VOA常速英语2013--美国国际开发署计划旨在鼓励净水科技 确保食物用水（在线收听）

美国国际开发署计划旨在鼓励净水科技 确保食物用水

In the 21st century, water scarcity is one of the greatest challenges to human development, and in some cases, even survival.

在21世纪,缺水是人类发展所面临的其中一项最大挑战,在某些情况下,甚至危急存亡。

Over 40 percent of the world's population, some 2.8 billion people, live in regions impacted by water scarcity.

世界上超过40%的人口中约有28亿人生活在水资源匮乏的地区。

Close to half of them live in areas where demand for water exceeds the available supply.

接近一半的人居住的地方对水的需求超过了供应。

Lack of access to water has a number of obvious consequences,

水资源匮乏会造成很多明显的后果,

such as low agricultural productivity, and increased incidence of illness due to reliance on poor quality sources in limited supply.

如由于依赖有限供应的质量差的水源造成农业生产率低,疾病发生率增加。

But its impact goes far beyond the obvious.

但它的影响远远不止如此显而易见。

Because 70 percent of water is used for food production, water scarcity contributes to, for example, higher food prices, environmental degradation, and dampening of economic growth in the regions most affected.

因为70%的水资源用于食品生产、水资源短缺会导致在影响最严重地区如更高的食品价格,环境恶化,经济增长受到抑制等一系列问题。

And the news gets worse—global water demand is projected to increase by 55 percent in the first half of this century, further increasing competition for resources among domestic, agricultural and other users.

而且情况变得愈发糟糕，全球水资源需求预计在本世纪上半叶将增长55%,这就进一步增加国内,农业和其他用户对于这种宝贵资源的竞争。

That is why the U.S. Agency for International Development, or USAID, and Sweden's Development Agency, SIDA, launched, in early September:

这就是为什么美国国际开发署USAID以及瑞典发展机构SIDA在9月初启动:

Securing Water for Food: A Grand Challenge for Development.

确保食物用水计划的原因:这是为发展而构想的一次重大挑战。

The $25 million initiative will help fund and accelerate scientific and technological innovations that can aid developing and emerging countries to more effectively use and manage the water required to produce food.

这一2500万美元的计划将有助于投资高效化科技创新,这样发展中国家和新兴国家将会更有效地使用及管理食物用水。

The program will focus on three areas critical to reducing water scarcity in the food value chain:

该计划将重点集中于至关重要的三个领域以减少食物价值链中的水资源匮乏:

improving water efficiency and reusing waste water;

首先改善水资源的利用效率及再利用废水;

improving and building effective rainwater capture and storage systems in areas where water availability is seasonally variable, thus securing water supplies throughout the year and building resiliency to drought;

其次改善并且建立有效的水资源随季节性变化区域的雨水收集及存储系统,从而确保全年水供应并且构建抗干旱系统;

and finally, improving water quality, specifically saline content, in coastal areas,

最后改善水的质量,特别是在沿海地区的盐含量,

where a combination of over-pumping for irrigation and rising sea-levels are causing salt water to leach into freshwater aquifers, forcing farmers to use poor quality water and diminishing farm productivity.

用于灌溉的超量抽水及海平面升高这二者的结合导致海水渗入淡水含水层,迫使农民使用质量差的水资源并且减低农业生产率。

“Water scarcity and its impact on food security affects everyone on the planet,” said USAID Administrator, Dr. Rajiv Shah.

“水资源短缺及其对粮食安全的影响事关地球上的你我。”美国国际开发署署长拉吉夫·沙阿博士说道。

“By harnessing the expertise and creativity of the world's brightest innovators, we can tackle this critical challenge with new thinking and partnerships.”

“利用世界最聪明创新者的专业知识和创造力,凭借创新思维和合作关系我们可以解决这一严峻的难题。”