VOA慢速英语--印尼自然色布料设计有助于沿海森林

Indonesian Natural Colors for Cloth Design Help Coastal¹ Forests

Batik is a traditional Indonesian coloring method used to make designs and drawings, usually on cloth and finished textiles. Batik makers³ use dyes -- colors added to cloth and other materials – to create the colorful designs.

In central Indonesia, many batik makers are using natural dyes instead of manufactured ones. The natural dyes used come from mangrove⁴ forests that grow along the coast. The trees grow in salty water on a complex system of tall roots.

Mangrove forests serve an important purpose. They provide a barrier against destructive ocean waves called tsunamis⁵. They also are important to water life like fish and crabs⁶. And the forests are more effective in capturing carbon dioxide gas, a gas linked to climate change, than rainforests or similar environments.

Erwin Ardli is a mangrove ecologist at Indonesia's Jenderal Soedirman University. He says the natural dyes may not be as bright as manufactured ones. But they are better for the environment.

Ardli said, "We've seen the interest for natural dyes increasing, and especially for middle- to upper-class people, they seem proud to wear clothes using these natural dyes rather than synthetic⁷ ones."

Iiting Budiarti, who owns an art gallery that shows Batik designs, agreed with Ardli. Budiarti added that objects with natural dyes can cost two or three times more than the synthetic ones.

Forty-eight-year-old Sodikin is a batik maker². He uses only one name. Over the past four years, he and his group of batik makers have changed from using chemical materials for dyes to mangrove-based products. The change has reduced their costs and helped the environment.

Harvesting involves gathering⁸ a handful of what looks like string beans -- seeds within a covering. Sodikin then takes the mangrove fruit home to make natural dye from them.

"We use natural materials so as to preserve the mangrove forest at the same time," Sodikin said, as he processed dried fruits before boiling them to extract the color for use as a dye.

"We do not cut down the trees," he added, "and we only take fruits or leaves that have fallen."

Words in This Story

textile –n. cloth, fabric⁹ or similar materials; something made from cloth

synthetic –adj. not natural, manufactured or made by people

preserve –v. to keep in good condition as it was at first

extract –v. to take a substance out of a more complex material using machines, chemicals or heat

1 coastal   

adj.海岸的，沿海的，沿岸的

参考例句：

• The ocean waves are slowly eating away the coastal rocks.大海的波浪慢慢地侵蚀着岸边的岩石。
• This country will fortify the coastal areas.该国将加强沿海地区的防御。

2 maker   

n.制造者，制造商

参考例句：

• He is a trouble maker，You must be distant with him.他是个捣蛋鬼，你不要跟他在一起。
• A cabinet maker must be a master craftsman.家具木工必须是技艺高超的手艺人。

3 makers   

n.制造者，制造商（maker的复数形式）

参考例句：

• The makers of the product assured us that there had been no sacrifice of quality. 这一产品的制造商向我们保证说他们没有牺牲质量。
• The makers are about to launch out a new product. 制造商们马上要生产一种新产品。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 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。

5 tsunamis   

n.海啸( tsunami的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Our oceans are alive with earthquakes, volcanoes, and more recently, tsunamis. 海中充满着地震、火山，包括最近发生的海啸。 来自常春藤生活英语杂志-2006年2月号
• Please tell me something more about tsunamis! 请您给我讲讲海啸吧！ 来自辞典例句

6 crabs   

n.蟹( crab的名词复数 )；阴虱寄生病；蟹肉v.捕蟹( crab的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• As we walked along the seashore we saw lots of tiny crabs. 我们在海岸上散步时看到很多小蟹。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The fish and crabs scavenge for decaying tissue. 鱼和蟹搜寻腐烂的组织为食。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 synthetic   

adj.合成的，人工的；综合的；n.人工制品

参考例句：

• We felt the salesman's synthetic friendliness.我们感觉到那位销售员的虚情假意。
• It's a synthetic diamond.这是人造钻石。

8 gathering   

n.集会，聚会，聚集

参考例句：

• He called on Mr. White to speak at the gathering.他请怀特先生在集会上讲话。
• He is on the wing gathering material for his novels.他正忙于为他的小说收集资料。

9 fabric   

n.织物，织品，布；构造，结构，组织

参考例句：

• The fabric will spot easily.这种织品很容易玷污。
• I don't like the pattern on the fabric.我不喜欢那块布料上的图案。