美国国家公共电台 NPR--Funding for weather stations that provide critical data is under threat

Funding for weather stations that provide critical data is under threat

Transcript¹

Networks of weather stations throughout the U.S. provide data that's crucial for emergency responders, farmers and researchers but funding for them is precarious².

LEILA FADEL, HOST:

Across the U.S., networks of weather monitors known as mesonets record data for farmers, researchers and emergency responders. This information is vital when it comes to issuing storm warnings and understanding climate science. But financing for many state mesonets is on shaky ground. Harvest Public Media's Elizabeth Rembert reports.

ELIZABETH REMBERT, BYLINE³: When you check a weather forecast, do you ever think about where that information comes from? If you're in southeast Nebraska, you can find one source off a gravel⁴ road.

REGAN KERKMAN: We're just in a little pasture field just north of Valparaiso by our weather station.

REMBERT: That's Regan Kerkman. He's braving a cold, windy day to check on the site.

(SOUNDBITE OF METAL CLANGING)

REMBERT: He opens a green gate to approach what looks like a tall, metal tripod.

KERKMAN: We have two sensors⁵ to collect rain. And one of them measures snowfall. We have wind speed and direction, measures the sun.

REMBERT: It does a lot. And it's only one of dozens across the state. The stations record data every minute of every day.

MARTHA DURR: I think there's 1,440 minutes in a day. So we've got that many observations.

REMBERT: That's Martha Durr, Nebraska's climatologist. She says all that data goes off to farmers and ranchers, researchers, emergency managers, the National Weather Service. The list goes on. But it's all happening on much less funding than is needed. In Nebraska, it's gotten so bad that Durr closed down five stations last year, even as the state battled deep drought.

DURR: We kind of run on a skeleton shop right now, just scraping by, I would (laughter) call it.

REMBERT: Nebraska's not alone. For example, Missouri also faces funding challenges, while Kansas grapples with inconsistent grant support for any extra staff. And in Illinois, manager Jennie Atkins says hodgepodge funding has limited her program to just 19 stations covering the entire state.

JENNIE ATKINS: The real issue for us is that we're not growing. These 19 stations are great. And they're doing everything they can. But they're only 19 stations.

REMBERT: She says they've missed intense wind and rainstorms. It's a similar story in Nebraska, where Dennis Schueth manages a natural resource district. His team uses mesonet data to conserve⁶ groundwater by setting irrigation limits.

DENNIS SCHUETH: We use that as a tool to show that, you know, you may have over-irrigated. Or you may be under-irrigated. Or maybe you're just right.

REMBERT: But now they're doing it with a lot less information. Schueth's district lost four of its five nearby stations, leaving farmers relying on less accurate data.

SCHUETH: It's just kind of disappointing. Numerous state agencies, elected officials say that water is such an important deal. But then we end up that we don't want to fund it.

REMBERT: But one state has put its money where its mouth is. Oklahoma's mesonet gets about half its funding from the state government. Director Chris Fiebrich says the support means he doesn't have to agonize⁷ over things like making payroll⁸ or keeping the lights on.

CHRIS FIEBRICH: We can have our staff looking at new technologies. We can have them developing new models, developing new products.

REMBERT: It makes all the difference in responding to storms, growing crops and adapting to climate change. But right now, that's a pipe dream for some state systems.

For NPR News, I'm Elizabeth Rembert.

(SOUNDBITE OF COUCH'S "NAH DRAN")

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 precarious   

adj.不安定的，靠不住的；根据不足的

参考例句：

• Our financial situation had become precarious.我们的财务状况已变得不稳定了。
• He earned a precarious living as an artist.作为一个艺术家，他过得是朝不保夕的生活。

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 gravel   

n.砂跞；砂砾层；结石

参考例句：

• We bought six bags of gravel for the garden path.我们购买了六袋碎石用来铺花园的小路。
• More gravel is needed to fill the hollow in the drive.需要更多的砾石来填平车道上的坑洼。

5 sensors   

n.传感器，灵敏元件( sensor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• There were more than 2000 sensors here. 这里装有两千多个灵敏元件。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Significant changes have been noted where sensors were exposed to trichloride. 当传感器暴露在三氯化物中时，有很大变化。 来自辞典例句

6 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！

7 agonize   

v.使受苦，使苦闷

参考例句：

• Why do you agonize yourself with the thought of your failure?你为何总是对于你的失败念念不忘而自我折磨呢？
• There's no reason to agonize over telling people you're job hunting.没有理由为告诉他人你正在找工作而感到苦恼。

8 payroll   

n.工资表，在职人员名单，工薪总额

参考例句：

• His yearly payroll is $1.2 million.他的年薪是120万美元。
• I can't wait to get my payroll check.我真等不及拿到我的工资单了。