VOA标准英语2014--埃博拉的废物处理费问题

 

Questions Remain on Ebola Waste Disposal 埃博拉的废物处理费问题

Ebola is contracted by coming into contact with the bodily fluids of an infected person. Health workers wear spacesuit-like protective gear when treating patients. But researchers say definitive¹ answers are still needed on how long the Ebola virus can live outside the body. For example, they say more study is needed regarding the liquid medical waste from Ebola patients.

The world’s top health agencies have issued strict protocols² on the disposal of solid waste from Ebola Patients. The University of Pittsburgh’s Kyle Bibby said there’s also some guidance on the disposal of liquid medical waste.

“The World Health Organization first issued a statement that it was appropriate to dispose of liquid waste from Ebola patients directly in sanitary³ sewers⁴ or pit latrine without any other treatment. And then the Centers for Disease Control in the U.S. followed that guidance and continues to follow that guidance,” he said.

But when several people in the U.S. were treated for Ebola some questioned whether that guidance offered enough protection.

“There was lots of concern from sewage workers about going down into sewers. Would they be exposed to Ebola? What’s an appropriate personal protective care? So the Centers for Disease Control stated that Ebola survives on the order of minutes in water and is almost instantly or very, very rapidly inactivated⁵. And when we looked to the literature we didn’t find any evidence of that,” he said.

Bibby is an associate professor of civil and environmental engineering. He and colleagues at the University of Pittsburgh and Drexel University did not say the CDC is wrong. They just said that there’s an apparent lack of evidence.

The guidance may be based on the type of virus Ebola is – an enveloped⁶ virus. That means it has a membrane⁷ or wrapping, which actually comes from an infected cell. But Bibby said enveloped viruses usually don’t fair too well when exposed to liquids. Take the AIDS virus.

“For example, some of the studies that have been done, like on HIV, found that HIV’s survival in water is negligible. It dies very, very quickly. And HIV is an enveloped virus and I think that this is probably one of the lines of evidence that’s been used,” said Bibby.

The National Science Foundation has awarded the researchers a $100,000 grant to study the issue further.

Bibby said, “We don’t have firm guidance and guidelines on disposal of infectious liquid waste, period. And whether that’s from a hospital or funeral homes or other places, other medical facilities, there’s not sort of a concrete guideline on how to dispose of all this.”

Researchers will use viruses that are physically⁸ similar to Ebola and test their survival rates in water and wastewater.

1 definitive   

adj.确切的，权威性的；最后的，决定性的

参考例句：

• This book is the definitive guide to world cuisine.这本书是世界美食的权威指南。
• No one has come up with a definitive answer as to why this should be so.至于为什么该这样，还没有人给出明确的答复。

2 protocols   

n.礼仪( protocol的名词复数 )；（外交条约的）草案；（数据传递的）协议；科学实验报告（或计划）

参考例句：

• There are also protocols on the testing of nuclear weapons. 也有关于核武器试验的协议。 来自辞典例句
• Hardware components and software design of network transport protocols are separately introduced. 介绍系统硬件组成及网络传输协议的软件设计。 来自互联网

3 sanitary   

adj.卫生方面的，卫生的，清洁的，卫生的

参考例句：

• It's not sanitary to let flies come near food.让苍蝇接近食物是不卫生的。
• The sanitary conditions in this restaurant are abominable.这家饭馆的卫生状况糟透了。

4 sewers   

n.阴沟，污水管，下水道( sewer的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The sewers discharge out at sea. 下水道的污水排入海里。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Another municipal waste problem is street runoff into storm sewers. 有关都市废水的另外一个问题是进入雨水沟的街道雨水。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法

5 inactivated   

v.使不活泼，阻止活动( inactivate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Molluscicides are quickly inactivated by sunlight and adsorption to mud organic matter. 灭螺剂因阳光作用、泥土及有机物质的吸收会很快失效。 来自辞典例句
• Viruses were inactivated by BPL and the toxicity measured again. BPL对病毒进行灭活，测定残存毒力。 来自互联网

6 enveloped   

v.包围，笼罩，包住( envelop的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• She was enveloped in a huge white towel. 她裹在一条白色大毛巾里。
• Smoke from the burning house enveloped the whole street. 燃烧着的房子冒出的浓烟笼罩了整条街。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 membrane   

n.薄膜，膜皮，羊皮纸

参考例句：

• A vibrating membrane in the ear helps to convey sounds to the brain.耳膜的振动帮助声音传送到大脑。
• A plastic membrane serves as selective diffusion barrier.一层塑料薄膜起着选择性渗透屏障的作用。

8 physically   

adj.物质上，体格上，身体上，按自然规律

参考例句：

• He was out of sorts physically,as well as disordered mentally.他浑身不舒服，心绪也很乱。
• Every time I think about it I feel physically sick.一想起那件事我就感到极恶心。