A healthy environment is essential for humans to have a high standard of living, but every day, people take it for granted and slowly the environment is being destroyed. The world faces several environmental issues such as the depletion of the ozone layer, the greenhouse effect, global warming, the melting of the polar ice caps, and the destruction of the world’s rainforests. Several large cities such as Shanghai face more localized issues such as air pollution that the locals must breathe and water pollution that the people must drink. Being environmentally friendly and “green” is not only a hip thing now but it soon may be a necessity for ensuring the survival of the human species.
There are several ways that one can contribute to helping the environment:
一些非再生性能源，比如煤與汽油，因?yàn)閮r(jià)格低被人們優(yōu)先使用，再生性的能源比如風(fēng)力發(fā)電等被人置之不理，而現(xiàn)在隨著汽油資源的日漸短缺，風(fēng)力渦輪機(jī)已成現(xiàn)實(shí)，這不僅可以獲得能源，也不給環(huán)境造成負(fù)面的影響，不像傳統(tǒng)的電廠，冒出黑煙。
Non-Renewable energy resources such as coal and gas have traditionally been preferred over renewable energy sources such as wind energy due to their cheaper cost. However, in light of the depletion of those non-renewable resources, including the oncoming global struggle for oil resources, these alternatives are becoming more and more of a reality. Here we see a line of several wind turbines in the middle of the ocean, where the wind is able to pick up lots of momentum and naturally spin the turbines, generating electrical power with no negative effects on the environment.
另外一種再生性能源是水力，可以利用自然的瀑布，也可以人為制造水壩形成水流的落差，借用水力帶動(dòng)發(fā)電機(jī)發(fā)電，這也是人類巧妙利用自然賦予的條件，服務(wù)于自身的智慧之舉。
Another renewable energy source is hydroelectric power. This involves harnessing the power of falling water, which is a naturally occurring phenomenon that is found at waterfalls, and also can be artificially created using a dam. The weight of the falling water can spin water turbines which are connected to electrical generators. Dams block the flow of water in a river and allow people to control the fall of water to generate this electrical power.
如圖所示，是化石燃料的電廠。人類擁有煤炭，石油和天然氣等化石燃料，數(shù)年來一直用這些為我們提供電能和熱能，但這確實(shí)是把雙刃劍---燃燒的廢氣無法沖破大氣層，因此導(dǎo)致了溫室效應(yīng)，也導(dǎo)致了酸雨，殺滅了許多江湖里的水生動(dòng)物。為了減少廢氣排放，我們開始采取一些措施，比如在煙囪里使用一些化學(xué)物質(zhì)，盡可能多的抵消有毒氣體，讓有害物質(zhì)盡可能少地排入空氣里。
Pictured here is a fossil fuel power plant. Humans owe fossil fuels like coal, oil and natural gas for powering their appliances and heating their homes for decades, but burning these fuels for energy is a double edged sword. The waste products generated from burning them leads to problems such as the greenhouse effect where heat is unable to escape from the earth’s atmosphere and acid rain, which may kill aquatic life in lakes and rivers. Measures can be taken to help reduce these harmful waste products by using chemicals in the smokestacks to help absorb these toxins before they are released into the environment.
每個(gè)個(gè)人都有責(zé)任和義務(wù)，在這個(gè)世界上盡少地留下“碳足跡”，意思是，盡量少地污染環(huán)境。我們都應(yīng)該遵守“3R準(zhǔn)則”：再利用，減少使用和重復(fù)使用。再利用（回收）是將使用過的材料處理又變成新的可以使用，這樣就不浪費(fèi)一點(diǎn)潛在有用的東西，常被回收的東西有：塑料、玻璃和紙張；減少使用是限制你的消費(fèi)量；重復(fù)使用在你丟棄物品之前，盡可能多地使用它。
Every human has the responsibility to try to minimize their carbon footprint on the world. That is, they should strive to minimize the amount of environmentally harmful waste they contribute to the environment. They can do this by following the “three R’s”: Recycle, reduce, and reuse. Recycling involves taking used materials and processing them so they are new again, thereby not wasting any potentially useful substances. Commonly recycled items include plastics, glass, and paper. Reducing involves limiting your overall consumption. Reusing involves getting the most out of the produces you consume by using them multiple times before discarding them.
如果你馬上就想行動(dòng)，對(duì)環(huán)境做點(diǎn)好事，明天就把汽車鑰匙留在家里，步行上班。汽車是城市污染的重要來源，不僅排放廢氣加劇溫室效應(yīng)，而且導(dǎo)致噪音污染，讓城市愈加焦慮。步行或者騎車上班，不僅省了汽油，還能鍛煉身體，更能有助環(huán)境。
If you want to make an immediate positive impact on the environment, then leave your car keys at home tomorrow and walk to work instead. Automobiles are a major contributor to pollution in large cities such as Shanghai, and they can contribute to the greenhouse effect just like fossil fuel plants. They also are a contributor to noise pollution which can add to the anxiety of city life. By walking or riding your bike to work you save gas, get exercise and are friendly to the environment.
樹木逐漸被砍伐，讓位于工業(yè)化。植樹造林至關(guān)重要，樹木吐露芬芳的氧氣，為野生動(dòng)物提供了居所，也為人類提供蔭涼，哪怕是顆樹苗抑或一粒種子，好好開始培育吧，那是你在這個(gè)世界上，留下的足跡。
Trees are being cut every day to make space for industrialization. This is why it is very important to plant trees whenever possible. Trees provide oxygen to the environment, wood, homes for many wildlife, and shade for people. You can plant a tree from a seed or a seedling, just make sure you do your research before attempting to plant one or it will die.
不管在家還是在辦公室，離開房間的時(shí)候，關(guān)掉電燈，電腦，音響和電視，這些消耗電能的產(chǎn)品，讓它徒勞的消費(fèi)能源，又不為我們所用，著實(shí)很可惜。
At work or at home, when you leave a room, turn off all of your equipment. This includes lights, computers, stereos, and televisions, as they are all heavy consumers of electricity.
水是寶貴的資源，沒有它人類無法生活，我們不能浪費(fèi)一滴水，檢查一下水管和水龍頭，是否關(guān)閉嚴(yán)密，洗澡的時(shí)候，也要學(xué)會(huì)控制水量，不要讓噴淋無休止地噴灑。
Water is a precious resource and without it, humans would not be able to survive. That’s why we should treasure it and never even waste a single drop. Make sure your water taps are all completely shut off, and limit the amount and length of showers you take.
我們生活的今天，這個(gè)地球需要呵護(hù)，從自己做起，從現(xiàn)在做起，從我們?nèi)绾稳ド习?，到我們決定產(chǎn)品怎么包裝，請(qǐng)把綠色揣在胸間，因?yàn)槲覀儞碛型粋€(gè)家園，我們還要用自己的行動(dòng)創(chuàng)造更美的空間，這影響深遠(yuǎn)，還能受惠我們的子孫，正如奧巴馬所說：這不是天方夜譚，這是科學(xué)，氣候的改變，將威脅我們的安全，我們的經(jīng)濟(jì)，直至我們的地球！
We live in a day and age where the Earth’s future depends heavily on every individual’s personal choices, from how they get to work to what kind of packaging they use for their products. By being environmentally friendly, you are not only making the world a better place to live for you and your neighbors, but also for future generations such as your children and grandchildren. To illustrate the level of importance of saving the environment, I would like to share with you a quote from Barack Obama. In his recent visit to the Copenhagen Climate Summit he said, "This is not fiction, this is science. Unchecked, climate change will pose unacceptable risks to our security, our economies, and our planet."
聯(lián)系客服
