美规定对发电厂进行汞污染限制

 

US Sets Mercury Pollution Limits from Power Plants

美规定对发电厂进行汞污染限制

 The United States government has ordered the country's coal-burning power plants to reduce mercury pollution by nearly 70 percent over the next 13 years.  The nation is the first in the world to decree reductions of the toxic¹ metal from electric plants, but environmentalists say the new regulation is actually much weaker than the existing clean air law.

 

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) says three percent of the world's mercury pollution comes from U.S. sources, and one-third of that, or one percent of the world total, is emitted by American coal-fueled power plants.

 

The agency's top air pollution official, Jeffrey Holmstead, says the new Bush administration rule aims to cut back that one-percent. Electricity utilities have until 2018 to cut mercury emissions³ 70 percent below 1999 levels.

 

Jeffrey Holmstead: There are literally⁴ thousands of coal-burning power plants throughout the world. The United States is the first nation to take a leadership role in addressing the problem of mercury from power plants.

 

Mercury is toxic to babies' nervous systems, and several studies have linked it to heart disease. Most U.S. states urge their residents, especially children and women of childbearing age, to limit consumption of certain fish known to absorb high mercury levels.

 

The U.S. government intends to reach its mercury reduction goals by creating an emissions market. Companies that lower their mercury pollution to meet interim⁵ limits can sell pollution credits to plants that clean up more slowly. These credits allow the slower acting⁶ plants not to meet the deadlines as long as enough others do. The concept is called cap and trade. Mr. Holmstead says that making pollution a tradable commodity, combined with penalties for non-compliance, gives power plants strong motivation to make early mercury reductions and invest in pollution control technologies.

 

Jeffrey Holmstead: Cap and trade programs are specifically designed so that you don't have everybody trying to meet a certain date. It is not as though the whole industry goes on to 2010 and then drops off and then goes on until 2018 and drops off. The whole design of the program is to have the emission² reductions start right away and to increase over time in this gradual line.

 

But environmental groups call the plan a gift to the power industry. The Natural Resources Defense⁷ Council says the rule uses the label of pollution trading as cover to allow power plants to spew excessive amounts of mercury for many more years. One of the council's lawyers is Jon Devine.

 

Jon Devine: Let's be clear. This cap and trade scheme, because power plants can buy pollution credits rather than clean up, will not reduce mercury pollution by 70 percent in 2018 as is often reported.

 

Opponents also say the new procedure unfairly allows some areas of the United States to suffer higher mercury pollution than others rather than applying equal standards throughout the country. In addition, they argue that it fails to meet guidelines established in existing clean air legislation. Jon Devine says that law, if enforced, would lead to a 90 percent reduction in power plant mercury emissions by 2008.

 

Jon Devine: The current law requires sources of hazardous⁸ pollutants¹⁰ like mercury to install the maximum achievable controls and to do so within a very short time frame, three years. What this cap and trade scheme does is to give power plants an extended time frame to do much less than what is maximally achievable.

 

But supporters of the mercury trading plan say it is the cheapest way to reduce the pollutant⁹. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency argues that keeping the cost of the process down ensures the continued flow of affordable¹¹ electricity and protects the use of coal, an abundant source of fuel.

 

David McAlary, VOA news, Washington.

 

注释：

mercury [5mE:kjuri] n. 水银，汞

decree [di5kri:] v. 颁布

toxic [5tCksik] adj. 有毒的，中毒的

emit [i5mit] vt. 发出，放射，散发

motivation [7mEuti5veiFEn] n. 动机

spew [spju:] v. 喷涌

pollutant [pE5lu:tEnt] n. 污染物质

1 toxic   

adj.有毒的，因中毒引起的

参考例句：

• The factory had accidentally released a quantity of toxic waste into the sea.这家工厂意外泄漏大量有毒废物到海中。
• There is a risk that toxic chemicals might be blasted into the atmosphere.爆炸后有毒化学物质可能会进入大气层。

2 emission   

n.发出物，散发物；发出，散发

参考例句：

• Rigorous measures will be taken to reduce the total pollutant emission.采取严格有力措施，降低污染物排放总量。
• Finally,the way to effectively control particulate emission is pointed out.最后，指出有效降低颗粒排放的方向。

3 emissions   

排放物( emission的名词复数 )； 散发物（尤指气体）

参考例句：

• Most scientists accept that climate change is linked to carbon emissions. 大多数科学家都相信气候变化与排放的含碳气体有关。
• Dangerous emissions radiate from plutonium. 危险的辐射物从钚放散出来。

4 literally   

adv.照字面意义，逐字地；确实

参考例句：

• He translated the passage literally.他逐字逐句地翻译这段文字。
• Sometimes she would not sit down till she was literally faint.有时候，她不走到真正要昏厥了，决不肯坐下来。

5 interim   

adj.暂时的，临时的；n.间歇，过渡期间

参考例句：

• The government is taking interim measures to help those in immediate need.政府正在采取临时措施帮助那些有立即需要的人。
• It may turn out to be an interim technology.这可能只是个过渡技术。

6 acting   

n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的

参考例句：

• Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。
• During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。

7 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

8 hazardous   

adj.(有)危险的，冒险的；碰运气的

参考例句：

• These conditions are very hazardous for shipping.这些情况对航海非常不利。
• Everybody said that it was a hazardous investment.大家都说那是一次危险的投资。

9 pollutant   

n.污染物质，散布污染物质者

参考例句：

• Coal itself is a heavy pollutant.煤本身就是一种严重的污染物。
• Carbon dioxide may not be a typical air pollutant.二氧化碳可能不是一种典型的污染物。

10 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

11 affordable   

adj.支付得起的，不太昂贵的

参考例句：

• The rent for the four-roomed house is affordable.四居室房屋的房租付得起。
• There are few affordable apartments in big cities.在大城市中没有几所公寓是便宜的。