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2006年NPR美国国家公共电台三月-Chicken and Hog Farms Measured for Air Po

时间:2007-07-19 07:10来源:互联网 提供网友:zhao6221133   字体: [ ]
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Renee Montagne: This is Morning Edition from NPR News. I'm Renee Montagne.

Steve Inskeep: And I'm Steve Inskeep. Federal environmental officials are starting to monitor the source of air-pollution that they largely ignored in the past--farms. As part of a legal settlement, the Environmental Protection Agency will test emissions1 on chicken and hog2 farms. Some environmental groups are challenging this agreement, saying it goes to easy on farming operations that are known polluters. From Kansas City, NPR's Greg Allen reports.

Greg Allen: On Mack Schmidt's farm near Elma, Iowa, it's hog feeding time, about 60 sows are jostling for grain in an outside pen. Schmidt runs a farrow to finish operation, raising pigs from birth to the slaughter3 house. Each year he raises about 23 thousand pigs. In a state where some producers market hundreds of thousands of pigs each year, Schmidt's is only a mid-sized hog farm. Even so, along with pigs, he also has a lot of manure4, a byproduct he considers valuable and uses to fertilize5 his corn and soybeans. He hoards6 it in deep pits under the buildings where the pigs are raised.

Mack Schmidt: It's, er, just like a huge basement underneath7 there, you can step inside here.

Greg Allen: Schmidt leads the way into one of his hog containment8 buildings; it's a long, barn-like structure with several big ventilation fans. On this day, although it's below freezing outside, inside, it's warm and humid, no wonder when you get a look at the one thousand pigs that live here, the pigs, Schmidt points out, are all standing9 on slats.

Mack Schmidt: And if you look down through there, you catch the light, you can see the manure down there, about 6 feet down. And there's probably about 2 feet of it under, it was pumped out last fall. And we are in a barn now, where these pigs are getting close to market, in the next 2 weeks, all of these pigs will be gone. The barn will be completely power washed, and we can clean this, you could eat off the floor when we are done.

Greg Allen: Maybe so, but not now. To say there is a pungent10 odor in this barn would be a severe understatement. There is an old saying among the farmers, they say it smells like money. Odor is a big problem on hog farms, one that can have a dramatic impact on the quality of life in rural areas. But in recent years, researchers are paying increasing attention to the particulates11 and gases that are also produced on hog farms. Peter Thorn, a professor of environmental health at the University of Iowa, says these emissions can pose a health risk. Particulates can include animal dander, bacteria and viruses, and the danger posed by gases like hydrogen sulfite and ammonia is even more clear. But while much is known about the dangers these substances pose to workers in industrial settings, Thorn says there has been much less research on how these emissions affect those who live near livestock12 operations.

Peter Thorn: At these lower levels of exposure, such as we are talking about in the rural environment, they are likely to be more subtle, subtle neurological problems, some aggravation13 of lung, it's particularly in susceptible14 individuals such as young children or people with asthma15.

Greg Allen: Thorn cites one study showing that the incidents of asthma among children who live on hog farms is doubled that of children who don't live near hogs16. Rising concerns about how emissions from livestock operations might be affecting nearby communities have led to a number of lawsuits17 in recent years. Farmers have been charged with violations18 of the Clean Air Act and Right-to-know laws requiring them to monitor and report emissions. But that's something that, up to now, few farmers have ever done. To bring them into compliance19, the EPA reached an agreement with poultry20 farmers, pork producers and dairy operators that allows the government to begin monitoring emissions on farms. In return, while the study is going on, farmers can't be prosecuted21 for air pollution violations. That amnesty provision has angered some environmental groups.

Ed Hopkins: This agreement is actually a fraud, because it won't result in compliance over the next few years.

Greg Allen: Ed Hopkins is with the Sierra Club, one of the environmental groups that sued to block the agreement. Hopkins isn't opposed to the testing. It's being overseen22 by experts at Purdue University and is expected to provide a database that will allow producers to estimate their emissions. Hopkins is concerned about the open-ended amnesty period which he suspects is part of a delaying action aimed at postponing23 the day when livestock producers have to begin reporting on their farms' emissions.

Ed Hopkins: Two years from now, after these studies are done, I predict that the livestock industry will say to EPA, well, we didn't monitor enough farms, we don't really know exactly what the emissions are, we need to continue to study this and we need to be continue to exempt24 us from the law while you do study it . And meanwhile don't forget the livestock industry is lobbying in congress today to get an exemption25 from the public Right-to-know law.

Greg Allen: Cattle producers have not entered into the agreement with the EPA, and are strongly lobbying congress for an exemption from environmental laws. And the agreement is far from popular, even among pork producers. It requires farmers to pay a fine anywhere from 200 dollars to 100,000 dollars depending on the size of their operations. Fewer than 10 percent of the nation's 60,000 hog farmers have signed on. The EPA says that leaves the others, more than 50,000, open to potential prosecution26. Back on his farm near Elma, Iowa, hog farmer Mack Schmidt is a strong supporter of the testing program. He says farmers need to come to grips with a new reality that, like every other industry, they too must comply with environmental laws.

Mack Schmidt: I don't think that we need to be given free reign27 any more than any other industry, we've all got to be good citizens of this planet here, and, if indeed, we're contributing to it, let's find out what the problem is and then let's work to solve it.

Greg Allen: The EPA hopes to begin testing on chicken and hog farms by the summer; in the meantime, environmental groups are back in court, asking a federal judge to set aside the agreement and to order the agency to immediately begin cracking down on all livestock producers and the emissions that come from their farms.

Greg Allen: Greg Allen, NPR News.

Note------------
sow: a fully grown female pig;大母猪
jostle: to push or knock against someone in a crowd, especially so that you can get somewhere or do something before other people;挤, 推, 争夺
farrow: 一窝小猪, 猪的一胎, 下小猪
pungent: having a strong taste or smell;(指气味、味道)刺激性的, 辛辣的, 尖锐的, 苦痛的, 严厉的



点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 emissions 1a87f8769eb755734e056efecb5e2da9     
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。
2 hog TrYzRg     
n.猪;馋嘴贪吃的人;vt.把…占为己有,独占
参考例句:
  • He is greedy like a hog.他像猪一样贪婪。
  • Drivers who hog the road leave no room for other cars.那些占着路面的驾驶员一点余地都不留给其他车辆。
3 slaughter 8Tpz1     
n.屠杀,屠宰;vt.屠杀,宰杀
参考例句:
  • I couldn't stand to watch them slaughter the cattle.我不忍看他们宰牛。
  • Wholesale slaughter was carried out in the name of progress.大规模的屠杀在维护进步的名义下进行。
4 manure R7Yzr     
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。
5 fertilize hk5x8     
v.使受精,施肥于,使肥沃
参考例句:
  • Fertilizer is a substance put on land to fertilize it.肥料是施在地里使之肥沃的物质。
  • Reading will fertilize his vocabulary.阅读会丰富他的词汇。
6 hoards 0d9c33ecc74ae823deffd01d7aecff3a     
n.(钱财、食物或其他珍贵物品的)储藏,积存( hoard的名词复数 )v.积蓄并储藏(某物)( hoard的第三人称单数 )
参考例句:
  • She hoards her money - she never spends it. 她积蓄钱,但从来不花钱。 来自辞典例句
  • A squirrel hoards nuts for the winter. 松鼠为过冬贮藏坚果。 来自辞典例句
7 underneath VKRz2     
adj.在...下面,在...底下;adv.在下面
参考例句:
  • Working underneath the car is always a messy job.在汽车底下工作是件脏活。
  • She wore a coat with a dress underneath.她穿着一件大衣,里面套着一条连衣裙。
8 containment fZnyi     
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。
9 standing 2hCzgo     
n.持续,地位;adj.永久的,不动的,直立的,不流动的
参考例句:
  • After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
  • They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。
10 pungent ot6y7     
adj.(气味、味道)刺激性的,辛辣的;尖锐的
参考例句:
  • The article is written in a pungent style.文章写得泼辣。
  • Its pungent smell can choke terrorists and force them out of their hideouts.它的刺激性气味会令恐怖分子窒息,迫使他们从藏身地点逃脱出来。
11 particulates 24011a21c8b46b35a9bfd904211c7c51     
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
12 livestock c0Wx1     
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。
13 aggravation PKYyD     
n.烦恼,恼火
参考例句:
  • She stirred in aggravation as she said this. 她说这句话,激动得过分。
  • Can't stand the aggravation, all day I get aggravation. You know how it is." 我整天都碰到令人发火的事,你可想而知这是什么滋味。” 来自教父部分
14 susceptible 4rrw7     
adj.过敏的,敏感的;易动感情的,易受感动的
参考例句:
  • Children are more susceptible than adults.孩子比成人易受感动。
  • We are all susceptible to advertising.我们都易受广告的影响。
15 asthma WvezQ     
n.气喘病,哮喘病
参考例句:
  • I think he's having an asthma attack.我想他现在是哮喘病发作了。
  • Its presence in allergic asthma is well known.它在过敏性气喘中的存在是大家很熟悉的。
16 hogs 8a3a45e519faa1400d338afba4494209     
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
17 lawsuits 1878e62a5ca1482cc4ae9e93dcf74d69     
n.诉讼( lawsuit的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • Lawsuits involving property rights and farming and grazing rights increased markedly. 涉及财产权,耕作与放牧权的诉讼案件显著地增加。 来自辞典例句
  • I've lost and won more lawsuits than any man in England. 全英国的人算我官司打得最多,赢的也多,输的也多。 来自辞典例句
18 violations 403b65677d39097086593415b650ca21     
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。
19 compliance ZXyzX     
n.顺从;服从;附和;屈从
参考例句:
  • I was surprised by his compliance with these terms.我对他竟然依从了这些条件而感到吃惊。
  • She gave up the idea in compliance with his desire.她顺从他的愿望而放弃自己的主意。
20 poultry GPQxh     
n.家禽,禽肉
参考例句:
  • There is not much poultry in the shops. 商店里禽肉不太多。
  • What do you feed the poultry on? 你们用什么饲料喂养家禽?
21 prosecuted Wk5zqY     
a.被起诉的
参考例句:
  • The editors are being prosecuted for obscenity. 编辑因刊载污秽文字而被起诉。
  • The company was prosecuted for breaching the Health and Safety Act. 这家公司被控违反《卫生安全条例》。
22 overseen f7b3beb421f0dbe6f0a7d84036f4aa00     
v.监督,监视( oversee的过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • He was overseen stealing the letters. 他被人撞见在偷信件。 来自辞典例句
  • It will be overseen by ThomasLi, director of IBM China Research Laboratory. 该实验室由IBM中国研究院院长李实恭(ThomasLi)引导。 来自互联网
23 postponing 3ca610c0db966cd6f77cd5d15dc2b28c     
v.延期,推迟( postpone的现在分词 )
参考例句:
  • He tried to gain time by postponing his decision. 他想以迟迟不作决定的手段来争取时间。 来自辞典例句
  • I don't hold with the idea of postponing further discussion of the matter. 我不赞成推迟进一步讨论这件事的想法。 来自辞典例句
24 exempt wmgxo     
adj.免除的;v.使免除;n.免税者,被免除义务者
参考例句:
  • These goods are exempt from customs duties.这些货物免征关税。
  • He is exempt from punishment about this thing.关于此事对他已免于处分。
25 exemption 3muxo     
n.豁免,免税额,免除
参考例句:
  • You may be able to apply for exemption from local taxes.你可能符合资格申请免除地方税。
  • These goods are subject to exemption from tax.这些货物可以免税。
26 prosecution uBWyL     
n.起诉,告发,检举,执行,经营
参考例句:
  • The Smiths brought a prosecution against the organizers.史密斯家对组织者们提出起诉。
  • He attempts to rebut the assertion made by the prosecution witness.他试图反驳原告方证人所作的断言。
27 reign pBbzx     
n.统治时期,统治,支配,盛行;v.占优势
参考例句:
  • The reign of Queen Elizabeth lapped over into the seventeenth century.伊丽莎白王朝延至17世纪。
  • The reign of Zhu Yuanzhang lasted about 31 years.朱元璋统治了大约三十一年。
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TAG标签:   npr  公共电台  chicken  farm  npr  公共电台  chicken  farm
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