经济学人:苏格兰可再生能源崛起 或因独立遭受重击

 　　Britain Renewable energy in Scotland 英国 苏格兰的可再生能源之路

　　Caution to the wind 小心风力

　　How independence might threaten one of the SNP’s favourite industries 独立是否会威胁苏格兰民族党的支柱产业之一

　　Twenty minutes from the centre of Glasgow, the tussocky expanse of Eaglesham Moor² is popular with dog-walkers and cyclists.  距格拉斯哥市中心20分钟路程的地方，有一处由伊格尔沙姆沼泽蔓延开的草丛一直备受遛狗者和自行车爱好者的追捧，

　　These days they enjoy some 90km (56 miles) of paths that have been built on the moor around Whitelee,  而这些天他们又可以尽情漫步在新修建的96千米（56英米）长的沼间小径上，

　　Europe’s second-biggest onshore wind farm, by the operator, Scottish Power.  这些小路位于欧洲第二大陆上风电场怀特里附近，由苏格兰电力公司建造。

　　The site’s appeal is twofold: it is close to a large number of electricity-consuming homes;  选址在这里具有双重意义：它既靠近需要大量消耗电力的住宅区，

　　and a barren moor makes a less controversial place to scatter³ 215 turbines than, say, a picturesque⁴ Highland⁵ mountainside.  同时与如画的苏格兰高地山腰相比，它贫瘠的沼泽地质也是分散安置215个风力涡轮机的不二选择。

　　Whitelee’s success—it has expanded twice since starting operations in 2009—reflects the growth of Scotland’s renewable-energy industry as a whole. 怀特里风电场的成功——自2009年开始运营至今已扩大了2倍规模，整个反映了苏格兰再生能源产业的发展。

　　In 2011, for the first time, renewables were the second-biggest source of electricity generated in Scotland, accounting⁶ for 27%,  2011年，可再生能源的发电量第一次占据了苏格兰总发电量的27%，成为苏格兰电力的第二大来源

　　behind nuclear power but ahead of coal and gas; in England, renewables generated only 6% of the total.  位于核电之后，煤气电力之前；而在英格兰，可再生能源的发电量只占据了6%。

　　Stand, buffeted⁷, on Eaglesham Moor and you get an inkling of why: around a quarter of all Europe’s wind energy crosses Scotland’s land mass and surrounding waters.  如果你置身于伊格尔沙姆沼泽，也许就能对其原因略窥一二了，全欧洲的风能大约有四分之一是从苏格兰的陆地和周围水域穿过的。

　　Factor in its potential in tidal and wave energy, plus an expertise⁸ in North Sea oil and gas that can be transferred to greener industries,  正是因为有它潜在的潮汐能和波能，再加上能将北海里的油气资源转移到绿色产业中的专利技术，

　　and the notion of Scotland as a “Saudi Arabia of renewables” does not seem too far-fetched. 苏格兰被称为“可再生能源中的沙特阿拉伯”也就不难理解了。

　　The political climate helps, too.  然而，政治气候也在其中起了推波助澜之用。

　　At Westminster, bickering⁹ within the coalition¹⁰, especially over wind farms, has stymied¹¹ progress over renewables.  在威斯敏斯特，联合政府内部经常有争吵，尤其关于风力发电厂。这已经阻碍了可再生能源产业的进步。

　　By contrast, the Scottish National Party (SNP), which runs Scotland’s devolved government,  相比之下，苏格兰民族党，也就是苏格兰自治政府的执政党，

　　has spent years talking up the country’s renewable-energy prowess and British dependence¹ on it.  几年来一直致力于可再生能源技术的进步，以期获得英国政府对其电力输出的依赖。

　　With some justification¹²: Scotland exported 26% of the electricity it generated to the rest of Britain in 2011, and transfers to England are at a record high.  公平地来说：就2011年一年，苏格兰就向英国其他地区输入了其总电量的26%，达到了对英格兰输电量的最高值。

　　The SNP touts¹³ energy as a central plank¹⁴ of an independent Scotland’s economy, should voters opt¹⁵ for separation in next year’s referendum. 如果在下一年的独立公投中苏格兰人赞成脱离英国独立的话，能源产业有望成为苏格兰独立经济体的核心产业。

　　Alex Salmond, the first minister, vows¹⁶ that Scotland will generate the equivalent of 100% of its electricity needs from renewable sources by 2020.  苏格兰首席部长萨尔蒙德（Alex Salmond）许诺，到2020年苏格兰有望实现电力完全无碳化。

　　That pledge might be tough to meet should oil and gas prices fall, making renewables look costlier¹⁷; but his administration has at least backed his words with action.  但如果油气价格下跌，可再生能源随之上涨，这一承诺便很难实现。不过，萨尔蒙德当局政府仍为实现这一目标付诸实践。

　　Within the devolved arrangements, planning decisions are Scotland’s main lever over energy policy.  在任期间，苏格兰将谋划决策作为控制能源政策的主要手段。

　　Since 2007, when Mr Salmond first took office, his ministers have approved many more applications for large wind farms  自2007年萨尔蒙德先生第一次上台起，当局政府通过了大量的大型风力发电厂的申请

　　(ie, those with a generating capacity of over 50MW) than the Westminster government has for England and Wales.  （例如，产能功率大于50MW），远远超过了威斯敏斯特政府供给给英格兰和威尔士的发电厂数量。

　　Foreign firms have noticed this enthusiasm for the sector¹⁸: Areva, Gamesa and Samsung have all said they will open factories making kit¹⁹ for offshore²⁰ turbines in Scotland. 苏格兰政府对能源板块的大力扶持吸引了全球许多知名企业关注：法国的阿海珐集团、西班牙的歌美飒公司以及韩国的三星公司已经决定在苏格兰开设工厂建设海上发电基地。

　　But external factors have helped, too.  其中同样也有外部作用，

　　In particular, a European Union directive requires Britain to derive²¹ 15% of its energy demand from renewables by 2020.  尤其是欧盟促进可再生能源使用指令，其要求到2020年，英国必须有15%的电力来源于可再生能源。

　　Generators²² of such energy get subsidies²³ from a Westminster scheme funded by consumers throughout Britain.  为此，英国制定由消费者投资的威斯敏斯特计划，向可再生能源发电厂颁发特殊津贴。

　　That is a major boon²⁴ to Scotland’s renewables industry.  这对也的确是一个促进苏格兰的可再生能源产业发展的重大利好消息。

　　It is also, potentially, the cause of its biggest worry—one among several. 然而，这也产生了一个潜在的问题——几个中最严重的问题。

　　Not everyone is as sanguine²⁵ about wind farms as the ramblers on Eaglesham Moor.  对于风力发电厂，不是每一个人都如同伊格尔沙姆的漫游者一样乐观。

　　Elsewhere, the proliferating²⁶ turbines are contentious²⁷.  在其他地方，涡轮机数量的增加是备受争议的。

　　As in England, the two strands²⁸ of environmentalism—the push for green energy and the desire to keep nature pristine—still conflict.  在英格兰，两派环境保护论仍然争论不休——一方希望推动绿色能源发展，另一方则希望保持自然的纯洁性。

　　Moreover, for most other sites, transmission costs are high.  此外，对大多数其他地方来说，输电费用也很昂贵。

　　National Grid²⁹, which operates the British transmission system, charges electricity generators according to their location relative to demand;  负责英国电力运输的国家电网，根据电厂与需求地的远近来收取费用；

　　Scotland’s windiest spots tend to be remote.  而苏格兰风力最强点则位置偏远。

　　Meanwhile, as Professor Paul Younger of Glasgow University points out,  同时，正如格拉斯哥大学的Paul Younger教授所说，

　　Scotland still needs to plug an impending³⁰ gap in its supply of “baseload” energy (power that is available day and night, regardless of the weather).  弥补“基本装载”能源的供给仍是苏格兰的当务之急（指无论天气好坏，白天晚上都能利用的能量）。

　　Buying more gas is the likeliest solution 要解决这个问题，购买更多的天然气是最优选择。

　　But, despite the SNP’s enthusiasm for both, the biggest shadow over Scotland’s renewables industry is cast by independence.  但是，尽管苏格兰民族党既大力扶持可再生能源产业，又支持独立，独立问题还是使苏格兰的可再生能源产业笼罩在大片的阴影之下的元凶。

　　A separated Scotland would probably remain part of the same British energy market:  脱离英国的苏格兰可能还会保留部分英国能源市场：

　　all sides benefit from a system that allows the easy transmission of electricity from England’s power stations to Scotland when the winds are calm up north,  要想双方实现共赢，只有建立一个这样的系统才有可能，当北部无风时，则允许由英格兰发电站向苏格兰自由运输电力，

　　and from Scotland’s wind farms to the south on days when they have excess capacity. 当北部风电厂发电量过剩时，就从北部运往南部。

　　The worry is the impact that independence might have on how Britain applies that EU directive.  担忧的是，若苏格兰脱离了英国而独立，那么英国要如何实现欧盟促进可再生能源使用指令所指定的指标？

　　At the moment, no one knows exactly what that will be; but Britain’s government might well prefer to invest in its own renewables industry rather than subsidising Scotland’s, 到那个时候，没有人会知道将会变成什么样；但是英国政府也许宁愿加大对本国可再生能源产业的投资，也不会向苏格兰寻求帮助，

　　or to buy cheap renewable energy from elsewhere in Europe.  或者从欧洲其他地方购买廉价的可再生能源。

　　Scotland’s competitively priced onshore-wind power would probably find a buyer, but more expensive offshore, tidal and wave energy could be a harder sell. 而苏格兰的陆上风能由于价格具有竞争优势也许容易找到买家，不过更为昂贵的近海风能、潮汐能以及波能就很难卖出了。

　　Fergus Ewing, Scotland’s energy minister, suggests that England, which itself faces an energy shortfall, will need Scottish power regardless:  苏格兰的能源部长费格斯·尤因 （Fergus Ewing）指出，面临的能源短缺的英格兰无论怎样都会需要苏格兰的能源：

　　“England will need Scottish energy to keep the lights on by 2015,” he says.  “英格兰一直到2015年都需要来自苏格兰的能源把灯点亮，”他说道。

　　But it would be ironic³¹ if independence were to undermine one of the SNP’s flagship industries. 如果因为独立而破坏了苏格兰的支柱产业之一，可真是令人啼笑皆非。

1 dependence   

n.依靠，依赖；信任，信赖；隶属

参考例句：

• Doctors keep trying to break her dependence of the drug.医生们尽力使她戒除毒瘾。
• He was freed from financial dependence on his parents.他在经济上摆脱了对父母的依赖。

2 moor   

n.荒野，沼泽；vt.(使)停泊；vi.停泊

参考例句：

• I decided to moor near some tourist boats.我决定在一些观光船附近停泊。
• There were hundreds of the old huts on the moor.沼地上有成百上千的古老的石屋。

3 scatter   

vt.撒，驱散，散开；散布/播；vi.分散，消散

参考例句：

• You pile everything up and scatter things around.你把东西乱堆乱放。
• Small villages scatter at the foot of the mountain.村庄零零落落地散布在山脚下。

4 picturesque   

adj.美丽如画的，（语言）生动的，绘声绘色的

参考例句：

• You can see the picturesque shores beside the river.在河边你可以看到景色如画的两岸。
• That was a picturesque phrase.那是一个形象化的说法。

5 highland   

n.(pl.)高地，山地

参考例句：

• The highland game is part of Scotland's cultural heritage.苏格兰高地游戏是苏格兰文化遗产的一部分。
• The highland forests where few hunters venture have long been the bear's sanctuary.这片只有少数猎人涉险的高山森林，一直都是黑熊的避难所。

6 accounting   

n.会计，会计学，借贷对照表

参考例句：

• A job fell vacant in the accounting department.财会部出现了一个空缺。
• There's an accounting error in this entry.这笔账目里有差错。

7 buffeted   

反复敲打( buffet的过去式和过去分词 )； 连续猛击； 打来打去； 推来搡去

参考例句：

• to be buffeted by the wind 被风吹得左右摇摆
• We were buffeted by the wind and the rain. 我们遭到风雨的袭击。

8 expertise   

n.专门知识(或技能等)，专长

参考例句：

• We were amazed at his expertise on the ski slopes.他斜坡滑雪的技能使我们赞叹不已。
• You really have the technical expertise in a new breakthrough.让你真正在专业技术上有一个全新的突破。

9 bickering   

v.争吵( bicker的现在分词 )；口角；（水等）作潺潺声；闪烁

参考例句：

• The children are always bickering about something or other. 孩子们有事没事总是在争吵。
• The two children were always bickering with each other over small matters. 这两个孩子总是为些小事斗嘴。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

10 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。

11 stymied   

n.被侵袭的v.妨碍，阻挠( stymie的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Relief efforts have been stymied in recent weeks by armed gunmen. 最近几周的救援工作一直受到武装分子的阻挠。 来自辞典例句
• I was completely stymied by her refusal to help. 由于她拒不相助， 我完全陷入了困境。 来自互联网

12 justification   

n.正当的理由；辩解的理由

参考例句：

• There's no justification for dividing the company into smaller units. 没有理由把公司划分成小单位。
• In the young there is a justification for this feeling. 在年轻人中有这种感觉是有理由的。

13 touts   

n.招徕( tout的名词复数 )；（音乐会、体育比赛等的）卖高价票的人；侦查者；探听赛马的情报v.兜售( tout的第三人称单数 )；招揽；侦查；探听赛马情报

参考例句：

• Many vouchers are returned for cash, allowing touts and middle men to make a healthy margin. 许多月饼券都被兑换成现金，这让券贩子和中间商赚取了不蜚的利润。 来自互联网
• Spotting prey, the customary crowd of hustlers and touts swarmed around, jostling for my business. 照例有大群的拉客黄牛在寻觅猎物，他们争相过来抢我的生意。 来自互联网

14 plank   

n.板条，木板，政策要点，政纲条目

参考例句：

• The plank was set against the wall.木板靠着墙壁。
• They intend to win the next election on the plank of developing trade.他们想以发展贸易的纲领来赢得下次选举。

15 opt   

vi.选择，决定做某事

参考例句：

• They opt for more holiday instead of more pay.他们选择了延长假期而不是增加工资。
• Will individual schools be given the right to opt out of the local school authority?各个学校可能有权选择退出地方教育局吗？

16 vows   

誓言( vow的名词复数 )； 郑重宣布，许愿

参考例句：

• Matrimonial vows are to show the faithfulness of the new couple. 婚誓体现了新婚夫妇对婚姻的忠诚。
• The nun took strait vows. 那位修女立下严格的誓愿。

17 costlier   

adj.昂贵的( costly的比较级 )；代价高的；引起困难的；造成损失的

参考例句：

• Alligator skin is five times more costlier than leather. 鳄鱼皮比通常的皮革要贵5倍。 来自互联网
• Disagreements among creditors can be costlier still. 债权人之间的分歧会加大重组的费用。 来自互联网

18 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。

19 kit   

n.用具包，成套工具；随身携带物

参考例句：

• The kit consisted of about twenty cosmetic items.整套工具包括大约20种化妆用品。
• The captain wants to inspect your kit.船长想检查你的行装。

20 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。

21 derive   

v.取得；导出；引申；来自；源自；出自

参考例句：

• We derive our sustenance from the land.我们从土地获取食物。
• We shall derive much benefit from reading good novels.我们将从优秀小说中获得很大好处。

22 generators   

n.发电机，发生器( generator的名词复数 )；电力公司

参考例句：

• The factory's emergency generators were used during the power cut. 工厂应急发电机在停电期间用上了。
• Power can be fed from wind generators into the electricity grid system. 电力可以从风力发电机流入输电网。 来自《简明英汉词典》

23 subsidies   

n.补贴，津贴，补助金( subsidy的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• European agriculture ministers failed to break the deadlock over farm subsidies. 欧洲各国农业部长在农业补贴问题上未能打破僵局。
• Agricultural subsidies absorb about half the EU's income. 农业补贴占去了欧盟收入的大约一半。 来自《简明英汉词典》

24 boon   

n.恩赐，恩物，恩惠

参考例句：

• A car is a real boon when you live in the country.在郊外居住，有辆汽车确实极为方便。
• These machines have proved a real boon to disabled people.事实证明这些机器让残疾人受益匪浅。

25 sanguine   

adj.充满希望的，乐观的，血红色的

参考例句：

• He has a sanguine attitude to life.他对于人生有乐观的看法。
• He is not very sanguine about our chances of success.他对我们成功的机会不太乐观。

26 proliferating   

激增( proliferate的现在分词 )； （迅速）繁殖； 增生； 扩散

参考例句：

• Computerized data bases are proliferating fast. 计算机化的数据库正在激增。
• Crown galls are cancerous growths composed of disorganized and proliferating plant cells. 冠瘿是无组织的正在不断增殖的植物细胞所组成的癌状物。

27 contentious   

adj.好辩的，善争吵的

参考例句：

• She was really not of the contentious fighting sort.她委实不是好吵好闹的人。
• Since then they have tended to steer clear of contentious issues.从那时起，他们总想方设法避开有争议的问题。

28 strands   

n.（线、绳、金属线、毛发等的）股( strand的名词复数 )；缕；海洋、湖或河的)岸；（观点、计划、故事等的）部份v.使滞留，使搁浅( strand的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Twist a length of rope from strands of hemp. 用几股麻搓成了一段绳子。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• She laced strands into a braid. 她把几股线编织成一根穗带。 来自《简明英汉词典》

29 grid   

n.高压输电线路网；地图坐标方格；格栅

参考例句：

• In this application,the carrier is used to encapsulate the grid.在这种情况下，要用载体把格栅密封起来。
• Modern gauges consist of metal foil in the form of a grid.现代应变仪则由网格形式的金属片组成。

30 impending   

a.imminent, about to come or happen

参考例句：

• Against a background of impending famine, heavy fighting took place. 即将发生饥荒之时，严重的战乱爆发了。
• The king convoke parliament to cope with the impending danger. 国王召开国会以应付迫近眉睫的危险。

31 ironic   

adj.讽刺的，有讽刺意味的，出乎意料的

参考例句：

• That is a summary and ironic end.那是一个具有概括性和讽刺意味的结局。
• People used to call me Mr Popularity at high school,but they were being ironic.人们中学时常把我称作“万人迷先生”，但他们是在挖苦我。