Gulf health nearly at pre-spill level: AP survey

     BEIJING, April 19 (Xinhuanet) -- Almost one year after the disastrous（灾难性的） oil spill, scientists believe that the overall health of the Gulf¹ of Mexico as nearly back to normal.

    However, the scientists restrain their optimism about nature's resiliency with the glaring blemishes² out there.

    It's been nearly a year since BP's Gulf of Mexico oil spill began last April, triggering one of the world's worst environmental disasters. Nearly 5 million barrels of oil leaked from the ruptured³ Deepwater Horizon well during the months-long catastrophe⁴.

    BP said last November that the disaster cost it nearly 40 billion U.S. dollars, according to a Guardian⁵ report.

    According to a BP survey of researchers, over three dozen scientists grade the Gulf's big picture health a 68 on average, using a 1-to-100 scale.

    That's just a few points below the 71 the same researchers gave last summer when asked what grade they would give the ecosystem⁶ before the spill. And it's an improvement from the 65 given back in October after months of the oil spill.(本文由在线英语听力室整理编辑)

1 gulf   

n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂

参考例句：

• The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
• There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。

2 blemishes   

n.（身体的）瘢点( blemish的名词复数 )；伤疤；瑕疵；污点

参考例句：

• make-up to cover blemishes 遮盖霜
• The blemishes of ancestors appear. 祖先的各种瑕疵都渐渐显露出来。 来自辞典例句

3 ruptured   

v.（使）破裂( rupture的过去式和过去分词 )；（使体内组织等）断裂；使（友好关系）破裂；使绝交

参考例句：

• They reported that the pipeline had ruptured. 他们报告说管道已经破裂了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The wall through Berlin was finally ruptured, prefiguring the reunification of Germany. 柏林墙终于倒塌了，预示着德国的重新统一。 来自辞典例句

4 catastrophe   

n.大灾难，大祸

参考例句：

• I owe it to you that I survived the catastrophe.亏得你我才大难不死。
• This is a catastrophe beyond human control.这是一场人类无法控制的灾难。

5 guardian   

n.监护人；守卫者，保护者

参考例句：

• The form must be signed by the child's parents or guardian. 这张表格须由孩子的家长或监护人签字。
• The press is a guardian of the public weal. 报刊是公共福利的卫护者。

6 ecosystem   

n.生态系统

参考例句：

• This destroyed the ecosystem of the island.这样破坏了岛上的生态系统。
• We all have an interest in maintaining the integrity of the ecosystem.维持生态系统的完整是我们共同的利益。