VOA标准英语2009-International Experts Study Ways to Fight Wi

Fire authorities from around the world have been meeting in Australia to learn from the devastating¹ bush fires in the southern state of Victoria earlier this year.
　
Firefighters using mobile tanker² trucks work to keep fire under control at containment³ line near the Grose Valley in Blue Mountains, Australia (file photo)

The affects of climate change have been a major point of discussion for international firefighting experts gathered in Sydney to look at ways to fight bushfires.

Better technology could help

Delegates from Asia, the United States and Europe attending two-day International Wildfire Management Conference see improved technology and research as weapons against wildfires around the world.

Southeast Australia is one of the most fire-prone regions anywhere and international experts have been keen to learn from the catastrophic events in the state of Victoria earlier this year.

A series of blazes, many sparked by lightning strikes or by suspected arsonists⁴, killed more than 170 people.

Walls of flames powered through communities, propelled by strong winds. The fires were fed by dry conditions caused by very hot temperatures and a long drought, which many blame on climate change.

Stay or go?

The disaster has focused attention on Australia's "stay-or-go" policy, where homeowners either fight the flames or leave their property.

Some fire chiefs in California say that residents should always be encouraged to evacuate⁵, but Naomi Brown, from the Australasian Fire and Emergency Service Authorities Council, says installing effective early warning systems is the key.

"Evacuation also requires enough time for people to evacuate," Brown noted⁶. "That's really the biggest issue. When there is really a big sudden fire, the time to evacuate is extremely limited and extremely dangerous. So if we can get better at giving people triggers of when to leave early, which we will work very hard on doing, then people evacuating⁷ themselves is the safest thing to do as long as it's early enough."

Dry season is coming

For parts of southern Australia, the annual fire season could be as little as two months away.

Despite recent wet weather across much of the continent, climatologists warn that a looming⁸ El Nino pattern could bring drier conditions to Australia in the coming months.

In Asia, wildfires also are a particular danger in Indonesia and Malaysia, especially in areas where farmers burn wild growth to create palm oil plantations⁹. Already fires have begun in parts of Indonesia, where there are warnings that an extended dry season this year could trigger severe blazes.

1 devastating   

adj.毁灭性的，令人震惊的，强有力的

参考例句：

• It is the most devastating storm in 20 years.这是20年来破坏性最大的风暴。
• Affairs do have a devastating effect on marriages.婚外情确实会对婚姻造成毁灭性的影响。

2 tanker   

n.油轮

参考例句：

• The tanker took on 200,000 barrels of crude oil.油轮装载了二十万桶原油。
• Heavy seas had pounded the tanker into three parts.汹涌的巨浪把油轮撞成三载。

3 containment   

n.阻止，遏制；容量

参考例句：

• Your list might include such things as cost containment,quality,or customer satisfaction.你的清单上应列有诸如成本控制、产品质量、客户满意程度等内容。
• Insularity and self-containment,it is argued,go hand in hand.他们争论说，心胸狭窄和自我封闭是并存的。

4 arsonists   

n.纵火犯( arsonist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The factory was destroyed in a fire started by arsonists. 工厂在纵火犯引起的火灾中烧毀了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Australian Attorney-General Robert McClelland said suspected arsonists could face murder charges. 澳大利亚总检察长罗伯特麦克莱兰说，怀疑纵火犯可能面临谋杀指控。 来自互联网

5 evacuate   

v.遣送；搬空；抽出；排泄；大(小)便

参考例句：

• We must evacuate those soldiers at once!我们必须立即撤出这些士兵！
• They were planning to evacuate the seventy American officials still in the country.他们正计划转移仍滞留在该国的70名美国官员。

6 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。

7 evacuating   

撤离，疏散( evacuate的现在分词 )； 排空（胃肠），排泄（粪便）； （从危险的地方）撤出，搬出，撤空

参考例句：

• The solution is degassed by alternately freezing, evacuating and thawing. 通过交替的冻结、抽空和溶化来使溶液除气。
• Are we evacuating these potential targets? 能够在这些目标地域内进行疏散吗？

8 looming   

n.上现蜃景（光通过低层大气发生异常折射形成的一种海市蜃楼）v.隐约出现，阴森地逼近( loom的现在分词 )；隐约出现，阴森地逼近

参考例句：

• The foothills were looming ahead through the haze. 丘陵地带透过薄雾朦胧地出现在眼前。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Then they looked up. Looming above them was Mount Proteome. 接着他们往上看，在其上隐约看到的是蛋白质组山。 来自英汉非文学 - 生命科学 - 回顾与展望

9 plantations   

n.种植园，大农场( plantation的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Soon great plantations, supported by slave labor, made some families very wealthy. 不久之后出现了依靠奴隶劳动的大庄园，使一些家庭成了富豪。 来自英汉非文学 - 政府文件
• Winterborne's contract was completed, and the plantations were deserted. 维恩特波恩的合同完成后，那片林地变得荒废了。 来自辞典例句