美国国家公共电台 NPR--EPA will take control of the East Palestine train derailment cleanup

EPA will take control of the East Palestine train derailment cleanup

Transcript¹

In East Palestine, Ohio, federal environmental regulators have taken charge of the cleanup from the train derailment and chemical burn, and ordered Norfolk Southern to foot the bill.

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

Is East Palestine, Ohio, getting the help that it needs? Two weeks ago, of course, a train carrying toxic² chemicals derailed near the Ohio-Pennsylvania border, and people have reported trouble ever since, which Reid Frazier is covering for The Allegheny Front. Good morning.

REID FRAZIER, BYLINE³: Hello.

INSKEEP: OK, so authorities say that they're trying to make sure that communities feel like home again. But what does that mean in this case?

FRAZIER: Well, the head of the EPA says it means there's a shift now from phase one, responding to the emergency, to phase two, which is cleanup. And that comes with an order from the EPA to make sure the cleanup is done properly. EPA Administrator⁴ Michael Regan said the agency is ordering Norfolk Southern to clean up. EPA will oversee⁵ it. The company will have to produce a work plan. EPA will then have to approve it. Regan says that Norfolk Southern will simply have to clean up the mess it's created.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

MICHAEL REGAN: If the company fails to complete any action ordered by EPA, the agency will immediately step in, conduct the work ourselves, and then force Norfolk Southern to pay triple in cost, according to the powers granted by my agency.

FRAZIER: And Regan says this won't undo⁶ the suffering that the folks there have been going through, but at least lets people know that authorities have heard them and are taking action.

INSKEEP: Listen, I know you're traveling around the region there, and there's more than one town that's affected⁷, even though East Palestine is what is in the headlines, what we talk about. What is happening across the border in Pennsylvania?

FRAZIER: Yeah, well, as you probably know, this happened a few hundred yards from the border. And folks on the other side have said that they feel a little bit left out of the response. But Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro says that his state environmental agency is testing the air and that so far there have been no adverse⁸ results that they found and that they're - they've been conducting water tests, and those results will be coming in soon. And they'll continue to test. He did take some time to blast Norfolk Southern and says - and sort of applauded the EPA's step to enforce this order so it won't be able to walk away from its responsibilities.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

JOSH SHAPIRO: It is my view that Norfolk Southern wasn't going to do this out of the goodness of their own heart. There's not a lot of goodness in there. They needed to be compelled to act.

FRAZIER: And that's what he says the EPA did in issuing this order.

INSKEEP: You know, we had Pete Buttigieg on the program yesterday. Of course, he's the secretary of transportation. He's pushing Norfolk Southern. This is in some ways a political show of force. But Buttigieg is arguing that it is time for better and different rail regulation. Where's that going?

FRAZIER: Well, there's a mounting call for Congress to act on this. Both Governor Shapiro of Pennsylvania and Ohio Governor Mike DeWine spoke⁹ about this. And DeWine says train safety really needs to have a higher priority now.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

MIKE DEWINE: These trains are longer and longer and longer. They're carrying toxic material. And if something happens and there's a derailment, we have what we have in East Palestine today. No other community should have to go through this.

FRAZIER: The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating this. And congressional leaders say the results of that investigation¹⁰ will determine the future course on what regulations might look like.

INSKEEP: Reid, thanks so much for the update. Really appreciate it.

FRAZIER: Thank you.

INSKEEP: Reid Frazier is with The Allegheny Front, a radio program that covers environmental issues.

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)

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 toxic   

adj.有毒的，因中毒引起的

参考例句：

• The factory had accidentally released a quantity of toxic waste into the sea.这家工厂意外泄漏大量有毒废物到海中。
• There is a risk that toxic chemicals might be blasted into the atmosphere.爆炸后有毒化学物质可能会进入大气层。

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 administrator   

n.经营管理者，行政官员

参考例句：

• The role of administrator absorbed much of Ben's energy.行政职务耗掉本很多精力。
• He has proved himself capable as administrator.他表现出管理才能。

5 oversee   

vt.监督，管理

参考例句：

• Soldiers oversee the food handouts.士兵们看管着救济食品。
• Use a surveyor or architect to oversee and inspect the different stages of the work.请一位房产检视员或建筑师来监督并检查不同阶段的工作。

6 undo   

vt.解开，松开；取消，撤销

参考例句：

• His pride will undo him some day.他的傲慢总有一天会毁了他。
• I managed secretly to undo a corner of the parcel.我悄悄地设法解开了包裹的一角。

7 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。

8 adverse   

adj.不利的；有害的；敌对的，不友好的

参考例句：

• He is adverse to going abroad.他反对出国。
• The improper use of medicine could lead to severe adverse reactions.用药不当会产生严重的不良反应。

9 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

10 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。