VOA标准英语2013--肯尼亚农民种植新作物应对气候变化

 

Kenyan Farmers Turn to New Breeds to Withstand Climate Change 肯尼亚农民种植新作物应对气候变化

NAIROBI — Kenyan farmers over the years have often seen their crops wiped out by either floods or drought, causing poverty and soil degradation¹.  Agriculture researchers are now promoting new farming practices and new animal breeds in the hopes that the farmers can withstand natural disasters and the changing climate system.

In western Kenya, farmers depend on their farms as a source food and income.

Farmers here complain that climate change has created unpredictable rain patterns and rising temperatures that lead to crop diseases and lower food production.

In this community field, production of cassava, a staple² food here, has significantly dropped due to the cassava mosaic³ and cassava brown streak⁴ diseases.

But Dr. Samson Maobe of the Kenya Agricultural Research Institute, known as "KARI," says that is about to change.

“We are promoting technologies, particularly drought tolerant varieties, that has been improved and developed by KARI that are high yielding and promoting those adoption⁵ of those crops and production of those crops in order for the farmers to acquire capacity to adopt and produce those crops as measures to mitigate⁶ against adverse⁷ effects of the climate change," said Maobe.

Some farmers have accepted the change and embraced new varieties of crops...

Like cassava farmer Daniel Kitondo.

“We are planting this cassava because it’s resistant⁸ to cassava mosaic.  So with this we are very sure we are going to get a good harvest," said Kitondo.

In the livestock⁹ sector¹⁰, researchers are introducing new animal breeds.

These animal breeds mature faster than the local breeds.

Thirty-eight-year-old Joshua Omollo acquired Galla Bucks¹¹ goats two years ago and continues replacing his indigenous¹² breeds with new animals.

“The good thing with these new breed of Galla goats, they mature faster.  You will find that when local animals breed they are sold for 2,000 shillings and the new breeds can fetch for 12,000, sometimes 14,000 shillings," said Omollo.

George Nandi, a Kenyan government livestock officer, says the new innovation is eradicating¹³ poverty in the area but still needs a vigorous campaign to educate farmers.

“You see, they don’t apply the technology you’ve taught them, and that one if you come the second time, you over repeat, and you see if you are not good-hearted, you can abandon," said Nandi.

Climate change and food security organizations caution that despite some progress, adoption of the new breeds and technologies is low,  since many Kenyan farmers have limited economic resources. 

1 degradation   

n.降级；低落；退化；陵削；降解；衰变

参考例句：

• There are serious problems of land degradation in some arid zones.在一些干旱地带存在严重的土地退化问题。
• Gambling is always coupled with degradation.赌博总是与堕落相联系。

2 staple   

n.主要产物，常用品，主要要素，原料，订书钉，钩环；adj.主要的，重要的；vt.分类

参考例句：

• Tea is the staple crop here.本地产品以茶叶为大宗。
• Potatoes are the staple of their diet.土豆是他们的主要食品。

3 mosaic   

n./adj.镶嵌细工的，镶嵌工艺品的，嵌花式的

参考例句：

• The sky this morning is a mosaic of blue and white.今天早上的天空是幅蓝白相间的画面。
• The image mosaic is a troublesome work.图象镶嵌是个麻烦的工作。

4 streak   

n.条理，斑纹，倾向，少许，痕迹；v.加条纹，变成条纹，奔驰，快速移动

参考例句：

• The Indians used to streak their faces with paint.印第安人过去常用颜料在脸上涂条纹。
• Why did you streak the tree?你为什么在树上刻条纹？

5 adoption   

n.采用，采纳，通过；收养

参考例句：

• An adoption agency had sent the boys to two different families.一个收养机构把他们送给两个不同的家庭。
• The adoption of this policy would relieve them of a tremendous burden.采取这一政策会给他们解除一个巨大的负担。

6 mitigate   

vt.（使）减轻，（使）缓和

参考例句：

• The government is trying to mitigate the effects of inflation.政府正试图缓和通货膨胀的影响。
• Governments should endeavour to mitigate distress.政府应努力缓解贫困问题。

7 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。

8 resistant   

adj.(to)抵抗的，有抵抗力的

参考例句：

• Many pests are resistant to the insecticide.许多害虫对这种杀虫剂有抵抗力。
• They imposed their government by force on the resistant population.他们以武力把自己的统治强加在持反抗态度的人民头上。

9 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。

10 sector   

n.部门，部分；防御地段，防区；扇形

参考例句：

• The export sector will aid the economic recovery. 出口产业将促进经济复苏。
• The enemy have attacked the British sector.敌人已进攻英国防区。

11 bucks   

n.雄鹿( buck的名词复数 )；钱；（英国十九世纪初的）花花公子；（用于某些表达方式）责任v.（马等）猛然弓背跃起( buck的第三人称单数 )；抵制；猛然震荡；马等尥起后蹄跳跃

参考例句：

• They cost ten bucks. 这些值十元钱。
• They are hunting for bucks. 他们正在猎雄兔。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 indigenous   

adj.土产的，土生土长的，本地的

参考例句：

• Each country has its own indigenous cultural tradition.每个国家都有自己本土的文化传统。
• Indians were the indigenous inhabitants of America.印第安人是美洲的土著居民。

13 eradicating   

摧毁，完全根除( eradicate的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Objective: To study the acute and chronic toxicity of Ten-flavor-acne eradicating-capsule. 目的：探讨复方中药合剂十味平痤胶囊的急性及慢性毒性。
• We are on the verge of eradicating polio in the world. 我们已在世界消除小儿？痹症的边缘了。