VOA标准英语2010年-Self-Described 'Farm Wife' Becomes Pol

Lynn Henning samples water for pollution from the large livestock¹ farms near her home in rural Michigan.

Lynn Henning samples the waters for pollution from the large livestock farms near her home in rural Michigan. But it's not her job.

"I have no chemistry background. I'm a farm wife," she says.

Henning and her husband grow maize² and soybeans on their 120 hectare farm.

Factory farm pollution

But within 16 kilometers of her home live tens of thousands of cows and hogs³ in what are called concentrated animal feeding operations, or CAFOs.

Most of the milk, pork, chicken, and beef in the United States comes from the large factory farms that raise thousands of animals in enclosed barns. But that efficiency is coming at a cost to the environment.

 The several hundred animals housed in each medium-sized CAFO produce as much waste as a small city of tens of thousands of people.

But, unlike city sewage, this waste sits in lagoons⁴ and is spread untreated on farm fields as fertilizer. Henning says the smell can be overpowering.

The several hundred animals housed in each medium-sized factory farm produce as much waste as a small city of tens of thousands of people.

"It's putrid," she says. "You can't hang laundry. You have fly infestations⁵. You have rat infestations. You can't go outside. And you can't open your windows."

The waste can also pollute the water when it runs off into streams or overflows⁶ the lagoons.

That's what happened in 2000. Someone reported pollution from one of the CAFOs to state authorities and the CAFO operator blamed Henning.

Ironically, she had not gone to the authorities that time. But the incident got her interested. So she did some research.

Taking matters into her own hands

"We started investigating and doing water samples and found that we had a horrendous⁷ problem."

Lynn Henning won the Goldman Prize, the world's largest award for grassroots environmental work.

Henning says state and federal agencies don't have the funds to monitor CAFOs, so she taught herself how to do it. Working with the Michigan chapter of the environmental group the Sierra Club, she now presents state authorities with data several times a week along a 200-kilometer circuit.

"So we are the eyes and ears of the community," she says. "And with our help, by documenting and having credible⁸ information and scientific data, we can help them do their job better."

High personal cost

As a result of Henning's work, the state has cited CAFOs for violations⁹ hundreds of times. That has made her the target of harassment¹⁰.

Henning's work has made her the target of harassment. Someone shot through her toddler granddaughter's bedroom window.

"We got chased down back roads. We've been chased to the sheriff's department. I've been trapped by manure¹¹ semis on back road[s]," she says. "I've had dead animals on my mailbox, on my car, on my porch. We've had our mailbox blown up. And recently, my two-year-old granddaughter's bedroom window was shot out."

But her efforts have been rewarded. Henning recently won the Goldman Prize, the world's largest award for grassroots environmental work. She has donated the $150,000 prize to nonprofit organizations so others can keep a close eye on pollution from livestock waste in their communities. 
 

1 livestock   

n.家畜，牲畜

参考例句：

• Both men and livestock are flourishing.人畜两旺。
• The heavy rains and flooding killed scores of livestock.暴雨和大水淹死了许多牲口。

2 maize   

n.玉米

参考例句：

• There's a field planted with maize behind the house.房子后面有一块玉米地。
• We can grow sorghum or maize on this plot.这块地可以种高粱或玉米。

3 hogs   

n.（尤指喂肥供食用的）猪( hog的名词复数 )；（供食用的）阉公猪；彻底地做某事；自私的或贪婪的人

参考例句：

• 'sounds like -- like hogs grunting. “像——像是猪发出的声音。 来自英汉文学 - 汤姆历险
• I hate the way he hogs down his food. 我讨厌他那副狼吞虎咽的吃相。 来自辞典例句

4 lagoons   

n.污水池( lagoon的名词复数 )；潟湖；（大湖或江河附近的）小而浅的淡水湖；温泉形成的池塘

参考例句：

• The Islands are by shallow crystal clear lagoons enclosed by coral reefs. 该群岛包围由珊瑚礁封闭的浅水清澈泻湖。 来自互联网
• It is deposited in low-energy environments in lakes, estuaries and lagoons. 它沉淀于湖泊、河口和礁湖的低能量环境中，也可于沉淀于深海环境。 来自互联网

5 infestations   

n.（害虫、盗贼等）群袭，出没，横行( infestation的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The arrival of warm weather raises the specter of disease and increased rat infestations caused by rotting garbage. 天气转暖使人们担心垃圾腐烂会引起疾病传播和鼠群猖獗。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Piperazine citrate is the drug of choice in the treatment of Ascaris infestations. 枸橼酸哌嗪治疗蛔虫感染是最好的药物。 来自辞典例句

6 overflows   

v.溢出，淹没( overflow的第三人称单数 )；充满；挤满了人；扩展出界，过度延伸

参考例句：

• He always fills his glass till it overflows. 他总是把杯子斟得很满。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• A distributary overflows its banks. 分流水溢出河岸。 来自辞典例句

7 horrendous   

adj.可怕的，令人惊惧的

参考例句：

• He described it as the most horrendous experience of his life.他形容这是自己一生中最可怕的经历。
• The mining industry in China has a horrendous safety record.中国的煤矿工业具有令人不安的安全记录。

8 credible   

adj.可信任的，可靠的

参考例句：

• The news report is hardly credible.这则新闻报道令人难以置信。
• Is there a credible alternative to the nuclear deterrent?是否有可以取代核威慑力量的可靠办法？

9 violations   

违反( violation的名词复数 )； 冒犯； 违反（行为、事例）； 强奸

参考例句：

• This is one of the commonest traffic violations. 这是常见的违反交通规则之例。
• These violations of the code must cease forthwith. 这些违犯法规的行为必须立即停止。

10 harassment   

n.骚扰，扰乱，烦恼，烦乱

参考例句：

• She often got telephone harassment at night these days.这些天她经常在夜晚受到电话骚扰。
• The company prohibits any form of harassment.公司禁止任何形式的骚扰行为。

11 manure   

n.粪，肥，肥粒；vt.施肥

参考例句：

• The farmers were distributing manure over the field.农民们正在田间施肥。
• The farmers used manure to keep up the fertility of their land.农夫们用粪保持其土质的肥沃。