It's feared a vital lake in Oregon could run dry within a generation

It's feared a vital lake in Oregon could run dry within a generation

Transcript¹

In Oregon's high desert, a more than 10,000-year-old lake is drying up. That doesn't have to happen. Summer Lake hosts millions of migratory² birds annually³, but its water is being diverted to farms.

RACHEL MARTIN, HOST:

In southern Oregon's high desert, an ancient lake attracts waterbirds from around the world. Now this prized wetland is in danger of disappearing. From Oregon Public Broadcasting, Emily Cureton Cook reports.

(SOUNDBITE OF WATER BUBBLING)

EMILY CURETON COOK, BYLINE⁴: Cool, clean water bubbles up from the ground about 80 miles from where the borders of Oregon, Nevada and California meet. This groundwater is the lifeblood of Summer Lake Wildlife Area. The 19,000-acre public preserve hosts millions of migratory birds annually.

MARTY ST LOUIS: We're right here in the Pacific flyway. These are the main pathways that birds move north and south across North America.

COOK: Biologist Marty St. Louis was an Oregon state wildlife manager here for more than 30 years. He's retired⁵ now. But he still lives nearby. And he delights in watching the neighbors.

(SOUNDBITE OF BIRDS COOING)

ST LOUIS: Those are tundra⁶ swans.

COOK: Tundra swans.

ST LOUIS: They used to be called whistling swans.

(SOUNDBITE OF BIRDS CHIRPING)

ST LOUIS: Now here's a pair of sandhill cranes. They're just letting you know.

(SOUNDBITE OF BIRDS HONKING)

ST LOUIS: And do you see this white out here? Snow geese - 10 to 15,000 of them

COOK: Without groundwater, all this would go silent. State records show the springs feeding the lake have been steadily⁷ declining ever since people started pumping groundwater to nearby hay farms. State scientists have long believed that agriculture would eventually dry out the springs.

LISA BROWN: That got my attention.

COOK: Lisa Brown is an environmental advocate and an attorney for the nonprofit WaterWatch.

BROWN: It's alarming that we have a plan in place in Oregon to basically dry up Summer Lake.

DOUG WOODCOCK: That's just the nature of groundwater hydrology.

COOK: Doug Woodcock is a deputy director at the Oregon Water Resources Department, the state agency with a mission to safeguard sustainable water supplies.

WOODCOCK: The department does have a charge to manage the area sustainably. And as we can get to it, we will.

COOK: But the water department still hasn't defined what reasonably stable groundwater levels are even though a law saying it had to was passed in the 1950s. And state policies don't consider the effects of human-caused climate change, even as it drives prolonged drought across the West. Dan Jansen is a hay farmer near Summer Lake who wants to conserve⁸ more water voluntarily and avoid a crackdown on his water rights.

DAN JANSEN: If we get cut back here, it's going to be devastating⁹. I mean, this would be a ghost town, nothing but blowing sand here.

COOK: These intense winds and extreme temperatures batter¹⁰ his home in Christmas Valley, Ore., where few crops will grow. But the harsh conditions are part of what makes alfalfa hay actually thrive.

JANSEN: This is the best climate probably in the world for this crop.

COOK: Jansen says the international demand is strong, especially from buyers in Asia.

JANSEN: And now we're starting to get a lot of Middle East countries that are buying because they don't have any water to grow it.

COOK: He's planning for a future where declining groundwater is going to hurt his livelihood¹¹. Long before Oregon created a wildlife area or hay farm sprouted¹² up around it, Northern Paiute people have lived, hunted and fished at the lake.

WILSON WEWA: Our people have always utilized¹³ that area. And it has spiritual significance.

COOK: Wilson Wewa is a Northern Paiute historian.

WEWA: So if anybody has a right to the land and its resources, it's Native people.

COOK: But the state allows farmers to take more and more water, which leaves Wewa asking...

WEWA: How much is enough?

COOK: He worries that unless Oregon's water managers change course, in just a few decades, a supply that's been stable for millennia¹⁴ could be lost forever.

For NPR News, I'm Emily Cureton Cook in Summer Lake, Ore.

(SOUNDBITE OF HERMANOS GUTIERREZ'S "EL DESIERTO")

1 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。

2 migratory   

n.候鸟，迁移

参考例句：

• Many migratory birds visit this lake annually.许多候鸟每年到这个湖上作短期逗留。
• This does not negate the idea of migratory aptitude.这并没有否定迁移能力这一概念。

3 annually   

adv.一年一次，每年

参考例句：

• Many migratory birds visit this lake annually.许多候鸟每年到这个湖上作短期逗留。
• They celebrate their wedding anniversary annually.他们每年庆祝一番结婚纪念日。

4 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。

5 retired   

adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的

参考例句：

• The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
• Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。

6 tundra   

n.苔原，冻土地带

参考例句：

• The arctic tundra is at the top of the world around the North Pole.北极冻原是指北极点周边的地区，是世界最高的地方。
• There is a large amount of methane gas under the Siberian tundra.西伯利亚的冻土地带之下有大量的甲烷气体。

7 steadily   

adv.稳定地；不变地；持续地

参考例句：

• The scope of man's use of natural resources will steadily grow.人类利用自然资源的广度将日益扩大。
• Our educational reform was steadily led onto the correct path.我们的教学改革慢慢上轨道了。

8 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！

9 devastating   

adj.毁灭性的，令人震惊的，强有力的

参考例句：

• It is the most devastating storm in 20 years.这是20年来破坏性最大的风暴。
• Affairs do have a devastating effect on marriages.婚外情确实会对婚姻造成毁灭性的影响。

10 batter   

v.接连重击；磨损；n.牛奶面糊；击球员

参考例句：

• The batter skied to the center fielder.击球手打出一个高飞球到中外野手。
• Put a small quantity of sugar into the batter.在面糊里放少量的糖。

11 livelihood   

n.生计，谋生之道

参考例句：

• Appropriate arrangements will be made for their work and livelihood.他们的工作和生活会得到妥善安排。
• My father gained a bare livelihood of family by his own hands.父亲靠自己的双手勉强维持家计。

12 sprouted   

v.发芽( sprout的过去式和过去分词 )；抽芽；出现；（使）涌现出

参考例句：

• We can't use these potatoes; they've all sprouted. 这些土豆儿不能吃了，都出芽了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The rice seeds have sprouted. 稻种已经出芽了。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

13 utilized   

v.利用，使用( utilize的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• In the19th century waterpower was widely utilized to generate electricity. 在19世纪人们大规模使用水力来发电。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The empty building can be utilized for city storage. 可以利用那栋空建筑物作城市的仓库。 来自《简明英汉词典》

14 millennia   

n.一千年，千禧年

参考例句：

• For two millennia, exogamy was a major transgression for Jews. 两千年来，异族通婚一直是犹太人的一大禁忌。
• In the course of millennia, the dinosaurs died out. 在几千年的时间里，恐龙逐渐死绝了。