VOA标准英语2012--India's Surging Vehicle Count Creates Public Health Hazards

India's Surging Vehicle Count Creates Public Health Hazards

Respiratory pediatrician S.K. Kabra has busy Saturdays. His outpatient waiting area at this New Delhi hospital teems¹ with parents whose children complain of breathing difficulties.
Kabra says poor air quality is a key component² in a grim U.N. statistic³: 13 percent of Indian children under five years of age, who are hospitalized for respiratory infections, die.
"Pollution increases the morbidity⁴, increases the frequency, increases the severity. If a mother and a baby are exposed to some pollutant⁵, that will increase respective morbidity," noted⁶ Kabra.
A recent U.S. study using satellite data gave India the lowest air quality rating in the world, citing concentrations of particulates⁷ five times higher than those deemed safe for human health.
For poor and rural Indians, a significant danger comes from cooking with wood and other biomass. But the fastest-growing source of dangerous pollution is actually related to India's increasing wealth.
Anumita Roychowdhury is an executive director at the Delhi-based Center for Science and Environment. She speaks of a "toxic⁸ spiral" with the growing number of vehicles on India's streets.
"Imagine a city with more than 5.6 million vehicles, adding nearly 1,200 to 1,300 vehicles a day," said Roychowdhury. "The pace of the problem is growing faster than our ability to deal with it."
Roychowdhury says diesel⁹ fuel subsidies¹⁰ for freight and agriculture are being misused¹¹ by private car owners who buy diesel vehicles for savings¹² at the fuel pump.
"Now your diesel emissions¹³, which are several times more carcinogenic, because of the subsidized fuel, their numbers are galloping¹⁴ today and adding to the toxic risk in our cities," Roychowdhury explained.
Akshay Mani, a specialist in sustainable transportation with the consultancy Embarq India, calls for taxing vehicles more to reflect their environmental cost.
"Then you can also find solutions of how you use that money," said Mani. "You put it into a fund and use that fund to improve public transport and use it to create a more equitable¹⁵ system where you are taxing people who are driving while you're using that money to actually provide good public transport for other sections of society."
While the subway system here in New Delhi has won praise for its efficiency, Mani says, a lingering problem is the so-called "last mile" to the traveler's door.
"How do you provide with the right kind of coverage¹⁶ given that public transport can't reach all parts of the city? How do you make sure all parts of city are accessible to public transport? Because you have these feeder systems in place which can then make those stations accessible to all corners of the city," Mani added.
Some hope a humble¹⁷ mainstay of Indian transportation may play a key role in reducing traffic and clearing the skies. Newer autorickshaws run on low-emission natural gas. Entrepreneurs hope new dispatch networks will attract passengers to quickly summon rides with just a phone call or text message.

1 teems   

v.充满( teem的第三人称单数 )；到处都是；（指水、雨等）暴降；倾注

参考例句：

• The swamp teems with mosquitoes. 这片沼泽地蚊子多极了。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• That book teems with blunders. 那本书错误不少。 来自辞典例句

2 component   

n.组成部分，成分，元件；adj.组成的，合成的

参考例句：

• Each component is carefully checked before assembly.每个零件在装配前都经过仔细检查。
• Blade and handle are the component parts of a knife.刀身和刀柄是一把刀的组成部分。

3 statistic   

n.统计量；adj.统计的，统计学的

参考例句：

• Official statistics show real wages declining by 24%.官方统计数字表明实际工资下降了24%。
• There are no reliable statistics for the number of deaths in the battle.关于阵亡人数没有可靠的统计数字。

4 morbidity   

n.病态；不健全；发病；发病率

参考例句：

• MC's also significantly reduce the morbidity and mortality induced by honeybee venom. 肥大细胞同样也能显著降低蜜蜂毒液诱发疾病的发病率和死亡率。 来自互联网
• The result shows that incidence of myopia morbidity is 44.84%. 结果表明：近视眼的发病率为44.84%。 来自互联网

5 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。

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 particulates   

n.微粒，粒子( particulate的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Techniques for controlling particulates include filtering, washing, centrifugal separation, and electrostatic precipitation. 控制颗粒污染物的技术包括过滤、洗涤、离心分离、静电沉降。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法
• Only micronic particulates penetrate to the depth of the lung. 只有微细粒子穿透到肺深部。 来自辞典例句

8 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。

9 diesel   

n.柴油发动机，内燃机

参考例句：

• We experimented with diesel engines to drive the pumps.我们试着用柴油机来带动水泵。
• My tractor operates on diesel oil.我的那台拖拉机用柴油开动。

10 subsidies   

n.补贴，津贴，补助金( subsidy的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• European agriculture ministers failed to break the deadlock over farm subsidies. 欧洲各国农业部长在农业补贴问题上未能打破僵局。
• Agricultural subsidies absorb about half the EU's income. 农业补贴占去了欧盟收入的大约一半。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 misused   

v.使用…不当( misuse的过去式和过去分词 )；把…派作不正当的用途；虐待；滥用

参考例句：

• He misused his dog shamefully. 他可耻地虐待自己的狗。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He had grossly misused his power. 他严重滥用职权。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 savings   

n.存款，储蓄

参考例句：

• I can't afford the vacation,for it would eat up my savings.我度不起假，那样会把我的积蓄用光的。
• By this time he had used up all his savings.到这时，他的存款已全部用完。

13 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。

14 galloping   

adj. 飞驰的, 急性的 动词gallop的现在分词形式

参考例句：

• The horse started galloping the moment I gave it a good dig. 我猛戳了马一下，它就奔驰起来了。
• Japan is galloping ahead in the race to develop new technology. 日本在发展新技术的竞争中进展迅速，日新月异。

15 equitable   

adj.公平的；公正的

参考例句：

• This is an equitable solution to the dispute. 这是对该项争议的公正解决。
• Paying a person what he has earned is equitable. 酬其应得,乃公平之事。

16 coverage   

n.报导，保险范围，保险额，范围，覆盖

参考例句：

• There's little coverage of foreign news in the newspaper.报纸上几乎没有国外新闻报道。
• This is an insurance policy with extensive coverage.这是一项承保范围广泛的保险。

17 humble   

adj.谦卑的，恭顺的；地位低下的；v.降低，贬低

参考例句：

• In my humble opinion,he will win the election.依我拙见，他将在选举中获胜。
• Defeat and failure make people humble.挫折与失败会使人谦卑。