美国国家公共电台 NPR--What kinds of jobs will be created by offshore wind farms?

What kinds of jobs will be created by offshore¹ wind farms?

Transcript²

When President Biden talks about America's clean energy transition, he often mentions good paying union jobs. We examine what jobs the offshore wind industry could offer.

RACHEL MARTIN, HOST:

When President Biden talks about America's climate goals, he often frames it around new economic opportunities.

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PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: When I think of climate crisis, I think of jobs.

MARTIN: But what kind of jobs does a carbon-free future provide? NPR's H.J. Mai reports.

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H J MAI, BYLINE³: Imagine waking up at dawn, working 12-hour shifts every day for 2 1/2 months. All you see around you is nothing but ocean water. It's cold. It's windy. It's physically⁴ demanding. Despite those conditions, Maximo Decaba didn't think twice when this opportunity presented itself. And it paid off.

MAXIMO DECABA: With that job, I made enough money to buy my first home.

MAI: Decaba painted the 100-meter-tall towers that jut⁵ out above the ocean waves of the first offshore wind farm in the United States. That was five years ago. The offshore wind farm is located near the coast of Rhode Island. It is run by a Danish company called Orsted.

DECABA: Every time I see the commercial or something, I tell everybody that's in the room, I painted that. I was one of the painters there.

MAI: President Biden's goal is to have 30 gigawatts of offshore wind deployed⁶ by 2030. That will be enough to power 10 million homes. Right now, there are only two offshore wind farms in operation in the U.S. But the federal government has opened up both coasts and the Gulf⁷ of Mexico for exploration. And Jennifer Cullen expects more jobs to come with that. She's in charge of labor⁸ relations for Vineyard Wind. The company is developing the first massive, utility-scale project off the coast of Massachusetts.

JENNIFER CULLEN: If you have a family or a dog or responsibilities at home that require you to be home in your bed most nights, it's going to be a tough lifestyle change to be working offshore for several weeks on end. But then you have several weeks home where you are not working.

MAI: The company has already started construction of its mainland facilities, with offshore wind work scheduled to start next year. Vineyard Wind says at least 500 of the anticipated 1,700 jobs during the construction phase will go to union workers. This includes painters like Decaba, as well as many other jobs, such as electricians, crane operators or iron workers. These jobs only require a high school diploma or GED, says Alex Barham, an instructor⁹ with labor union Ironworkers 5 in Maryland.

ALEX BARHAM: If they make it through all of the tasks, they pass the exam. Then we put them into our application and then send them out to work from there.

MAI: This type of registered apprenticeship¹⁰ program takes four years to complete. North America's Building Trades Unions likes to refer to it as the other four-year degree.

BARHAM: They're getting on-the-job training. And then for two weeks every six months - so we have two semesters a year - they'll come to class, but they get the majority of their training, actual specifics in the field.

MAI: In offshore wind, some could make six figures if the work is especially challenging or dangerous. Those types of agreements are not commonplace in the renewable energy sector¹¹, says Tom Kriger of North America's Building Trades Unions. A study published last year showed that the lack of unions in other green energy sectors¹², such as solar and onshore wind, has meant lower wages and less job security.

TOM KRIGER: Clean energy jobs are not, by definition, good jobs. And it takes a commitment on the part of the people that are building it, the Orsteds of the world and, you know, their preferences for high-quality training.

MAI: For union painter Maximo Decaba, working in offshore wind changed his life. And that's why he's back working on another wind project. But this time, he's doing the onshore work.

DECABA: I'm not going to go out there this time around. I want other members to experience it.

MAI: Bigger wind turbines out at sea could help reduce the country's reliance on fossil fuels. And with hundreds of square miles of untapped potential along American shores, offshore wind is set to grow exponentially in the coming years. H.J. Mai, NPR News.

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1 offshore   

adj.海面的，吹向海面的；adv.向海面

参考例句：

• A big program of oil exploration has begun offshore.一个大规模的石油勘探计划正在近海展开。
• A gentle current carried them slowly offshore.和缓的潮流慢慢地把他们带离了海岸。

2 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

3 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

4 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。

5 jut   

v.突出；n.突出，突出物

参考例句：

• His mouth started to jut out,and his jaw got longer.他的嘴向前突出，下巴也变长了。
• His teeth tend to jut out a little.他的牙齿长得有点儿凸出。

6 deployed   

（尤指军事行动）使展开( deploy的过去式和过去分词 )； 施展； 部署； 有效地利用

参考例句：

• Tanks have been deployed all along the front line. 沿整个前线已部署了坦克。
• The artillery was deployed to bear on the fort. 火炮是对着那个碉堡部署的。

7 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。

8 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

9 instructor   

n.指导者，教员，教练

参考例句：

• The college jumped him from instructor to full professor.大学突然把他从讲师提升为正教授。
• The skiing instructor was a tall,sunburnt man.滑雪教练是一个高高个子晒得黑黑的男子。

10 apprenticeship   

n.学徒身份；学徒期

参考例句：

• She was in the second year of her apprenticeship as a carpenter. 她当木工学徒已是第二年了。
• He served his apprenticeship with Bob. 他跟鲍勃当学徒。

11 sector   

n.部门，部分；防御地段，防区；扇形

参考例句：

• The export sector will aid the economic recovery. 出口产业将促进经济复苏。
• The enemy have attacked the British sector.敌人已进攻英国防区。

12 sectors   

n.部门( sector的名词复数 )；领域；防御地区；扇形

参考例句：

• Berlin was divided into four sectors after the war. 战后柏林分成了4 个区。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Industry and agriculture are the two important sectors of the national economy. 工业和农业是国民经济的两个重要部门。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》