2017考研英語《經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)人》閱讀：環(huán)保珊瑚礁化狂熱

• 2026考研英語全程班 6班
• 26考研全科上岸規(guī)劃營「擇校▪規(guī)劃▪備考」
• 2026考研專業(yè)課復(fù)習(xí)資料「真題▪筆記▪講義▪題庫」

考研英語閱讀百分之八十都出自一些英美報(bào)刊雜志The Economist (《經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)家》 ), Times(《時(shí)代周刊》等等，所以考生平時(shí)做閱讀訓(xùn)練的時(shí)候可以多看看這些文章，小編也會(huì)分享一些出自這些雜志的中英文雙語閱讀，大家可以看看。下面是關(guān)于環(huán)保珊瑚礁化狂熱的一篇文章，大家讀讀看。

Environmental policy

環(huán)保政策

Reefer madness

珊瑚礁化狂熱

Turning oil rigs into reefs saves money and marinelife. Yet many greens oppose it

石油鉆塔變成群礁，既可以省錢，又可以拯救海洋生命。然而，許多綠色環(huán)保人士依舊反對(duì)這項(xiàng)舉措

WHEN an offshore well stops producing oil, what should be done with the rig? One option is tohaul it ashore, break it up and recycle it. This is expensive. For a big, deep-water oil or gasplatform, it can cost $200m. Just hiring a derrick barge massive enough to do the job cancost $700,000 a day. But there is an alternative: simply leave most of the structure where itis. That is what you would expect a greedy oil firm to do: despoil the ocean just to save a lousyfew million dollars. The surprise is, the cheap option may actually be greener.

當(dāng)海上油井停止產(chǎn)油，那我們?cè)撛鯓犹幹勉@塔呢?其中一個(gè)做法就是將其拉上岸，分解再重新循環(huán)利用。但其費(fèi)用昂貴。一個(gè)大型的深海石油或天然氣平臺(tái)大約花費(fèi)2億美金。租一艘井架駁船就足夠搞定，其費(fèi)用為每天70萬美元。還有另外一個(gè)選擇：放任其不管。而那樣做的只會(huì)是貪婪的石油公司，他們打劫海洋，省下幾百萬。然而，讓人吃驚的是，最便宜的選擇也許是最環(huán)保的。

For a start, it takes a lot of energy to move a rig. The ships that would be needed to shiftCalifornia's largest one would emit 29,400 tonnes of carbon dioxide, by one estimate. Andmoving a rig disturbs the organisms that have attached themselves to its underside, or jacket.Far better, some say, to turn old rigs into coral reefs.

一開始，要移除鉆塔需要費(fèi)很大力氣。若想要?jiǎng)蛹又葑畲蟮你@塔，那么運(yùn)輸船在這個(gè)過程中預(yù)估會(huì)釋放出2.94萬噸二氧化碳。而且，移動(dòng)鉆塔會(huì)影響附著在塔周圍的有機(jī)體。若要全面考慮的話，有些人認(rèn)為應(yīng)該把老的鉆塔轉(zhuǎn)換成珊瑚礁。

“Reefing” typically involves bringing a platform's above-water parts ashore and cropping thelower parts to leave at least 26m of clearance: deep enough for ships to pass over, yet shallowenough for photosynthesis to nourish organisms on its upper reaches (see picture). Oil-rigreefs may shelter and feed up to eight tonnes of fish. In 2009 Shell moved a jacket in the Gulfof Mexico ten kilometres (six miles) away. The fish followed.

“珊瑚礁化”過程往往涵蓋了把石油平臺(tái)水上的部分拉上岸以及保證水下部分26米的空隙，這樣方便船只通過，但對(duì)滋潤生物的光合作用空間卻依然不夠(詳情見圖)。石油鉆塔珊瑚礁可以給高達(dá)8噸的魚群提供庇護(hù)以及食物。2009年，謝爾把位于墨西哥灣的鉆塔挪了大概6米，魚群也跟著移動(dòng)了。

More than 490 platforms in American waters have become reefs in the past three decades. Thefederal Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement urges states to issue reefing permits.State coffers gain: oil firms typically hand over half the money they save by reefing.

在過去的三十年間，美國海域里超過490個(gè)石油鉆井平臺(tái)已經(jīng)轉(zhuǎn)變成珊瑚礁了。美國聯(lián)邦安全和環(huán)境執(zhí)法局督促各州“珊瑚礁化”。國庫增加，而且石油公司往往可以從“珊瑚礁化”中直接獲得超過一半的錢。

Those savings vary greatly. Small platforms in shallow waters can often be removed for $10m,but sometimes for as little as $1m, according to DecomWorld, a consultancy. But for stateswith lots of offshore oil rigs, the windfalls soon add up. Mississippi pocketed an average of$625,000 for each of the 12 permits it has issued, according to Melissa Scallan of the state'sDepartment of Marine Resources. Louisiana's take has averaged $270,000 per reefing—and thestate has seen 336 of them, says Mike McDonough of the Louisiana Department of Wildlife andFisheries.

從“珊瑚礁化”中省下的錢數(shù)目各不相同。在淺水海域，小鉆井平臺(tái)所需費(fèi)用大概是1億美元，有時(shí)候也可能只要100萬美元。這些數(shù)據(jù)來源于DecomWorld顧問公司。但是，擁有的海上鉆塔數(shù)量越多，就越能大發(fā)橫財(cái)。國家海洋能源局梅麗莎提供信息，表明在12個(gè)鉆塔中，密西西比州能從中平均每一個(gè)鉆塔獲得62.5萬美元。來自路易斯安那野生動(dòng)物與漁業(yè)局的麥克認(rèn)為，該州平均從每個(gè)珊瑚礁獲利27萬美元，而且目前已經(jīng)發(fā)現(xiàn)了336座珊瑚礁。

Currently, less than a tenth of America's old oil and gas platforms are reefed. Sometimes thereasons for this are practical. For example, platforms may be removed if waiting for a permitmeans weathering another hurricane season (in 2005 150 defunct platforms in the Gulf ofMexico were toppled by winds and waves). Operators typically favour reefing but it is not alwayseconomical or allowed, says David Welch of Stone Energy Corporation. The firm has onlyreefed 12 of the 60 Gulf of Mexico platforms it has decommissioned.

在美國，不到十分之一的老天然氣和石油平臺(tái)珊瑚化。理由往往很現(xiàn)實(shí)。比如，平臺(tái)只要能熬過颶風(fēng)季節(jié)，那么才有可能移除(在2005年，位于墨西哥灣的150座廢棄平臺(tái)被海風(fēng)海浪摧毀)。能源公司的大衛(wèi)·威爾士認(rèn)為，經(jīng)營商特別支持“珊瑚礁化”，但是，這樣做往往不劃算而且也不合法。該公司目前也才將墨西哥灣60座退役平臺(tái)中的12座“珊瑚礁化”。

That share is likely to grow. Within five years oil firms will be reefing one offshore rig in four,predicts Quenton Dokken of the Gulf of Mexico Foundation, a conservation group. Gulf states,particularly Louisiana and Texas, are making “a big push” to streamline the permitting process,he says.

這中趨勢有可能會(huì)增加，墨西哥灣基地的Quenton預(yù)測，在五年內(nèi)，石油公司將能把四分之一的海上鉆井平臺(tái)“珊瑚礁化”。海灣各州，特別是路易斯安那州和德州，正在努力簡化審批流程。

Far bigger savings are possible in the deep waters off California. Four years ago the GoldenState passed a law allowing reefing. Operators are loth to estimate costs publicly, but theTulane University Energy Institute reckons that reefing the state's 27 platforms could save $2billion. A platform or two could be retired as early as next year, though rising oil prices maymean they keep pumping longer.

在遠(yuǎn)離加州海岸線的深水區(qū)里，省下的錢或許會(huì)更多。四年前，加州通過了一項(xiàng)允許“珊瑚化”的法律。經(jīng)營商并不愿意公開費(fèi)用，但是杜蘭大學(xué)能源學(xué)院認(rèn)為，將該州27個(gè)鉆井平臺(tái)“珊瑚礁化”能夠省下20億美元。盡管上升的油價(jià)會(huì)迫使鉆井平臺(tái)產(chǎn)生更多價(jià)值，但其中有1-2個(gè)平臺(tái)最早在明年就會(huì)停止使用。

The California Ocean Science Trust, a research group that has advised lawmakers, thinks thatplatforms increase marine life and should not all be removed. Skyli McAfee, the group'sdirector, describes this conclusion as “a big fat duh”. Studies by Milton Love, a marinebiologist at the University of California, Santa Barbara, support it. Oil platforms serve as“excellent nursery grounds” that boost fish populations, he says. The bocaccio, a rockfishwhose numbers are worrying fishing authorities, is one big beneficiary.

加州海洋科學(xué)信托研究機(jī)構(gòu)，認(rèn)為這些平臺(tái)使得海洋生物繁殖，不應(yīng)該全部被移除。該機(jī)構(gòu)主任斯蓋里·麥考非將這一結(jié)論描述為“一個(gè)大胖墩”。加州大學(xué)圣芭芭拉分校的生物學(xué)家彌爾頓發(fā)表一份研究，支持該結(jié)論。石油鉆井平臺(tái)就像“優(yōu)質(zhì)育兒室”，促進(jìn)魚類繁殖。其中曾經(jīng)一度讓魚類學(xué)家擔(dān)心會(huì)走向滅絕的菖鲉目前是最大受益者。

Yet the odds of preserving most oil-rig reefs look bleak. Public opposition is robust. Not oneplatform off California has been reefed. Activists quote the findings of scientists such as JamesCowan, an oceanographer at Louisiana State University, who studied isotopes, tissue caloricdensities and the stomach contents of creatures from both natural and artificial reefs andconcluded that the latter generate no extra biomass. The Environmental Defence Centre inSanta Barbara, a group that files anti-development lawsuits, advocates the complete removal ofoil platforms. Linda Krop, its chief counsel, says that abandoned structures might damageanchors, rob natural reefs of fish and even leach poisons. She does, however, acknowledgethe environmental damage associated with complete removal.

然而，要盡可能多地保留石油鉆機(jī)塔的幾率看起來很渺茫。公眾對(duì)此嗤之以鼻。加州海上鉆井塔沒有一個(gè)已經(jīng)“珊瑚礁化”。激進(jìn)分子引用一些科學(xué)家的研究結(jié)果，比如路易斯安娜州大學(xué)海洋學(xué)家詹姆斯·柯旺在研究同位素、組織熱量密度及天然珊瑚礁與人工珊瑚礁上的生物胃內(nèi)情況之后，得出結(jié)論，人工珊瑚礁不會(huì)為生物提供生活所需。圣芭芭拉環(huán)境保護(hù)中心主要任務(wù)就是給反運(yùn)動(dòng)的法律訴訟存檔，他們提倡完全移除石油鉆井平臺(tái)。其首席律師琳達(dá)·科咯普認(rèn)為廢棄的建筑可能會(huì)破壞錨、珊瑚礁，甚至?xí)�釋放有毒物質(zhì)。然而，她也承認(rèn)完全移除這些平臺(tái)也會(huì)對(duì)環(huán)境造成破壞。

When reefs cause grief

當(dāng)珊瑚礁引發(fā)災(zāi)難

Greenpeace, a pressure group, makes a different argument. John Hocevar, its head of oceancampaigns, concedes that in some locations reefed platforms, if non-toxic, may increase marinelife. But they should be banned anyway, he says, because they save the oil firms money andtherefore encourage them to drill more.

綠色和平組織給出了不同的意見。該組織海洋運(yùn)動(dòng)的領(lǐng)頭人約翰承認(rèn)在一些海域，如果“珊瑚礁化”的平臺(tái)無毒，那么久有可能促進(jìn)海洋生物的繁殖。但是，無論如何都要禁止這些鉆井平臺(tái)“珊瑚礁化”。因?yàn)?ldquo;珊瑚礁化”可以幫助石油公司省下一大筆錢，這樣一來，便會(huì)煽動(dòng)他們?nèi)ズＩ祥_采更多的石油。

The debate is likely to intensify. In the Gulf of Mexico some 400 platforms are now beingdecommissioned each year. Divers and many fishermen want more to be reefed; shrimperscomplain that reefs prevent them from dragging nets across parts of the ocean floor. InCalifornia operators must decide quickly if they wish to turn redundant rigs into reefs. Until2017 firms can keep 45% of the savings. After that the figure falls to 35% until 2023; then itdrops to just 20%.

討論越趨激烈。每年，墨西哥灣有400座鉆井平臺(tái)停止使用。潛水員和漁民希望鉆井平臺(tái)“珊瑚礁化”越多越好，而捕蝦人卻抱怨珊瑚礁會(huì)妨礙他們?cè)谘蟮兹鼍W(wǎng)。在加州，經(jīng)營商如果想把多余的鉆井平臺(tái)變成珊瑚礁，他們必須盡快做出決定。到2017年，石油公司可以保證省下45%的費(fèi)用，2017年以后，降至35%，到2023年，降至20%。

For now, the evidence suggests that reefing is a rare policy. It is both eco-friendly and paysfor itself.

至今為止，“珊瑚礁化”這一政策是很罕見的，這樣做不僅環(huán)保而且很負(fù)責(zé)。

1.break up 結(jié)束

例句:It can break up a bad traffic snarl.

它可以結(jié)束嚴(yán)重的交通混亂局面。

2.enough to 足夠

例句:That was enough to give Mansell anunassailable lead.

那足以讓曼塞爾獲得別人無法撼動(dòng)的領(lǐng)先地位。

3.expect to 期待

例句:If a writer does not go deep among the masses, he cannot expect to turn out goodworks.

當(dāng)作家而不深入群眾，就不會(huì)寫出好作品來。

4.need to 需要

例句:Most people recognise the need to pay a golden hello to attract the best.

大多數(shù)人都認(rèn)識(shí)到需要用高額聘金來吸引精英人才。