Economics Report - Oil Spill in US Puts Attention on Pipelines, Waterways
经济报道 - 黄石河石油管道发生泄漏引发美国对水道和石油管道的关注
This is the VOA Special English Economics Report.
这里是美国之音慢速英语经济报道。
Last Friday night, an oil pipeline broke under the Yellowstone River in the western state of Montana. The Yellowstone is America’s longest undammed river. The spill happened downstream from Yellowstone National Park.
上周五晚，蒙大拿州黄石河底的一条石油管道破裂。黄石河是美国最长的没有堤坝的河流。泄漏发生在黄石国家公园下游。
The burst pipe spilled as much as one thousand barrels of crude oil -- more than one hundred sixty thousand liters -- into the river.
爆裂的油管向河中泄漏了高达1千桶原油，总量超过16万升。
Workers shut off the Exxon Mobil pipeline, and the company continues to clean up the spill. But spokeswoman Claire Hassett said examining the damage has been difficult.
工作人员关闭了埃克森美孚公司的石油管道，同时该公司开始清理泄漏。但公司发言人克莱尔·哈西特（Claire Hassett）表示，现在调查由此带来的损失非常困难。
CLAIRE HASSETT: “What we have learned so far has been hindered by the rapid flow of the river right now. It’s at historic water levels. It’s very turbulent.”
哈西特：“截至目前，我们的调查仍被当前汹涌的河水所阻挠。当前河水处于历史性高位。”
The river is at flood levels, overflowing riverbanks and carrying oil downstream into wetlands, fields and yards.
黄石河正处于洪水水位，河水溢出河岸，并把石油带到下游的湿地、农田和码头。
In May, Ms. Hassett says, local officials ordered a temporary shutdown to check on the pipeline. They were concerned with heavy rains and rising waters.
哈西特女士表示，在五月份，地方官员曾下令临时关闭管道进行检查。他们担心暴雨和水位上升对管道造成影响。
CLAIRE HASSETT: "And we determined that it was safe to operate and again we don’t know what has caused this leak so it would be premature to say the two are related."
哈西特：“我们当时确认管道可以安全运营，然而我们不知道是什么原因导致了这次泄漏。所以现在说这两者有关可能为时过早。”
Susan Casey-Lefkowitz from the Natural Resources Defense Council, an environmental group, says the spill shows the dangers of mixing pipelines and waterways.
来自美国自然资源保护委员会这一环保团体的苏珊·凯西-莱夫科维茨（Susan Casey-Lefkowitz）表示，这次泄漏揭示出了将石油管道与水道混到一起的危险性。
SUSAN CASEY-LEFKOWITZ: "Especially when they are running under some of our most precious river systems that are important not just for wildlife, but also for our communities. The Yellowstone River is critical for irrigation for example. And so it serves the needs of a lot of farmers and communities along its path.”
凯西-莱夫科维茨：“特别是当这些管道在一些不仅是对野生动物，也对我们的社区极为重要的河流水系下运营时（尤为危险）。例如黄石河对灌溉非常重要，它满足了沿岸许多农民和社区的用水需求。”
Andy Black heads the Association of Oil Pipe Lines, an industry group whose members include pipeline owners and operators.
安迪·布莱克（Andy Black）是石油管道协会的负责人，这家行业组织成员包括管道所有人和经营者。
ANDY BLACK: “We have processes both within companies and at the associations to share learning and best practices and pursue the goal which is zero accidents."
布莱克：“我们已经在公司内部和协会中同时推进学习经验和最佳做法，以追求零事故目标。”
Mr. Black says the industry operates under enough federal and state rules.
布莱克先生表示，这一行业运作在联邦和各州充足的规则下。
ANDY BLACK: "I don’t see a need to overhaul the regulations. The regulations cover the major causes of pipeline failures, and we do not see any gaps."
布莱克：“我不认为需要调整相关法规，这些法规涵盖了管道故障的大部分因素，我们并没有看到任何缺陷。”
Susan Casey-Lefkowitz at the Natural Resources Defense Council disagrees.
美国自然资源保护委员会的凯西-莱夫科维茨对此表示不赞同。
SUSAN CASEY-LEFKOWITZ: “Whereas the oil industry may find it business as usual to have a certain number of spills, it is really not acceptable, especially in this day and age. It shouldn’t be best practices to have spills in the Kalamazoo River in Michigan, in the Yellowstone River in Montana and potentially in the future in the Ogallala aquifer which would be crossed by this new proposed Keystone XL pipeline.”
凯西-莱夫科维茨：“鉴于石油行业可能发现他们的业务和往常一样有可能发生泄漏，这是绝对不能接受的，特别是在这个年代。如果在密歇根州卡拉马祖河，蒙大拿州的黄石河，以及未来可能在将被计划中的大号拱心石（Keystone XL）石油管道穿越的奥加拉拉蓄水层（Ogallala Aquifer）发生泄漏可不是闹着玩的。”
The Ogallala aquifer is a major source of drinking and irrigation water for America’s central plains. The proposed Keystone XL pipeline would carry heavier crude oil produced from tar sands in Canada. Ms. Casey-Lefkowitz says it would carry the oil more than three thousand kilometers, crossing the central United States -- and the Ogallala -- for processing in Texas.
奥加拉拉蓄水层是美国中部平原饮用和灌溉用水的主要来源。计划中的大号拱心石石油管道将用于运输产自加拿大油沙的重原油。凯西-莱夫科维茨女士表示，这条石油管道将穿越美国中部地区，以及奥加拉拉蓄水层，把石油运往3千多公里外的德克萨斯州进行加工处理。
SUSAN CASEY-LEFKOWITZ: "Ironically it would actually cross the Yellowstone River where the spill just happened."
凯西-莱夫科维茨：“具有讽刺意味的是，实际上这条石油管道还将穿越刚刚才发生泄漏的黄石河。”
And that's the VOA Special English Economics Report. I'm Jim Tedder.
___
Contributing: Rosanne Skirble
|