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VOA慢速英语2014 肯尼亚推进核能计划 AS IT IS 2014-04-17 Kenya Moves Forward with Nuclear Power Plans

时间:2014-04-27 14:57:31

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AS IT IS 2014-04-17 Kenya Moves Forward with Nuclear Power Plans 肯尼亚推进核能计划 

Hello.  Let’s do it again.  I’m Jim Tedder1 in Washington with the program that helps you learn and improve your American English.  At the same time, we give you important details about things happening in our world …As It Is.

On today’s program, Kenya looks to the future in hopes of solving energy needs.  But one proposal is causing problems.  We’ll tell you why.

Then we will hear from the United Nations concerning the need for food aid in Mali.  It is a bigger problem than they had expected.

VOA is on the air, and is coming to you from Washington.

Kenya is moving forward with plans to build a nuclear power plant by 2025 as part of a larger development program. But, as in other countries, Kenya has activists2 who do not believe nuclear power is safe compared to other kinds of energy.  Christopher Cruise joins us.

At the University of Nairobi, some students are training for the jobs of the future -- at what is expected to be Kenya’s first nuclear power center.

The Institute of Nuclear Science and Technology trains 15 students a year to be technicians and engineers. The students will earn a master’s degree at the end of their study program.

David Maina is the director of the Institute. He says producing more electricity is important to Kenya’s development.

“The kind of things this country is imagining that they want to do require a lot of power. And here we are with only 1,600 megawatts. What can we do? If you compare that to a country like (South) Korea which has 43,000 megawatts, you see we are a tiny consumer compared to those big economies.”

About 69 percent of Kenyans live in homes without electricity.

One nuclear reactor3 could produce up to 1,000 megawatts of power for those homes.

At a recent meeting in Nairobi, supporters of the nuclear project talked about whether it could happen. The project would require a major investment of public money, and increased security.

William Ruto is Kenya’s Deputy President. He believes nuclear power can change his country for the better.

“Kenya’s stated intention of using nuclear energy for electricity generation reflects the sort of thinking which can propel a country from relative mediocrity to the realms of greatness.”

Some developed nations have turned away from nuclear power after the disaster at Japan’s Fukushima plant in 2011. Germany plans to close all of its nuclear plants by 2022.

Some activists in Kenya fear a nuclear plant could increase the possibility of a Fukushima-like disaster. And they are worried that it could become a target for terrorists.

On the hills near Nairobi, workers are building another power project. When it is finished, the Ngong Hills wind farm will provide about 50 megawatts of power. That is much less than a nuclear plant could generate.

Moses Ole Kinaiya works at the Maasai Integrated Development Initiative. He would like see Kenya build more wind farms.

“Renewable energy I think is more safe because for example as you see the turbines here, they have been planted, they’re producing power, it’s not, it doesn’t have any major health risks,  doesn’t have any major even security risks because you just have a guard, nobody is necessarily targeting it in term of creating mass destruction.”

Kenya is also developing projects using coal and geothermal energy, which makes energy from heat deep in the ground.

While nuclear power may be the most productive source, it is also the most costly4. The cost for a single nuclear power station is more than $4 billion.

I’m Christopher Cruise.

Food Shortage in Mali Getting Worse

The United Nations says the humanitarian5 crisis in Mali is getting worse. The agency says by June hundreds of thousands more people may have trouble getting enough food. It says the money being provided for humanitarian assistance in the West African nation is much less than is needed. And it says the problem is getting worse because people who fled the conflict in the country in 2012 and 2013 are now returning. 

The United Nations says 1.4 million people in Mali now need food aid. That is an increase from 812,000 last December. The agency fears the number could increase to 1.9 million by June.

Late and unreliable rains last year, added to conflict in the north, meant farmers throughout the country could not grow many crops.

David Gressly is the U.N. humanitarian coordinator6 for Mali.

“Mali continues to face very important humanitarian challenges in 2014. People have just gone through a very, very difficult time, particularly in the north, with the conflict, with the occupation. People are even more vulnerable than normal because of all of this. We’re seeing, in particular, on the food side, continued food insecurity. So we’re quite concerned.”

Mr. Gressly says about 500,000 children under the age of five in Mali will suffer from moderate to severe malnutrition7 this year. He says 136,000 children will suffer severe malnourishment. He says there could be an increase in child deaths in Mali if they do not get enough food.

He says aid workers are also worried that the food problem will worsen as people displaced by the conflict return, including internally-displaced persons called IDPs.

“We’re seeing increasing numbers of refugees coming home. Half the IDPs have come home. That puts an additional burden on local communities as the numbers increase. It will take a while before those who are coming home can also contribute to production. The agricultural campaign is just now starting. So they can start, but we won’t see any output from that until the end of the year.”

Mr. Gressly said the number of people returning to the country could increase quickly in the next few months, especially if there is progress in peace talks.

The UN says it needs $568 million for aid efforts in Mali, including food aid, in 2014. By the end of last month, donors8 had given only about ten percent of that. Mr. Gressly is worried.

“It’s unfortunate, but there are many crises around the world right now -- in South Sudan, Central African Republic, Syria, etcetera -- which seem to be drawing the resources that are also needed in places like Mali. And the problem I see with that, not only the humanitarian impact, but if you look at the overall needs of Mali, trying to stabilize9 after the conflict of 2012, insufficient10 humanitarian assistance actually has a destabilizing impact as well.”

Mr. Gressly says the UN is trying to persuade more countries and organizations to help the people of Mali by showing them there is still a great need.

 

We have just enough time to give you some Americana …what is happening in the United States.  Today more than 3 and a half million people will be in San Antonio, Texas, to enjoy parades, sports, fireworks, dances, artwork, and fun.  The festival also remembers those who fought at the Alamo for Texas independence in 1836.


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点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 tedder 2833afc4f8252d8dc9f8cd73b24db55d     
n.(干草)翻晒者,翻晒机
参考例句:
  • Jim Tedder has more. 吉姆?特德将给我们做更多的介绍。 来自互联网
  • Jim Tedder tells us more. 吉姆?泰德给我们带来更详细的报道。 来自互联网
2 activists 90fd83cc3f53a40df93866d9c91bcca4     
n.(政治活动的)积极分子,活动家( activist的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
  • Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》
3 reactor jTnxL     
n.反应器;反应堆
参考例句:
  • The atomic reactor generates enormous amounts of thermal energy.原子反应堆发出大量的热能。
  • Inside the reactor the large molecules are cracked into smaller molecules.在反应堆里,大分子裂变为小分子。
4 costly 7zXxh     
adj.昂贵的,价值高的,豪华的
参考例句:
  • It must be very costly to keep up a house like this.维修这么一幢房子一定很昂贵。
  • This dictionary is very useful,only it is a bit costly.这本词典很有用,左不过贵了些。
5 humanitarian kcoxQ     
n.人道主义者,博爱者,基督凡人论者
参考例句:
  • She has many humanitarian interests and contributes a lot to them.她拥有很多慈善事业,并作了很大的贡献。
  • The British government has now suspended humanitarian aid to the area.英国政府现已暂停对这一地区的人道主义援助。
6 coordinator Gvazk6     
n.协调人
参考例句:
  • The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, headed by the Emergency Relief Coordinator, coordinates all UN emergency relief. 联合国人道主义事务协调厅在紧急救济协调员领导下,负责协调联合国的所有紧急救济工作。
  • How am I supposed to find the client-relations coordinator? 我怎么才能找到客户关系协调员的办公室?
7 malnutrition kAhxX     
n.营养不良
参考例句:
  • In Africa, there are a lot of children suffering from severe malnutrition.在非洲有大批严重营养不良的孩子。
  • It is a classic case of malnutrition. 这是营养不良的典型病例。
8 donors 89b49c2bd44d6d6906d17dca7315044b     
n.捐赠者( donor的名词复数 );献血者;捐血者;器官捐献者
参考例句:
  • Please email us to be removed from our active list of blood donors. 假如你想把自己的名字从献血联系人名单中删去,请给我们发电子邮件。
  • About half this amount comes from individual donors and bequests. 这笔钱大约有一半来自个人捐赠及遗赠。 来自《简明英汉词典》
9 stabilize PvuwZ     
vt.(使)稳定,使稳固,使稳定平衡;vi.稳定
参考例句:
  • They are eager to stabilize currencies.他们急于稳定货币。
  • His blood pressure tended to stabilize.他的血压趋向稳定。
10 insufficient L5vxu     
adj.(for,of)不足的,不够的
参考例句:
  • There was insufficient evidence to convict him.没有足够证据给他定罪。
  • In their day scientific knowledge was insufficient to settle the matter.在他们的时代,科学知识还不能足以解决这些问题。

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