EPA Chief Resigns

 

Broadcast: June 6, 2003
By Caty Weaver¹
This is the VOA Special English Environment Report.
The chief of the United States Environmental Protection Agency has announced her resignation. Christine Todd Whitman says she will leave office on June twenty-seventh.
Missus Whitman was serving as governor of New Jersey² when President Bush chose her as E-P-A administrator³. The United States Senate confirmed her nomination⁴ in January of two-thousand-one.
Among her major successes was to order the company, General Electric, to pay to remove poisonous chemical waste from an eastern river. Two General Electric factories along the Hudson River released the waste into the water for many years. Missus Whitman also won approval for new rules to help cut pollutants⁵ created by the use of diesel⁶ fuel.
However, she found herself in a difficult situation when President Bush rejected the Kyoto treaty on global warming in two-thousand-one. She had said the president would keep a campaign promise to act on carbon dioxide releases by power stations. But Mister Bush said he could not support the treaty at a time of economic weakness and an energy crisis.
The E-P-A head faced a lot of criticism at times. For example, critics say the E-P-A failed to quickly and fully⁷ deal with the environmental damage from the terrorist attacks on New York City on September eleventh, two-thousand-one.
Missus Whitman is leaving without completing work on a major environmental proposal by the administration. The Clear Skies measure is designed to reduce the release of sulfur⁸ dioxide, nitrogen oxides and mercury from power production centers.
Still, Missus Whitman says she is pleased with the record of the Environmental Protection Agency during her time there. She says she wants to return to New Jersey and spend more time with her husband.
President Bush praised her as a tireless fighter for new policies for cleaner air, purer water and better protected land. And he called her a trusted friend and adviser⁹.
The Bush administration reportedly is considering several possible replacements¹⁰ for Christine Whitman. The possible nominees¹¹ are said to include John Engler, the former governor of Michigan, and Josephine Cooper. She is the president and chief executive officer of the Alliance of Automobile¹² Manufacturers.
This VOA Special English Environment Report was written by Caty Weaver.

 

1 weaver   

n.织布工；编织者

参考例句：

• She was a fast weaver and the cloth was very good.她织布织得很快，而且布的质量很好。
• The eager weaver did not notice my confusion.热心的纺织工人没有注意到我的狼狈相。

2 jersey   

n.运动衫

参考例句：

• He wears a cotton jersey when he plays football.他穿运动衫踢足球。
• They were dressed alike in blue jersey and knickers.他们穿着一致，都是蓝色的运动衫和灯笼短裤。

3 administrator   

n.经营管理者，行政官员

参考例句：

• The role of administrator absorbed much of Ben's energy.行政职务耗掉本很多精力。
• He has proved himself capable as administrator.他表现出管理才能。

4 nomination   

n.提名，任命，提名权

参考例句：

• John is favourite to get the nomination for club president.约翰最有希望被提名为俱乐部主席。
• Few people pronounced for his nomination.很少人表示赞成他的提名。

5 pollutants   

污染物质（尤指工业废物）( pollutant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Pollutants are constantly being released into the atmosphere. 污染物质正在不断地被排放到大气中去。
• The 1987 Amendments limit 301(g) discharges to a few well-studied nonconventional pollutants. 1987年的修正案把第301条（g）的普通排放限制施加在一些认真研究过的几种非常规污染物上。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法

6 diesel   

n.柴油发动机，内燃机

参考例句：

• We experimented with diesel engines to drive the pumps.我们试着用柴油机来带动水泵。
• My tractor operates on diesel oil.我的那台拖拉机用柴油开动。

7 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

8 sulfur   

n.硫，硫磺（=sulphur）

参考例句：

• Sulfur emissions from steel mills become acid rain.炼钢厂排放出的硫形成了酸雨。
• Burning may produce sulfur oxides.燃烧可能会产生硫氧化物。

9 adviser   

n.劝告者，顾问

参考例句：

• They employed me as an adviser.他们聘请我当顾问。
• Our department has engaged a foreign teacher as phonetic adviser.我们系已经聘请了一位外籍老师作为语音顾问。

10 replacements   

n.代替( replacement的名词复数 )；替换的人[物]；替代品；归还

参考例句：

• They infiltrated behind the lines so as to annoy the emery replacements. 他们渗透敌后以便骚扰敌军的调度。 来自辞典例句
• For oil replacements, cheap suddenly looks less of a problem. 对于石油的替代品来说，价格变得无足轻重了。 来自互联网

11 nominees   

n.被提名者，被任命者( nominee的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• She's one of the nominees. 她是被提名者之一。 来自超越目标英语 第2册
• A startling number of his nominees for senior positions have imploded. 他所提名的高级官员被否决的数目令人震惊。 来自互联网

12 automobile   

n.汽车，机动车

参考例句：

• He is repairing the brake lever of an automobile.他正在修理汽车的刹车杆。
• The automobile slowed down to go around the curves in the road.汽车在路上转弯时放慢了速度。