2006年VOA标准英语-Conservation Efforts in Congo Basin Appear Effe

By Lisa Bryant
Paris
23 June 2006

A new assessment¹ of Africa's massive Congo Basin rain forest finds that it is less degraded than environmentalists feared. The findings were announced in Paris, where African and Western officials ended a two-day conference Friday on an international initiative to conserve² this rare, tropical forest.

----------

The conservation project is considered the first of its kind for Africa. It is supported by six African countries, with backing from European and American governments and non-governmental organizations.

A mountain gorilla³ chews foliage⁴ in Virunga National Park in far eastern DRC (file photo)  
  
The goal is to preserve the world's second largest forest, which spans six African countries and contains rare and richly diverse animal and plant life. More than 80 million people live in this Congo Basin region, most of them in Cameroon and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Many depend on the forest for their livelihood⁵.

Illegal logging, poaching and development have taken a toll⁶ on the rain forest. But officials meeting in Paris this week announced that a newly finished profile of the Congo Basin shows it is in better shape than they thought.  The two-day conference aimed to assess progress in conserving⁷ the tropical forest, four years after the partnership⁸ was launched.

Among the measures introduced to help sustain the forest is a certification system for timber, so buyers know it has been harvested in an environment-friendly manner. So far, only three percent of the region's wood is certified⁹, but officials say they expect the new system to spread rapidly. France also signed a special debt reduction package with Cameroon this week, which, for the first time, includes forestry¹⁰ and other environmental initiatives as part of the agreement.
 
 
Jane Goodall (file photo) 
  
Among those supporting the conservation plan is renowned¹¹ British environmentalist Jane Goodall, who spoke¹² at a press conference in Paris.

"The question was, how do I feel at the end of the conference? Tremendous hope in the fact that these conferences are happening, in the fact that the Congo Basin forest partnership exists, and it is moving ahead," she said.

But some environmentalists argue too much of the Congo Basin forest will be open to logging, and that the initiative places too little emphasis on conservation efforts.  The critics include Illanga Itoua, African forest campaigner for Greenpeace International.

"The basic vision of the Congo Basin they are putting forward does not, and will not, allow them to protect biodiversity and fight poverty," she noted¹³.  "Because the activities they have chosen to take place within that landscape are almost exclusively destructive and degrading activities, such as logging, and then with a small place to conservation and very little place for the people of the Congo Basin."

Funding is another problem. The United States, France and the European Union have pledged $700 million toward the conservation effort. But African officials say their conservation strategy will cost roughly $1.5 billion to put in place over the next 10 years

1 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？

2 conserve   

vt.保存，保护，节约，节省，守恒，不灭

参考例句：

• He writes on both sides of the sheet to conserve paper.他在纸张的两面都写字以节省用纸。
• Conserve your energy,you'll need it!保存你的精力，你会用得着的！

3 gorilla   

n.大猩猩，暴徒，打手

参考例句：

• I was awed by the huge gorilla.那只大猩猩使我惊惧。
• A gorilla is just a speechless animal.猩猩只不过是一种不会说话的动物。

4 foliage   

n.叶子，树叶，簇叶

参考例句：

• The path was completely covered by the dense foliage.小路被树叶厚厚地盖了一层。
• Dark foliage clothes the hills.浓密的树叶覆盖着群山。

5 livelihood   

n.生计，谋生之道

参考例句：

• Appropriate arrangements will be made for their work and livelihood.他们的工作和生活会得到妥善安排。
• My father gained a bare livelihood of family by his own hands.父亲靠自己的双手勉强维持家计。

6 toll   

n.过路(桥)费；损失，伤亡人数；v.敲(钟)

参考例句：

• The hailstone took a heavy toll of the crops in our village last night.昨晚那场冰雹损坏了我们村的庄稼。
• The war took a heavy toll of human life.这次战争夺去了许多人的生命。

7 conserving   

v.保护，保藏，保存( conserve的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Contour planning with or without terracing is effective in conserving both soil and moisture. 顺等高线栽植，无论做或不做梯田对于保持水土都能有效。 来自辞典例句
• Economic savings, consistent with a conserving society and the public philosophy. 经济节约，符合创建节约型社会的公共理念。 来自互联网

8 partnership   

n.合作关系，伙伴关系

参考例句：

• The company has gone into partnership with Swiss Bank Corporation.这家公司已经和瑞士银行公司建立合作关系。
• Martin has taken him into general partnership in his company.马丁已让他成为公司的普通合伙人。

9 certified   

a.经证明合格的；具有证明文件的

参考例句：

• Doctors certified him as insane. 医生证明他精神失常。
• The planes were certified airworthy. 飞机被证明适于航行。

10 forestry   

n.森林学；林业

参考例句：

• At present, the Chinese forestry is being at a significant transforming period. 当前, 我国的林业正处于一个重大的转折时期。
• Anhua is one of the key forestry counties in Hunan province. 安化县是湖南省重点林区县之一。

11 renowned   

adj.著名的，有名望的，声誉鹊起的

参考例句：

• He is one of the world's renowned writers.他是世界上知名的作家之一。
• She is renowned for her advocacy of human rights.她以提倡人权而闻名。

12 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

13 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。