VOA标准英语2010年-Colombian Scientists Predict Climate C

For generations, rich Colombian mountains have produced a variety of food crops, beans, cassava and notably¹ coffee. But local coffee farmers say the weather is changing, and so are crop yields. Carmen Eneida Trujillo is worried. "Look, there are not too many coffee flowers around here; this is a sign that the weather is already damaging the crop," she said.

Eneida says until a few years ago, this plantation² would be loaded with white flowers in September, announcing a good harvest. Her husband, Elias Claros, says they are already considering other crops. "I believe we won't be able to plant coffee here for much longer," he said.

More than a million people in Colombia grow and produce coffee, a crop sensitive to climate change. And what they are experiencing now is what scientists at the International Center for Tropical Agriculture, or CIAT, in Cali, have forecast for some time -- climate change is changing agriculture. Many traditional crops will have to move to other regions.

"Essentially³, the geography of agriculture is likely to change significantly, so where you grow maize⁴ today may not be the same areas in the future. In temperate⁵ regions, crops are moving north. Here in Colombia is more across the elevation⁶, so it moves upwards⁷, in the mountains to greater altitude," said Andy Jarvis, who is in charge of the climate change and policy program at CIAT.

CIAT is conducting a study about the impact of climate change on 50 of the world's major crops, including rice, maize and wheat. Jarvis says every region of the world is experiencing different climate change, from extreme heat or drought to cold and flooding.

"In the past, the bamboo would have troubles at 2,000 meters, but now is growing and adapting well to higher altitude," said Carlos Arturo Trujillo, who has been a farmer all his life.

Some scientists are increasingly concerned about food security, especially for the poor.

"We are finding large scale producers are just as susceptible⁸ to unexpected, uncertain highly variable weather patterns as the small holders⁹. Small holders are much more vulnerable because they have less access to knowledge and information in the right time and the right place," said Erick Fernandes, an adviser¹⁰ on climate change and natural resource management at the World Bank in Washington.

However, he says large farmers have more access to information and insurance that help them mitigate¹¹ the impact. "Work done recently by Stanford University researchers have projected that for southern Africa where maize supplies a huge amount of the calories for the poor, by 2030, relative to 1990 production, there may be as much as 30% negative impact on maize productivity," he said.

Researchers expect crops in Africa, Asia and Latin America to suffer greatly over the next few decades and they also expect extreme temperatures to contribute to land degradation¹² and an increase in agricultural pests. Meanwhile experts predict that in order to feed the world's growing population, agriculture will need to nearly double its production by the year 2050.
 

1 notably   

adv.值得注意地，显著地，尤其地，特别地

参考例句：

• Many students were absent,notably the monitor.许多学生缺席，特别是连班长也没来。
• A notably short,silver-haired man,he plays basketball with his staff several times a week.他个子明显较为矮小，一头银发，每周都会和他的员工一起打几次篮球。

2 plantation   

n.种植园，大农场

参考例句：

• His father-in-law is a plantation manager.他岳父是个种植园经营者。
• The plantation owner has possessed himself of a vast piece of land.这个种植园主把大片土地占为己有。

3 essentially   

adv.本质上，实质上，基本上

参考例句：

• Really great men are essentially modest.真正的伟人大都很谦虚。
• She is an essentially selfish person.她本质上是个自私自利的人。

4 maize   

n.玉米

参考例句：

• There's a field planted with maize behind the house.房子后面有一块玉米地。
• We can grow sorghum or maize on this plot.这块地可以种高粱或玉米。

5 temperate   

adj.温和的，温带的，自我克制的，不过分的

参考例句：

• Asia extends across the frigid,temperate and tropical zones.亚洲地跨寒、温、热三带。
• Great Britain has a temperate climate.英国气候温和。

6 elevation   

n.高度；海拔；高地；上升；提高

参考例句：

• The house is at an elevation of 2,000 metres.那幢房子位于海拔两千米的高处。
• His elevation to the position of General Manager was announced yesterday.昨天宣布他晋升总经理职位。

7 upwards   

adv.向上，在更高处...以上

参考例句：

• The trend of prices is still upwards.物价的趋向是仍在上涨。
• The smoke rose straight upwards.烟一直向上升。

8 susceptible   

adj.过敏的，敏感的；易动感情的，易受感动的

参考例句：

• Children are more susceptible than adults.孩子比成人易受感动。
• We are all susceptible to advertising.我们都易受广告的影响。

9 holders   

支持物( holder的名词复数 )； 持有者； （支票等）持有人； 支托（或握持）…之物

参考例句：

• Slaves were mercilessly ground down by slave holders. 奴隶受奴隶主的残酷压迫。
• It is recognition of compassion's part that leads the up-holders of capital punishment to accuse the abolitionists of sentimentality in being more sorry for the murderer than for his victim. 正是对怜悯的作用有了认识，才使得死刑的提倡者指控主张废除死刑的人感情用事，同情谋杀犯胜过同情受害者。

10 adviser   

n.劝告者，顾问

参考例句：

• They employed me as an adviser.他们聘请我当顾问。
• Our department has engaged a foreign teacher as phonetic adviser.我们系已经聘请了一位外籍老师作为语音顾问。

11 mitigate   

vt.（使）减轻，（使）缓和

参考例句：

• The government is trying to mitigate the effects of inflation.政府正试图缓和通货膨胀的影响。
• Governments should endeavour to mitigate distress.政府应努力缓解贫困问题。

12 degradation   

n.降级；低落；退化；陵削；降解；衰变

参考例句：

• There are serious problems of land degradation in some arid zones.在一些干旱地带存在严重的土地退化问题。
• Gambling is always coupled with degradation.赌博总是与堕落相联系。