加州州长下令节约用水

加州州长下令节约用水 

WASHINGTON— Environmentalists warn the world is facing serious water shortages and the United States is no exception. While parts of the country may get too much snow and rain, that is not the case in the southwest. California has been dealing¹ with the effects of drought for more than two years. The state governor has ordered a mandatory² reduction of water usage to prevent waste. The state is also looking into new technologies that will make California more drought resistant³.

While the U.S. Midwest and East Coast struggled with record snowfalls this winter, California experienced its lowest snowpack in recent history.

尽管美国中西部和东部沿海今冬遭遇创纪录的降雪，但加州却经历了近代史上最低的降雪。

"We're in a historic drought and that demands unprecedented⁴ action, and for that reason I'm issuing an executive order mandating⁵ substantial water reductions across our state," said California governor Jerry Brown.

加州州长杰瑞·布朗：“目前的干旱是历史上罕见的，需要采取前所未有的行动，因此我发布行政令要求全州大规模减少用水。”

The executive order issued by the governor Wednesday requires the State Water Resources Control Board to reduce water use by 25 percent across California. Governor Brown said 38 million people will be affected⁶. The measure is expected to save hundreds of thousands of liters of water over nine months.

这位州长周三发布的行政令要求州水资源管理委员会在整个加州内减少25%的用水量，州长布朗称3800万人将受影响。该措施有望在9个月内节省成千上升水。

The mandatory water rationing⁷ is unprecedented in the United States, and some Californians are against it, saying that water saving should be voluntary. But previous measures to fight a persistent⁸ drought have not improved the situation. The governor warned residents to be prepared to change their lifestyle.

强制限时供水在美国是前所未有的，一些加州人表示反对，称节约用水应该是出于自愿。但此前用于对付持续干旱的措施并未能见效，州长警告居民们要准备改变生活方式。

“The idea of your nice little green grass getting lots of water every day - that's going to be a thing of the past, and we're not going to change everything overnight, but we are in a transition period," said Brown.

“认为你们的绿草坪每天都需要大量的水，这个观点应该成为过去了，我们不准备一夜之间就彻底改变，但我们处在过渡期。”

The transition already has started in extremely hot parts of southern California. Instead of watering their lawns to keep them green during the summer, many homeowners are now hiring companies that will paint them green.

加州南部非常炎热的地方已经开始了过渡期，在夏天，很多住户不再给草坪浇水以保持草坪翠绿，而是雇佣公司来将草坪刷成绿色。

"You don't have to water it as much with the drought and everything; we're all supposed to conserve⁹ water. This is a good idea," said Marta Gomez, a homeowner.

“这样就无需在干旱时候浇水了，我们都应该节约用水，这是个好主意。”

A Lucky Lawn company, specializing in spray painting dried-out lawns, claims the paint is actually good for the grass because it protects the blades from harmful ultra-violet rays.

专门从事将干草坪刷色的幸运草坪公司声称这种油漆对草坪特别好，因为它能保护叶片免受有害的紫外线照射。

"It’s 100 percent non-toxic. Once it's dry, animals, kids, the whole family can go out and enjoy the yard," said Drew Mclellan, founder¹⁰ of A Lucky Lawn.

“百分之百无毒的，一旦变干，动物、小孩、整个家庭都能出去享受后院的快乐。”

California farmers are especially affected by the drought. A group of mathematicians¹² is trying to help.

加州农民们受干旱影响特别严重，一群数学家希望能提供帮助。

“A person's going to want to try to make as much profit as possible using the least amount of water, while meeting the demands from the market. And so, as mathematicians, one of the things we were hoping to offer was a different way of looking at a problem. What can we plant? What’s the rotation¹³ strategy?" asked Kathleen Fowler, a mathematician¹¹ working on the problem.

研究该问题的数学家凯瑟琳·富勒说，“人们希望使用最小量的水来获得尽可能多的经济效益，同时能满足市场的需求。因此，作为数学家，我们所希望的就是提供看问题的不同方式，我们能种些什么呢？什么是轮换策略？”

 

Governor Brown said California is a pioneering state where people have come together to build a better life, and that, he said, requires conservation, collaboration¹⁴ and innovation.

州长布朗说加州是个有开创精神的州，人们聚集一起来创造更美好的生活，他说，这就需要节约、合作和创新。

1 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

2 mandatory   

adj.命令的；强制的；义务的；n.受托者

参考例句：

• It's mandatory to pay taxes.缴税是义务性的。
• There is no mandatory paid annual leave in the U.S.美国没有强制带薪年假。

3 resistant   

adj.(to)抵抗的，有抵抗力的

参考例句：

• Many pests are resistant to the insecticide.许多害虫对这种杀虫剂有抵抗力。
• They imposed their government by force on the resistant population.他们以武力把自己的统治强加在持反抗态度的人民头上。

4 unprecedented   

adj.无前例的，新奇的

参考例句：

• The air crash caused an unprecedented number of deaths.这次空难的死亡人数是空前的。
• A flood of this sort is really unprecedented.这样大的洪水真是十年九不遇。

5 mandating   

托管（mandate的现在分词形式）

参考例句：

• Current requirements mandating that committees keep minutes are too general. 目前对委员会要保持详细记录的指令性要求，还是太过一般化了。
• Mandating that workers who quit without permission forfeit a month's wages. 规定工人私自离岗将受到罚没一个月工资的处罚。

6 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。

7 rationing   

n.定量供应

参考例句：

• Wartime austerities included food rationing and shortage of fuel. 战时的艰苦包括食物配给和燃料短缺。
• Food rationing was abolished in that country long ago. 那个国家早就取消了粮食配给制。

8 persistent   

adj.坚持不懈的，执意的；持续的

参考例句：

• Albert had a persistent headache that lasted for three days.艾伯特连续头痛了三天。
• She felt embarrassed by his persistent attentions.他不时地向她大献殷勤，使她很难为情。

9 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！

10 Founder   

n.创始者，缔造者

参考例句：

• He was extolled as the founder of their Florentine school.他被称颂为佛罗伦萨画派的鼻祖。
• According to the old tradition,Romulus was the founder of Rome.按照古老的传说，罗穆卢斯是古罗马的建国者。

11 mathematician   

n.数学家

参考例句：

• The man with his back to the camera is a mathematician.背对着照相机的人是位数学家。
• The mathematician analyzed his figures again.这位数学家再次分析研究了他的这些数字。

12 mathematicians   

数学家( mathematician的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Do you suppose our mathematicians are unequal to that? 你以为我们的数学家做不到这一点吗？ 来自英汉文学
• Mathematicians can solve problems with two variables. 数学家们可以用两个变数来解决问题。 来自哲学部分

13 rotation   

n.旋转；循环，轮流

参考例句：

• Crop rotation helps prevent soil erosion.农作物轮作有助于防止水土流失。
• The workers in this workshop do day and night shifts in weekly rotation.这个车间的工人上白班和上夜班每周轮换一次。

14 collaboration   

n.合作，协作；勾结

参考例句：

• The two companies are working in close collaboration each other.这两家公司密切合作。
• He was shot for collaboration with the enemy.他因通敌而被枪毙了。