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VOA科学技术2022--非洲野生动物园面临气候、基础设施威胁

时间:2022-09-15 03:27:18

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African Wildlife Parks Face Climate, Infrastructure1 Threats

Africa's national parks are home to thousands of wildlife species such as lions, elephants and buffaloes2. The protected areas are increasingly threatened by below-average rainfall and new public systems projects.

Climate change is already worsening an extended period of severe dryness in eastern Africa. Increasing development, including oil drilling and agriculture, are hurting conservation efforts in protected areas, several environmental experts say.

The at-risk parks are in Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique, South Africa, Congo and other countries.

The parks not only protect plants and animals. They also act as natural carbon sinks. This means they store carbon dioxide and help reduce the effects of global warming.

An estimated 38 percent of Africa's biodiversity areas are under severe threat from climate change and infrastructure development, said Ken3 Mwathe. He is with the organization BirdLife International.

Investors4 see the areas as ready for development, Mwathe said, adding the governments have some responsibility for that. Governments have opened "the land in these areas for infrastructural5 development" he said.

African nations are seeking to raise living standards and meet sustainable development goals, including access to clean water and food, economic growth and improved public education. The effort leads some governments to start large building projects. Many of them are through foreign investments, especially from China.

The proposed East African Oil Pipeline6 is an example. Uganda's government says the project can help lift millions out of poverty. However, the plan calls for the pipe to run through Uganda's Kidepo Valley, Murchison Falls and Bwindi Impenetrable Forest. Such plans threaten species and have drawn7 criticism from climate campaigners.

Population growth and the construction that comes with it have also added to the pressure on parks, conservationists said. But they add that replacing wildlife with infrastructure is the wrong way for economic growth.

"We have to have a future where wildlife is not separated from people," said Sam Shaba. He is the program manager at the Honeyguide Foundation, an environmental non-profit organization in Tanzania.

When "people start to see that living with wildlife provides the answer to sustainable development ... that's the game-changer," Shaba said.

Most of Africa's wildlife parks were created in the late 19th and early 20th centuries by colonial rulers. They fenced the areas and ordered local people to stay out.

But now conservationists are seeking more inclusive policies for operating the parks. They seek the expertise8 of Native communities that live around the parks and can help protect them, said Ademola Ajagbe. He is the Africa regional managing director of The Nature Conservancy.

The peoples of these areas are forced to move "such as the Maasai (in Tanzania and Kenya), Twa and Mbutis (in central Africa) who for generations have lived with wildlife," said Simon Counsell. He is an advisor9 with Survival International.

"Africa is depicted10 as a place of wildlife without people living there and this needs to change," he said.

The effects of worsening weather conditions in national parks due to climate change should also not be ignored, experts said.

A recent study carried out in South Africa's Kruger National Park linked extreme weather events to the loss of plants and animals.

Drought has seriously threatened species like rhinos11, elephants and lions as it reduces the amount of food available, said Philip Wandera. He is a former officer with the Kenya Wildlife Service now teaching conservation at the Catholic University of East Africa.

More intensive management of parks and removing fences that prevent species from traveling to wetter areas are important first steps to protecting wildlife, Wandera said.

He added that financial help to "support communities in and around parks" would also help protect them.

Words in This Story

drill – v. to bore or drive a hole in

biodiversity – n. biological diversity in an environment as indicated by numbers of different species of plants and animals

infrastructure – n. the system of public works of a country, state, or region

standard – n. something set up as a rule for measuring or as a model

sustainable – adj. of, relating to, or being a method of harvesting or using a resource so that the resource is not depleted12 or permanently13 damaged

access – n. permission, liberty, or ability to enter, approach, or pass to and from a place or to approach or communicate with a person or thing

construction – n. the process, art, or manner of building something

drought – n. a long period of time during which there is very little or no rain

management – n. the act of looking after and making decisions about something


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1 infrastructure UbBz5     
n.下部构造,下部组织,基础结构,基础设施
参考例句:
  • We should step up the development of infrastructure for research.加强科学基础设施建设。
  • We should strengthen cultural infrastructure and boost various types of popular culture.加强文化基础设施建设,发展各类群众文化。
2 buffaloes 8b8e10891f373d8a329c9bd0a66d9514     
n.水牛(分非洲水牛和亚洲水牛两种)( buffalo的名词复数 );(南非或北美的)野牛;威胁;恐吓
参考例句:
  • Some medieval towns raced donkeys or buffaloes. 有些中世纪的城市用驴子或水牛竞赛。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • Water buffaloes supply Egypt with more meat than any other domestic animal. 水牛提供给埃及的肉比任何其它动物都要多。 来自辞典例句
3 ken k3WxV     
n.视野,知识领域
参考例句:
  • Such things are beyond my ken.我可不懂这些事。
  • Abstract words are beyond the ken of children.抽象的言辞超出小孩所理解的范围.
4 investors dffc64354445b947454450e472276b99     
n.投资者,出资者( investor的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • a con man who bilked investors out of millions of dollars 诈取投资者几百万元的骗子
  • a cash bonanza for investors 投资者的赚钱机会
5 infrastructural ae4cf68a63bfbee2b0c76dcc1a54a944     
adj.基础结构的基础设施的
参考例句:
  • Must increase the investment dynamics unceasingly, strengthens the countryside infrastructural facilities. 要不断加大投入力度,加强农村基础设施建设。 来自互联网
  • In the 1980s, India started with some infrastructural advantages over China. 1980年代,印度在某些基础设施方面优于中国。 来自互联网
6 pipeline aNUxN     
n.管道,管线
参考例句:
  • The pipeline supplies Jordan with 15 per cent of its crude oil.该管道供给约旦15%的原油。
  • A single pipeline serves all the houses with water.一条单管路给所有的房子供水。
7 drawn MuXzIi     
v.拖,拉,拔出;adj.憔悴的,紧张的
参考例句:
  • All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
  • Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。
8 expertise fmTx0     
n.专门知识(或技能等),专长
参考例句:
  • We were amazed at his expertise on the ski slopes.他斜坡滑雪的技能使我们赞叹不已。
  • You really have the technical expertise in a new breakthrough.让你真正在专业技术上有一个全新的突破。
9 advisor JKByk     
n.顾问,指导老师,劝告者
参考例句:
  • They employed me as an advisor.他们聘请我当顾问。
  • The professor is engaged as a technical advisor.这位教授被聘请为技术顾问。
10 depicted f657dbe7a96d326c889c083bf5fcaf24     
描绘,描画( depict的过去式和过去分词 ); 描述
参考例句:
  • Other animals were depicted on the periphery of the group. 其他动物在群像的外围加以修饰。
  • They depicted the thrilling situation to us in great detail. 他们向我们详细地描述了那激动人心的场面。
11 rhinos 195f9b9fd8128a29dac773077994698f     
n.犀牛(rhino的复数形式)
参考例句:
  • There are many reports of people taming and even training Indian rhinos. 有许多关于人们驯养甚至训练印度犀牛的记载。 来自辞典例句
  • The rhinos had fed during the night in the rice fields of these villagers. 犀牛夜里在这些村民的庄稼地里也已吃饱了。 来自辞典例句
12 depleted 31d93165da679292f22e5e2e5aa49a03     
adj. 枯竭的, 废弃的 动词deplete的过去式和过去分词
参考例句:
  • Food supplies were severely depleted. 食物供应已严重不足。
  • Both teams were severely depleted by injuries. 两个队都因队员受伤而实力大减。
13 permanently KluzuU     
adv.永恒地,永久地,固定不变地
参考例句:
  • The accident left him permanently scarred.那次事故给他留下了永久的伤疤。
  • The ship is now permanently moored on the Thames in London.该船现在永久地停泊在伦敦泰晤士河边。

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