 695037. 该镇在这幅地图上的坐标是695037。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, headed by the Emergency Relief Coordinator, coordinates all UN emergency relief. 联合国人道主义事务协调厅在紧急救济协调员领导下，负责协调联合国的所有紧急救济工作。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 desalination   

n.脱盐(作用)

参考例句：

• Crops can be grown on this land after desalination. 这片土地经过脱盐就可以种植庄稼了。
• One source is by desalination-taking the salt out of salt water to make it drinkable. 淡水的来源之一是使水淡化--把含盐的水中的盐份去掉，使之能够饮用。

13 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

14 replenish   

vt.补充；(把…)装满；(再)填满

参考例句：

• I always replenish my food supply before it is depleted.我总是在我的食物吃完之前加以补充。
• We have to import an extra 4 million tons of wheat to replenish our reserves.我们不得不额外进口四百万吨小麦以补充我们的储备。

15 leftover   

n.剩货，残留物，剩饭；adj.残余的

参考例句：

• These narrow roads are a leftover from the days of horse-drawn carriages.这些小道是从马车时代沿用下来的。
• Wonder if that bakery lets us take leftover home.不知道那家糕饼店会不会让我们把卖剩的带回家。

16 sector   

n.部门，部分；防御地段，防区；扇形

参考例句：

• The export sector will aid the economic recovery. 出口产业将促进经济复苏。
• The enemy have attacked the British sector.敌人已进攻英国防区。

17 incentive   

n.刺激；动力；鼓励；诱因；动机

参考例句：

• Money is still a major incentive in most occupations.在许多职业中，钱仍是主要的鼓励因素。
• He hasn't much incentive to work hard.他没有努力工作的动机。

18 conserve   

vt.保存，保护，节约，节省，守恒，不灭

参考例句：

• He writes on both sides of the sheet to conserve paper.他在纸张的两面都写字以节省用纸。
• Conserve your energy,you'll need it!保存你的精力，你会用得着的！

19 hurdles   

n.障碍( hurdle的名词复数 )；跳栏；（供人或马跳跃的）栏架；跨栏赛

参考例句：

• In starting a new company, many hurdles must be crossed. 刚开办一个公司时，必须克服许多障碍。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• There are several hurdles to be got over in this project. 在这项工程中有一些困难要克服。 来自辞典例句