BBC媒体英语：应对气候变化船舶限速益处“巨大”

[图片来源: Getty Images]

　　（注：文章发表于2019年11月11日。）

　　一项新报告称，降低船舶速度对人类、自然和气候都有巨大益处。减速20%不仅能减少温室气体排放，还能减少危害人类健康的污染物质，比如黑碳和氮氧化物。

　　Ships of all sorts and sizes transport around 80% of the world's goods by volume. But these voyages come at a considerable cost in carbon, with shipping generating around 3% of all global emissions.

　　按体积计算，各种大小的船舶共运输世界上约 80% 的货物。但这些航行的代价是相当多的碳排放，船运产生的碳排放占全球排放总量的3% 左右。

　　Now researchers say they have a relatively easy solution: just slow down. Cutting speeds by a fifth would reduce CO2 but also limit sulphur and nitrogen oxides, which are damaging to human health. Going slower would also protect whales, improve safety and could save shipping companies’ money.

　　现在，研究人员表示，他们有一个相对简单的解决办案：放慢速度。船只减速五分一不仅会减少二氧化碳的排放，还会限制硫氧化物和氮氧化物的排放，这两种物质对人体健康有害。减速航行还可以保护鲸鱼、提高安全性，也可能为船运公司节省资金。

　　A meeting of the International Maritime Organization in London this week will consider the proposal with some in the industry now supporting the idea. The shipping business is already familiar with the slow steaming concept. In the global recession of 2008, cargo ships slowed down by 12% on average to cut costs. This helped reduce their daily fuel consumption and carbon emissions by over a quarter.

　　国际海事组织将在本周举行的一次会议中审议这一提议，目前一些业内人士表示支持。航运业已经熟悉了慢速航行的概念。在2008年全球经济衰退过程中，货船为削减成本平均减速12%。这帮他们减少了超过四分之一的日常燃料消耗和碳排放。

　　词汇

　　transport 运输，运送

　　goods 货物，货品

　　by volume 按体积算

　　voyages 航海，航行

　　shipping 船运，海运

　　emissions 排放

　　cutting speeds 减速

　　sulphur 硫， 硫磺

　　nitrogen oxides 氮氧化物

　　damaging 有害的

　　cargo ships 货船

　　fuel consumption 燃料消耗

　　阅读理解：请在读完上文后，回答下列问题。

　　1. True or false? The idea of slow steaming is already known to some in the shipping industry.

　　2. What percentage of the world’s goods do ships transport by volume?

　　3. What is the relatively easy solution suggested by researchers to reduce emissions?

　　4. What are the benefits of cutting the speed of ships, according to the text?

　　答案

　　1. True or false? The idea of slow steaming is already known to some in the shipping industry.

　　True. The shipping business is already familiar with the slow steaming concept.

　　2. What percentage of the world’s goods do ships transport by volume?

　　Ships of all sorts and sizes transport around 80% of the world's goods by volume.

　　3. What is the relatively easy solution suggested by researchers to reduce emissions?

　　The relatively easy solution is: just slow down.

　　4. What are the benefits of cutting the speed of ships, according to the text?

　　Cutting the speed of ships by a fifth would reduce CO2 but also limit sulphur and nitrogen oxides. Going slower would also protect whales, improve safety and could save shipping companies’ money.

　　实习编辑：姚依明

　　责任编辑：潘程