VOA常速英语2013--世界最大太阳能电厂在加州落户

 

World's Largest Solar Plant to Go Online in California 世界最大太阳能电厂在加州落户

WASHINGTON — The world's largest solar thermal¹ plant is set to go online in California by the end of the year. While wind and sun-generated energy are generally considered clean, unlike coal-generated energy, environmentalists now worry that large-scale solar development could harm fragile desert ecosystems².

Ivanpah is a field of mirrors, shimmering³ like a mirage⁴ in California's Mojave desert, about 60 kilometers southwest of Las Vegas. Joe Desmond is a senior official at BrightSource Energy, the company that's building the plant. "This is actually one of the highest concentrations of sunlight in the world, out here in Ivanpah," explained Desmond.

伊万帕是一片镜田，在加州莫哈韦沙漠中像闪闪发光的海市蜃楼，位于洛杉矶西南60公里处。乔·德斯蒙德是建造这片镜田的亮源能源公司高管。

“伊万帕实际上是全世界太阳光最密集的地方之一。”

The plant will deploy⁵ 170,000 heliostat mirrors to focus solar energy on boilers⁶ located on top of three power towers. The steam generated in these boilers will drive turbines to produce energy.

这个发电厂将使用17万个日光反射装置镜来将太阳能聚焦在三座发电塔顶上的锅炉里，锅炉里产生的蒸汽将驱动涡轮来制造能源。

Desmond said the steam can reach temperatures of more than 260 degrees Celsius⁷. "We can store the sun's thermal energy in the form of molten salt, so we can produce electricity even when the sun goes down. There is a lot of interest in concentrating solar power around the globe in environments where you have lots of sun, such as China, South Africa, the Middle East, North Africa," explained Desmond.

德斯蒙德说蒸汽的温度能达到260摄氏度以上。

“我们将太阳的热能储藏在熔盐里，这样在太阳下山后就可以发电了。全世界很多光照丰富的国家都有兴趣利用太阳能，比如中国、南非、中东和北非。”

Environmentalists generally support the idea of solar plants, but many want habitats like the one where Ivanpah is being built to stay intact. "Even though the desert seems big, when you start cutting it up, it can really affect how the species and the animals and the plants are able to survive in the long run," said Lisa Belenky, senior attorney for the Center for Biological Diversity, a private advocacy group with offices in several U.S. states. Belenky said some environmentalists are worried about the effect of the Google-backed Ivanpah Solar Project on the sensitive plant and animal life in this part of Mojave. BrightSource Energy has already spent more than $50 million to relocate the endangered desert tortoise, which lives in the area, but Belenky feels this is not the right solution.

环保者基本上都支持太阳能电厂，但许多人希望伊万帕所在的栖息地能不受损害。

“尽管这片沙漠很广大，但一旦隔离开，就会从长远地影响物种、动物和植物，”Lisa Belenky是生物多样化中心高级律师，这是一家私人宣传团体，在美国几个州都有办公室。

Belenky说有的环保者担心这个由谷歌支持的伊万帕太阳能项目对莫哈韦沙漠敏感植物和动物的影响。亮源能源公司已耗资5000多万重新安置濒危的沙漠龟，这种龟原本就生活在这里，但Belenky感觉这样的做法并不对。

"We should be reusing areas that have already been disturbed [like] old mining sites, for example... either on homes, on businesses, you can.... [place them] on parking lots," said Belenky, offering alternative locations for solar power collection.

“我们应该重新利用那些已经被扰乱的地区，比如旧矿场，无论是在居住区还是商业区，都可以把镜片放在停车场。”Belenky提出了安置太阳能装置的其他可选的地点。

Brightsource has already pre-sold energy to parts of southern California. It plans to start running the plant at the end of the year. 

亮源能源公司已经将能源预售给加州南部部分地区，计划年底开始运营这家发电厂。

1 thermal   

adj.热的，由热造成的；保暖的

参考例句：

• They will build another thermal power station.他们要另外建一座热能发电站。
• Volcanic activity has created thermal springs and boiling mud pools.火山活动产生了温泉和沸腾的泥浆池。

2 ecosystems   

n.生态系统( ecosystem的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• There are highly sensitive and delicately balanced ecosystems in the forest. 森林里有高度敏感、灵敏平衡的各种生态系统。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Madagascar's ecosystems range from rainforest to semi-desert. 马达加斯加生态系统类型多样，从雨林到半荒漠等不一而足。 来自辞典例句

3 shimmering   

v.闪闪发光，发微光( shimmer的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The sea was shimmering in the sunlight. 阳光下海水波光闪烁。
• The colours are delicate and shimmering. 这些颜色柔和且闪烁微光。 来自辞典例句

4 mirage   

n.海市蜃楼，幻景

参考例句：

• Perhaps we are all just chasing a mirage.也许我们都只是在追逐一个幻想。
• Western liberalism was always a mirage.西方自由主义永远是一座海市蜃楼。

5 deploy   

v.（军）散开成战斗队形，布置，展开

参考例句：

• The infantry began to deploy at dawn.步兵黎明时开始进入战斗位置。
• The president said he had no intention of deploying ground troops.总统称并不打算部署地面部队。

6 boilers   

锅炉，烧水器，水壶( boiler的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Even then the boilers often burst or came apart at the seams. 甚至那时的锅炉也经常从焊接处爆炸或裂开。 来自英汉非文学 - 科学史
• The clean coal is sent to a crusher and the boilers. 干净的煤送入破碎机和锅炉。

7 Celsius   

adj.摄氏温度计的，摄氏的

参考例句：

• The temperature tonight will fall to seven degrees Celsius.今晚气温将下降到七摄氏度。
• The maximum temperature in July may be 36 degrees Celsius.七月份最高温度可能达到36摄氏度。