VOA慢速英语2010-Agriculture Report - Study Warns of Dange

This is the VOA Special English Agriculture Report.

Mangroves are unusual looking trees. They have roots that stand in saltwater and look like cables or ropes laid one on top of another. Mangroves are not just pretty -- they help the environment. But now the first worldwide study warns that one in six of the many different kinds of mangroves could disappear.

As a result of the study, eleven species of mangrove¹ have been placed on the Red List of Threatened Species. The list is kept by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.

The study appeared in the Public Library of Science journal PLoS ONE. Lead author Beth Polidoro works for the Global Marine² Species Assessment³ Unit, based at Old Dominion⁴ University in Richmond, Virginia.

The researchers looked at seventy species of mangrove. They found that all mangrove forests on coastlines are under threat from development, logging or other dangers. But the areas in worst danger are on the Atlantic and Pacific coasts of Central America.

The study says mangrove trees provide more than one and a half billion dollars worth of services to ecological⁵ systems worldwide. For example, areas with mangrove forests were not damaged as badly by the Indian Ocean tsunami⁶ in two thousand four.

Mangroves in Everglades National Park in the state of Florida

Mangrove forests protect land against erosion from wind, water and storms. They capture and store carbon dioxide, so experts say they can help fight climate change. And they serve as nurseries for shrimp⁷ and other saltwater organisms.

Beth Polidoro says about eighty percent of the mangrove area in India and Southeast Asia has disappeared within the past sixty years. Indonesia is said to have lost almost half its mangroves forests within the past thirty years.

Burma, also known as Myanmar, has lost many valuable mangrove trees in recent years. In some areas there, monkeys play in the tops of mangroves thirty meters tall and dolphins swim in the waters of mangrove forests.

One of the rarest species of mangrove tree grows in just a few places in East Asia and India. There are estimates that only about two hundred fifty mature trees of that species remain. Beth Polidoro says they may disappear within the next ten years unless action is taken to protect them.

She says the good news in the study is that some species of mangrove can be reforested relatively⁸ easily. But others are much more difficult to restart.

And that’s the VOA Special English Agriculture Report, written by Jerilyn Watson and available online at voaspecialenglish.com. I’m Jim Teder.

 

1 mangrove   

n.(植物)红树，红树林

参考例句：

• It is the world's largest tidal mangrove forest.它是世界上最大的红树林沼泽地。
• Many consider this the most beautiful mangrove forest in all Thailand.许多人认为这里是全泰国最美丽的红树林了。

2 marine   

adj.海的；海生的；航海的；海事的；n.水兵

参考例句：

• Marine creatures are those which live in the sea. 海洋生物是生存在海里的生物。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

3 assessment   

n.评价；评估；对财产的估价，被估定的金额

参考例句：

• This is a very perceptive assessment of the situation.这是一个对该情况的极富洞察力的评价。
• What is your assessment of the situation?你对时局的看法如何？

4 dominion   

n.统治，管辖，支配权；领土，版图

参考例句：

• Alexander held dominion over a vast area.亚历山大曾统治过辽阔的地域。
• In the affluent society,the authorities are hardly forced to justify their dominion.在富裕社会里，当局几乎无需证明其统治之合理。

5 ecological   

adj.生态的，生态学的

参考例句：

• The region has been declared an ecological disaster zone.这个地区已经宣布为生态灾难区。
• Each animal has its ecological niche.每种动物都有自己的生态位.

6 tsunami   

n.海啸

参考例句：

• Powerful quake sparks tsunami warning in Japan.大地震触发了日本的海啸预警。
• Coastlines all around the Indian Ocean inundated by a huge tsunami.大海啸把印度洋沿岸地区都淹没了。

7 shrimp   

n.虾，小虾；矮小的人

参考例句：

• When the shrimp farm is built it will block the stream.一旦养虾场建起来，将会截断这条河流。
• When it comes to seafood,I like shrimp the best.说到海鲜，我最喜欢虾。

8 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。