美国国家公共电台 NPR--Senate panel Chairman Tom Carper has a lot of questions for Norfolk Southern

Senate panel Chairman Tom Carper has a lot of questions for Norfolk Southern

Transcript¹

NPR's A Martinez talks to Sen. Tom Carper, chairman of the Committee on Environment and Public Works, about Thursday's hearing on the train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio.

A MART?NEZ, HOST:

Senator Tom Carper of Delaware chairs the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee. I spoke² with him about the testimony³ that's coming today. So, Senator, what would you like to hear from Norfolk Southern CEO Alan Shaw while you have him under oath?

TOM CARPER: What happened? Where did they go wrong? Where did we go wrong? What can we do to make sure this doesn't happen again? What are we doing to help the people and the folks who call East Palestine home? What are we doing to help them? What more needs to be done to try to help them put their lives back together? The main thing here is we want to get to the truth. How did this happen? What could have been done to prevent it? What more needs to be done? We want a commitment from Norfolk Southern to do what is the morally right thing to do. As it turns out, there are freight trains or trains going all over our country, including not that far from where we live here in Wilmington, Del., that are carrying hazardous⁴ cargo⁵. And we're seeing a number of - just in the last week or so, a number of incidents involving Norfolk Southern, which are disconcerting.

MART?NEZ: Yeah, Senator, I think a lot of people - especially in Ohio, but all over the country - are waiting for answers.

CARPER: It's not just the people in eastern Ohio that are looking for answers - or in Ohio or in Pennsylvania. People all over the country - I think what's going on here, people are putting - around the country, putting themselves in the shoes of the folks who live in East Palestine and thinking about, like, how would I want to be treated if I lived there or my family lived there or worked there?

MART?NEZ: Senator, how would you say the EPA has handled the immediate⁶ aftermath and the longer-term effects?

CARPER: I'd like to say - I've said it forever - that everything I do, I know I can do better. And I'm sure that's true in this instance as well. Having said that, EPA had a team literally⁷ on site within hours of the incident. They continue to have a significant presence. They've opened up a center in which people in the community can come and bring their concerns and literally to share information with EPA.

MART?NEZ: I know there are bills in the House and Senate to make trains carrying hazardous materials safer. What's the outlook for those bills?

CARPER: I think there's an opportunity here for the House and the Senate, Democrat⁸ and Republican, to work in a bipartisan manner. That's what Senator Capito of West Virginia and I do. She's the senior Republican on the Environment and Public Works Committee. I get to chair the committee. Almost everything that we do is on a bipartisan basis. And we have a bipartisan panel that will be testifying in this hearing.

MART?NEZ: Yeah, 'cause if trains are going to be carrying hazardous materials, I mean, what could be done to make sure train lengths are more manageable, to maybe more quickly troubleshoot problems that could turn into environmental disasters?

CARPER: Well, we'll have the opportunity to drill down on all of that and the other committees of jurisdiction⁹. This is just not all in the Environmental Protection Committee, EPW Committee that I chair. But this is a shared responsibility, and it includes Commerce Committee and other committees in the House. And we'll all do our jobs. And the important thing is that we do this together.

MART?NEZ: In the past, after the Federal Railroad Administration imposed stricter rail safety regulations, Congress later watered them down. Why is that? And is that something at all that your committee will be able to address with Norfolk Southern?

CARPER: Yeah, I'm not sure that our committee by itself can address that. It's fair game. I guess it will come up during the course of the hearing.

MART?NEZ: Do you expect any legislation to come out of your committee? And what could it possibly do, if so?

CARPER: Well, I would expect - the legislation has been introduced by three of my colleagues today, two Democrats¹⁰ and Republican. That is going to be discussed, at least in part. Part - it comes probably in the jurisdiction of several committees.

MART?NEZ: That's U.S. Senator Tom Carper from Delaware. Senator, thanks.

CARPER: Hey, nice talking to you. Thanks so much. Keep up the good work.

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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 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。

3 testimony   

n.证词；见证，证明

参考例句：

• The testimony given by him is dubious.他所作的证据是可疑的。
• He was called in to bear testimony to what the police officer said.他被传入为警官所说的话作证。

4 hazardous   

adj.(有)危险的，冒险的；碰运气的

参考例句：

• These conditions are very hazardous for shipping.这些情况对航海非常不利。
• Everybody said that it was a hazardous investment.大家都说那是一次危险的投资。

5 cargo   

n.(一只船或一架飞机运载的)货物

参考例句：

• The ship has a cargo of about 200 ton.这条船大约有200吨的货物。
• A lot of people discharged the cargo from a ship.许多人从船上卸下货物。

6 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

7 literally   

adv.照字面意义，逐字地；确实

参考例句：

• He translated the passage literally.他逐字逐句地翻译这段文字。
• Sometimes she would not sit down till she was literally faint.有时候，她不走到真正要昏厥了，决不肯坐下来。

8 democrat   

n.民主主义者，民主人士；民主党党员

参考例句：

• The Democrat and the Public criticized each other.民主党人和共和党人互相攻击。
• About two years later,he was defeated by Democrat Jimmy Carter.大约两年后，他被民主党人杰米卡特击败。

9 jurisdiction   

n.司法权，审判权，管辖权，控制权

参考例句：

• It doesn't lie within my jurisdiction to set you free.我无权将你释放。
• Changzhou is under the jurisdiction of Jiangsu Province.常州隶属江苏省。

10 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》