VOA常速英语2008年-Water Diverted from Swollen Mississippi River t

By Greg Flakus
New Orleans
25 April 2008

The Mississippi river, which drains more than 40 percent of North America's river flow into the Gulf¹ of Mexico, is at its highest point in years, leading to concern that levees protecting the city of New Orleans could be compromised. A few weeks ago, the same conditions farther upstream caused widespread flooding in the Midwest. But, as VOA's Greg Flakus reports from New Orleans, officials of the U.S. Army Corps² of Engineers have taken steps to protect the city by diverting water around it.

The fortunes of New Orleans have always been tied to the river, but the river can also pose a threat.

Officials in and around New Orleans are keeping a close eye on river levels this spring as water from snow melt and heavy rains up north flow down through the Missouri, the Ohio and other rivers that connect with the Mississippi.

In order to reduce the river level around New Orleans, officials are directing some of the freshwater of the Mississippi through the Bonnet³ Carre spillway northwest of the city into Lake Ponchartrain, a brackish-water lake that is connected with the Gulf of Mexico.

Lee Guillory, the Natural Disaster Manager for the Army Corps of Engineers in New Orleans, says this does disrupt the natural ecology of the lake, but only for a while.

"When we do a diversion through Lake Ponchartrain it does cause some temporary changes to the lake and to the fisheries in that area, but it is only a temporary measure. It also mimics⁴ the natural flows that used to occur many years ago when the levees were not here. It pushes some of the salt water fisheries further out and a few more fresh water fisheries appear in Lake Ponchartrain, but it is only a temporary measure and it will return back to normal in a few months after the structure is closed and it will not cause any long term adverse⁵ effects to the environment," explains Guillory.

Even with the diversion of water, the river flow is much faster than normal, which Guillory says can be a problem for boat and barge⁶ operators.

 

"It does cause quite a few problems for the navigation industry when the river is this high because the current gets swifter, it gets wider and faster, and to maintain steerage, they have keep their speed up going downstream," he said. "Likewise, when they are going upstream, it takes additional horsepower and more tug⁷ to push the same amount of load that they would push in a normal river, a slack river."

The Corps of Engineers also maintains the levees that protect the city from being flooded by a surge from a hurricane, such as happened nearly three years ago when Hurricane Katrina passed through.

But Lee Guillory says efforts to strengthen the levees to withstand a once-in-a-century storm are on track.

"The city is in fairly good shape," he said. "We have restored most of it to the authorized⁸ height and depth, but we are also going beyond that and have made commitments to increase it to the 100-year-level of protection by the year 2011."

Water is the life blood of this area, but it takes constant vigilance and effort to keep it in its place.

1 gulf   

n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂

参考例句：

• The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
• There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。

2 corps   

n.(通信等兵种的)部队；(同类作的)一组

参考例句：

• The medical corps were cited for bravery in combat.医疗队由于在战场上的英勇表现而受嘉奖。
• 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 bonnet   

n.无边女帽；童帽

参考例句：

• The baby's bonnet keeps the sun out of her eyes.婴孩的帽子遮住阳光，使之不刺眼。
• She wore a faded black bonnet garnished with faded artificial flowers.她戴着一顶褪了色的黑色无边帽，帽上缀着褪了色的假花。

4 mimics   

n.模仿名人言行的娱乐演员，滑稽剧演员( mimic的名词复数 )；善于模仿的人或物v.（尤指为了逗乐而）模仿( mimic的第三人称单数 )；酷似

参考例句：

• Methods:Models were generate by CT scan,Mimics software and Abaqus software. 方法：采用CT扫描，Mimics软件和Abaqus软件的CAD进行三维有限元模型的创建。 来自互联网
• Relaxing the mind and body mimics the effect that some blood-pressure pills would have. 放松身心会产生某些降压药才能产生的效果。 来自辞典例句

5 adverse   

adj.不利的；有害的；敌对的，不友好的

参考例句：

• He is adverse to going abroad.他反对出国。
• The improper use of medicine could lead to severe adverse reactions.用药不当会产生严重的不良反应。

6 barge   

n.平底载货船，驳船

参考例句：

• The barge was loaded up with coal.那艘驳船装上了煤。
• Carrying goods by train costs nearly three times more than carrying them by barge.通过铁路运货的成本比驳船运货成本高出近3倍。

7 tug   

v.用力拖(或拉)；苦干；n.拖；苦干；拖船

参考例句：

• We need to tug the car round to the front.我们需要把那辆车拉到前面。
• The tug is towing three barges.那只拖船正拖着三只驳船。

8 authorized   

a.委任的，许可的

参考例句：

• An administrative order is valid if authorized by a statute.如果一个行政命令得到一个法规的认可那么这个命令就是有效的。