人教版英语选修第四册 Unit 3 Reading and Writing

A SEA OF PLASTIC

塑料海洋

Scientists visiting tiny Henderson Island in the South Pacific recently made an alarming discovery.

最近，科学家来到南太平洋狭小的亨德森岛，得出了一项令人担忧的发现。

Although it is one of the most remote places on the earth and previously untouched by humans, the island was covered in plastic waste.

尽管这里是地球上最偏远的地方之一，从前从未被人类涉足，岛上却遍布塑料垃圾。

They calculated there were 38 million pieces of plastic, weighing almost 18 tons, with thousands of new pieces washing up each day.

经测算，岛上共有3800万件塑料垃圾，总重量接近18吨，每天还有数千件新垃圾被冲上岸。

“No country has a free pass‑we found plastic from everywhere,” said one scientist.

一位科学家说：“没有哪个国家可以置身事外，我们在这里发现来自世界各地的塑料。”

“We all have a responsibility, and we have to sit up and pay attention.

“我们人人都负有责任，我们必须警醒起来，予以重视。

This is not an issue to ignore.

这个问题不容漠视。

We need to do something now to protect the sea.”

我们现在就要行动起来，保护海洋。”

Plastic waste in the sea has long been known about, but only now are we discovering the true extent of the problem.

海洋中的塑料垃圾早已为人所知，但直到现在我们才看清问题的严重程度。

Plastic takes hundreds of years to decompose, so all the plastic ever produced still exists somewhere.

塑料需要数百年才能降解，所以人类生产过的所有塑料依然留存于世间某处。

Around 95% of plastics made are not recycled, and large amounts enter the sea.

大约95%的塑料制品没有被回收，大量塑料流入海洋。

Currents collect this waste in large circular systems called “gyres”.

洋流把这些垃圾汇聚到叫作“环流”的大型环形洋流系统之中。

One of the largest is in the Pacific Ocean, an area now known as the “Great Pacific Garbage Patch”.

其中最大一处位于太平洋，也就是如今为人所知的“太平洋垃圾带”。

The problem gets worse as plastic breaks down into very small pieces, or “micro plastic”.

塑料分解成微小碎片，也就是“微塑料”，让问题进一步恶化。

This is eaten by fish and leads to massive species loss.

鱼类会吞食微塑料，进而造成大量物种消亡。

Humans also eat these fish, and micro plastic has even been found in tap water around the world.

人类也会食用这些鱼类，世界各地的自来水里甚至都检测出了微塑料。

The problem has spread too far to ignore.

问题已经泛滥，再也无法忽视。

The plastic on Henderson Island accounts for just 2 seconds’ worth of global annual plastic production.

亨德森岛上的塑料，仅仅相当于全世界2秒钟的塑料年产量。

That production will more than triple by 2050.

到2050年，全球塑料产量将会增至现在的三倍以上。

Then there will be the same weight of plastic in the sea as fish.

届时海洋里塑料的总重量将会和鱼类总重量持平。

However, there are some young minds working to clean up and protect the sea for future generations.

不过，已经有一些年轻人正在行动，为后代清理、守护海洋。

While diving in Greece, young Boyan Slat noticed there was more plastic waste than fish.

年轻的博扬·斯拉特在希腊潜水时，发现海里塑料垃圾比鱼还要多。

He decided right then to dedicate his life to solving this problem.

就在那一刻，他决定毕生致力于解决这个难题。

Previously the problem was considered too big to solve; collecting the plastic with boats and nets would be expensive, would harm sea life, and would take thousands of years!

过去人们认为这个难题无力解决：依靠船只和渔网打捞塑料成本高昂，还会伤害海洋生物，并且要耗费数千年！

But, Boyan thought, why move through the sea when the sea can move through you?

但是博扬想到：既然海水可以主动流过装置，为什么还要在海中到处移动打捞？

To work with the currents and gyres would help collect the waste.

顺着洋流与环流的力量，有助于收集垃圾。

So he started The Ocean Cleanup project, which places very long floating barriers in the Pacific.

于是他发起了“海洋清理计划”，在太平洋布设超长漂浮拦挡装置。

Currents then concentrate the waste naturally so it can be collected and recycled.

洋流会自然把垃圾聚集起来，之后就可以对垃圾进行收集回收。

He hopes to reduce the patch by 50% in just five years.

他希望仅仅用五年，就把这片垃圾带的规模减少50%。

“Many problems today are side effects of things people didn’t think about in the past,” he says.

他说：“如今很多问题，都是过去人们未曾考虑到的事物带来的副作用。”

“Sea plastic is a symbol of the negative effects of our lifestyle and technology.

“海洋塑料，正是我们生活方式与科技带来负面影响的象征。

Our aim should be to create a new lifestyle for this century.

我们应当为本世纪打造全新的生活方式。

Protecting the sea from plastic is a good place to start!”

保护海洋远离塑料污染，就是一个很好的起点！”

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