VOA标准英语2010年-Coast Guard Patrols Florida Waters for

The U.S. state of Florida has 1300 kilometers of beaches, all of which officials fear are at risk from the Gulf¹ of Mexico oil spill. Our correspondent reports that military and wildlife officials are being deployed² across the state, scouring³ for signs of oil.

The work of patrolling Florida's waters for oil begins in the skies. Three times a day, crews take off from the Coast Guard station in Clearwater to search for oil.

This C-130 will cover 2,400 kilometers, focusing on waters near Pensacola. Lieutenant⁴ Commander Scott Murphy leads the crew.

"This is the first day we've been out here and we've had blue skies and 10-15 miles [24 km] of visibility," said Lieutenant Commander Murphy. "Other than that it was driving rain the first day."

 

Crews visually scan for ribbons and sheets of oil. They also use radar⁵ to help spot oil just below the water's surface.

Officials compare the observations from Coast Guard flights to data from satellites or surface vessels⁶. The results produce a map of the oil spill and its path. 

"That's got to be it," said co-pilot Brian Boland. "See the big circle patches?"

About 50 kilometers off the coast of Pensacola, crews spot something in the water.

The challenge is to pick out oil from other dark spots, such as shadows made by clouds or patches of seaweed. 

"When you are going three miles [five kilometers] a minute, it can be hard to clearly define that," said Murphy. "So typically we report those positions, tell them what we see, that it could possibly be seaweed, and they can vector [send] a surface asset [vessel] to confirm."

Back on the ground, the observations are sent to a task force tracking the spill. It's difficult to keep track of the slick, says co-pilot Brian Boland.

"We flew on it for a couple hours, and now it's 24 hours before we go fly again," he said. "And there is no way to know if the current or the wind or the waves or what is going to affect it. If it is going to grow, or push toward shore or come off shore."

Oil has already come ashore⁷ at Pensacola Beach. Clean-up crews worked over the July 4th holiday weekend, usually a time when tourists go to the beach. Experts say cleaning a beach is relatively⁸ easy.

The job would be tougher in fragile wetlands, like in Key Largo⁹. Wildlife officials  routinely patrol these shallows waters, a habitat for many fish and shellfish.

Experts fear the oil could destroy vegetation and endanger the entire food chain. National park ranger¹⁰ Dan Kiger says oil poses a special risk to mangroves and sea grass, for example.

"The sea grass is very important," said Dan Kiger. "It filters the water, it keeps the water clean. Manatees¹¹ eat the sea grass, turtles eat the sea grass. It acts as sanctuary¹² for the juvenile¹³ fish."

So far, no oil from the Deepwater Horizon leak has been found near the Florida Keys. Experts say the risk is low, in part because weather systems have kept the oil away.

John Hunt is with the Florida Wildlife Conservation Commission. He says the Keys have been lucky, so far.

"I hate to use the work lucky in terms of an oil spill, because someone else is having a lot of issues and we know where the environment is having issues," said John Hunt. "But from a South Florida perspective, even the location of where it happened, we had a bit of luck."

While clean-up continues in Louisiana, Alabama and Mississippi, officials in Florida are watching to guard against oil damage here as well.
 

1 gulf   

n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂

参考例句：

• The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
• There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。

2 deployed   

（尤指军事行动）使展开( deploy的过去式和过去分词 )； 施展； 部署； 有效地利用

参考例句：

• Tanks have been deployed all along the front line. 沿整个前线已部署了坦克。
• The artillery was deployed to bear on the fort. 火炮是对着那个碉堡部署的。

3 scouring   

擦[洗]净，冲刷，洗涤

参考例句：

• The police are scouring the countryside for the escaped prisoners. 警察正在搜索整个乡村以捉拿逃犯。
• This is called the scouring train in wool processing. 这被称为羊毛加工中的洗涤系列。

4 lieutenant   

n.陆军中尉，海军上尉；代理官员，副职官员

参考例句：

• He was promoted to be a lieutenant in the army.他被提升为陆军中尉。
• He prevailed on the lieutenant to send in a short note.他说动那个副官，递上了一张简短的便条进去。

5 radar   

n.雷达，无线电探测器

参考例句：

• They are following the flight of an aircraft by radar.他们正在用雷达追踪一架飞机的飞行。
• Enemy ships were detected on the radar.敌舰的影像已显现在雷达上。

6 vessels   

n.血管( vessel的名词复数 )；船；容器；（具有特殊品质或接受特殊品质的）人

参考例句：

• The river is navigable by vessels of up to 90 tons. 90 吨以下的船只可以从这条河通过。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• All modern vessels of any size are fitted with radar installations. 所有现代化船只都有雷达装置。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

7 ashore   

adv.在(向)岸上，上岸

参考例句：

• The children got ashore before the tide came in.涨潮前，孩子们就上岸了。
• He laid hold of the rope and pulled the boat ashore.他抓住绳子拉船靠岸。

8 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。

9 largo   

n.广板乐章；adj.缓慢的，宽广的；adv.缓慢地，宽广地

参考例句：

• The tempo marking in most cases is andante,adagio,or largo.大多数第一乐章的速度标记是行板、柔板或广板。
• The second movement is a largo.第二乐章是广板乐章。

10 ranger   

n.国家公园管理员，护林员；骑兵巡逻队员

参考例句：

• He was the head ranger of the national park.他曾是国家公园的首席看守员。
• He loved working as a ranger.他喜欢做护林人。

11 manatees   

n.海牛（水生哺乳动物，体宽扁，尾圆，有鳃状肢）( manatee的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The manatees tamed quickly. 海牛很快地被驯服。 来自互联网
• Gentle and slow moving, manatees are said to be the mythical mermaids of sailors' imaginations. 海牛游动温和而缓慢，被认为是海员遐想中富有神秘色彩的美人鱼。 来自互联网

12 sanctuary   

n.圣所，圣堂，寺庙；禁猎区，保护区

参考例句：

• There was a sanctuary of political refugees behind the hospital.医院后面有一个政治难民的避难所。
• Most countries refuse to give sanctuary to people who hijack aeroplanes.大多数国家拒绝对劫机者提供庇护。

13 juvenile   

n.青少年，少年读物；adj.青少年的，幼稚的

参考例句：

• For a grown man he acted in a very juvenile manner.身为成年人，他的行为举止显得十分幼稚。
• Juvenile crime is increasing at a terrifying rate.青少年犯罪正在以惊人的速度增长。