环球英语 — 121： Saving the Coast

　　Voice 1
Thank you for joining us for Spotlight¹. I’m Liz Waid.
Voice 2
And I’m Joshua Leo. Spotlight uses a special English method of broadcasting. It is easier for people to understand no matter where in the world they live.
Voice 1
Angel Rodriguez lives in the city of Arecibo on the island of Puerto Rico. He is a surfer. Surfing is a popular activity all around the world. People ride ocean waves while standing² on long boards. Many people surf as just for fun. But Angel Rodriguez surfs for a job. Angel teaches surfing. He also leads Puerto Rico’s national surf team. But Angel’s surfing has also made him an environmentalist.
Today’s spotlight is on Angel Rodriguez and his fight to protect the beach where he surfs.
Voice 2
One day in the year 2000, Angel received a call from a friend. He answered the telephone and received some shocking news. His friend told Angel, “They are tearing apart our beach!” His friend said that large machines were damaging the coast where they surfed.
Voice 1
Angel got into his truck and hurried to the beach. What he saw angered him. It made him worried for the future of the area. He saw a large pipe in the middle of the beach. Wet sand, dirt, rocks, old car tires and other pollution flowed out of the pipe. This pollution pumped onto the sandy beach. But it was also pumping onto the coral reef³ in the water near the beach.
Voice 2
Coral reefs⁴ are large areas of hard coral where many animals live. The coral looks like rock but it is alive. The hard coral is the outer skeleton⁵ of the animals. They create the reef. Coral reefs are very delicate areas. Many different kinds of animals live in coral reefs. The coral reef in Arecibo is part of the beach. The pollution was harming the coral and all the animals living there. A healthy reef makes good surfing waves. If the reef becomes damaged, the surfing may not be as good. The waste coming out of the pipe was damaging the reef in Arecibo.
Voice 1
So why was the pollution being pumped onto the beach? Well, the United States Army Corps⁶ of Engineers was clearing an area of the sea floor. They were digging up the material to make a better pathway for ships. But this man-made path was very dirty and polluted. The United States Army was allowed to pump the waste onto the beach because Puerto Rico is a commonwealth⁷ of the United States. The United States has an army base on the island. The army needed to make sure that their ships could reach the base. But Angel did not think they needed to pump the waste onto the reef.
Voice 2
Angel went back to tell his friends what was happening. The news made them angry too. They made a plan to stop the Army Corps of Engineers from ruining the coast. They went down to the beach. They stood on the pipe that was pumping the waste. When the flow of waste stopped, the men stood inside the pipe. Each man stood in the pipe for four hours. After the four hours finished, another man stood in the pipe for another four hours. The Army Corps could not pump waste out of the pipe if people blocked it.
Voice 1
The Army Corps did not think that it was doing anything wrong. But to the surfers, it appeared that the Army Corps was breaking United States environmental law. So Angel Rodriguez decided⁸ to sue⁹ the army. He brought them to court in protest.
Voice 2
Angel protested in another way too. He wore the clothes of a super hero. He wore a cover on his face. He wore colorful clothes. He wanted people to look at him. He wanted to tell people about what was happening to the coral reef.
Voice 1
To continue the protest, Angel bought a large doll shaped like a human. He put the doll deep into the pipe. When Army Corps officials looked in the pipe, they thought a real person was inside. This simple act extended the surfers’ protest another four days.
Voice 2
The Army Corps began to question their plan. The United States government sent down an environmental official to investigate. He threatened to arrest the protestors. But the surfers understood their legal rights. They demanded to see the official’s documents. The government official did not have the correct documents. So the surfers continued to protest.
Voice 1
People in Arecibo began to learn about what was happening on the coast. The surfers were informing people about the problem. Soon, an environmental lawyer, Miguel Sarriera, decided to help the surfers. He helped the surfers fight in a legal court.
Voice 2
The surfers’ lawyer said that the Army Corps was lying to the people. He said the Army Corps stated that they were not doing anything wrong. The army said that they were creating a beach for families in the area to use. But it was clear that they were not pumping clean sand for a family beach. The army was pumping waste. They were making the beach unhealthy.
Voice 1
The Army Corps said that engineers did all the correct research. They said that they made sure it was safe to dump the waste. But lawyers discovered that the engineers had researched a different location. The Army Corps had permission to pump the waste far away from the coast. But army officials wanted to save money. So, they decided to pump the waste onto the surfer’s beach and reef.
Voice 2
After four years of fighting in court, the surfers won the legal case. Army engineers agreed to clean up all the waste they pumped onto the ocean floor. The waste will be removed but the damage will take a long time to heal. It will take over ten [10] years for the reef to repair itself.
Voice 1
The surfers are happy they saved the reef. They could protected the environment. And they can continue to surf in clean water.
Riki DeSoto helped lead the protest against what happened to the Arecibo coast. He believes that surfers are an important part of a coastal¹⁰ community and environment.
Voice 3
“Surfers are affected¹¹ people. They tell people about contamination¹², pollution and everything that is happening in the coast and beach. You know, we are the first ones out there so you got to respect your beach. You must protect the environment in which you improve yourself. Surfers should be like soldiers. Their job is the protection and enjoyment¹³ of the beach and the coast.”
Voice 2
Do you know what is happening in your local environment? If there were a problem, would you be willing to fight to save it? The surfers in Arecibo were. And today they are ready to fight any environmental battle that comes their way.
 

1 spotlight   

n.公众注意的中心，聚光灯，探照灯，视听，注意，醒目

参考例句：

• This week the spotlight is on the world of fashion.本周引人瞩目的是时装界。
• The spotlight followed her round the stage.聚光灯的光圈随着她在舞台上转。

2 standing   

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。

3 reef   

n.礁，礁石，暗礁

参考例句：

• The ship and its crew were lost on the reef.那条船及船员都触礁遇难了。
• The ship was wrecked on a coral reef.这条船在珊瑚暗礁上撞毁了。

4 reefs   

礁体

参考例句：

• The motorboat cut across swift currents and skirted dangerous reefs. 汽艇穿过激流，绕过险滩。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Fish are abundant about the reefs. 暗礁附近鱼很多。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 skeleton   

n.骨骼，框架，骨干，梗概，提要

参考例句：

• A long illness made a skeleton out of him.长期的卧病使他骨瘦如柴。
• Her notes gave us just the bare skeleton of her theory.她的笔记只给我们提供了她的理论的梗概。

6 corps   

n.(通信等兵种的)部队；(同类作的)一组

参考例句：

• The medical corps were cited for bravery in combat.医疗队由于在战场上的英勇表现而受嘉奖。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

7 commonwealth   

n.共和国，联邦，共同体

参考例句：

• He is the chairman of the commonwealth of artists.他是艺术家协会的主席。
• Most of the members of the Commonwealth are nonwhite.英联邦的许多成员国不是白人国家。

8 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

9 sue   

vt.控告，起诉；vi.请求，追求，起诉

参考例句：

• If you don't pay me the money,I'll sue you.如果你不付给我钱，我就告你。
• The war criminals sue for peace.战犯求和。

10 coastal   

adj.海岸的，沿海的，沿岸的

参考例句：

• The ocean waves are slowly eating away the coastal rocks.大海的波浪慢慢地侵蚀着岸边的岩石。
• This country will fortify the coastal areas.该国将加强沿海地区的防御。

11 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

12 contamination   

n.污染

参考例句：

• We must ensure our children against contamination by bad ideas. 我们必须保护我们的儿童不受坏思想的侵蚀。
• There is a danger of serious contamination from radioactive waste. 放射性废弃物有严重污染的危险。

13 enjoyment   

n.乐趣；享有；享用

参考例句：

• Your company adds to the enjoyment of our visit. 有您的陪同，我们这次访问更加愉快了。
• After each joke the old man cackled his enjoyment.每逢讲完一个笑话，这老人就呵呵笑着表示他的高兴。