VOA标准英语2012--Public Hearings on Popular Pesticide Spotlight Safety Concerns
时间：2019-01-13 作者：英语课 分类：VOA标准英语2012年(六月)
Public Hearings on Popular Pesticide 1 Spotlight 2 Safety Concerns
Every year, U.S. farmers apply more than 35 million kilograms of the pesticide atrazine on their fields of corn, sugarcane, sorghum 3 and other crops.
But a growing body of scientific evidence - including the discovery of small amounts of atrazine in many US waterways - have raised new concerns about its safety.
Recently, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, or EPA, convened 4 a scientific advisory 5 panel and held public hearings to review the impact of atrazine on humans and the environment.
"There is probably agreement among everyone that, at a high enough exposure, at a high enough dose, atrazine can cause effects," said Steven Bradbury, the EPA's director of pesticide programs.
During four days of hearings, scientists and activists 6 offered conflicting views on the safety of atrazine.
Kerry Kriger heads Save the Frogs, an environmental group.
He said at least 2,000 amphibian 7 species are threatened with extinction 8.
"The vast majority of the world's amphibian biologists agree that atrazine is extremely harmful to amphibians 9. Abundant scientific literature from labs around the world has demonstrated atrazine's harmful effect on an array of wild life," he said.
Kriger said the adverse 10 effects on frogs include infertility 11, miscarriages 12 and weakened immune systems.
But Syngenta, the main producer of atrazine, says the chemical is safe, and the company sent several of its scientists to the hearings to make that case.
Keith Solomon was one of them. "There is no strong evidence supporting a causal relationship between exposure to atrazine and adverse effects in amphibians and if you want, include fish and reptiles 13, as well you could," he said.
Government scientists also presented evidence suggesting that atrazine may be more toxic 14 to plants than to animals.
"In the case of effects on aquatic 15 ecosystems 16, the peer review was looking at what is the potential effect of atrazine on aquatic plants and aquatic plants' community structure, sort of like the house for the whole ecological 17 system," Bradbury said.
Atrazine's license 18 is up for federal renewal 19 next year.
The advisory panel has three months to present its recommendations to the US government.
- The pesticide was spread over the vegetable plot.菜田里撒上了农药。
- This pesticide is diluted with water and applied directly to the fields.这种杀虫剂用水稀释后直接施用在田里。
- This week the spotlight is on the world of fashion.本周引人瞩目的是时装界。
- The spotlight followed her round the stage.聚光灯的光圈随着她在舞台上转。
- We can grow sorghum or maize on this plot.这块地可以种高粱或玉米。
- They made sorghum into pig feed.他们把高粱做成了猪饲料。
- The chairman convened the committee to put the issue to a vote. 主席召集委员们开会对这个问题进行表决。
- The governor convened his troops to put down the revolt. 总督召集他的部队去镇压叛乱。
- I have worked in an advisory capacity with many hospitals.我曾在多家医院做过顾问工作。
- He was appointed to the advisory committee last month.他上个月获任命为顾问委员会委员。
- His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
- Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》
- The frog is an amphibian,which means it can live on land and in water.青蛙属于两栖动物，也就是说它既能生活在陆地上也能生活在水里。
- Amphibian is an important specie in ecosystem and has profound meaning in the ecotoxicology evaluation.两栖类是生态系统中的重要物种，并且对环境毒理评价有着深远意义。
- The plant is now in danger of extinction.这种植物现在有绝种的危险。
- The island's way of life is doomed to extinction.这个岛上的生活方式注定要消失。
- The skin of amphibians is permeable to water. 两栖动物的皮肤是透水的。
- Two amphibians ferry them out over the sands. 两辆水陆两用车把他们渡过沙滩。
- He is adverse to going abroad.他反对出国。
- The improper use of medicine could lead to severe adverse reactions.用药不当会产生严重的不良反应。
- It is the Geneva, Switzerland-based Biotech Company's second recombinant infertility drug. 它是瑞士生物技术公司在日内瓦的公司生产的第二种重组治疗不孕症的药。 来自英汉非文学 - 生命科学 - 生物技术制药疫苗
- Endometritis is a cause of infertility. 子宫内膜炎是不育的原子。 来自辞典例句
- Miscarriages are usually caused by abnormal chromosome patterns in the fetus. 流产通常是因为胎儿的染色体异常造成的。
- Criminals go unpunishedareconvicted and are miscarriages of justice. 罪犯会逍遥法外，法律会伤及无辜，审判不公时有发生。
- Snakes and crocodiles are both reptiles. 蛇和鳄鱼都是爬行动物。 来自《简明英汉词典》
- Birds, reptiles and insects come from eggs. 鸟类、爬虫及昆虫是卵生的。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
- The factory had accidentally released a quantity of toxic waste into the sea.这家工厂意外泄漏大量有毒废物到海中。
- There is a risk that toxic chemicals might be blasted into the atmosphere.爆炸后有毒化学物质可能会进入大气层。
- Aquatic sports include swimming and rowing.水上运动包括游泳和划船。
- We visited an aquatic city in Italy.我们在意大利访问过一个水上城市。
- There are highly sensitive and delicately balanced ecosystems in the forest. 森林里有高度敏感、灵敏平衡的各种生态系统。 来自《简明英汉词典》
- Madagascar's ecosystems range from rainforest to semi-desert. 马达加斯加生态系统类型多样，从雨林到半荒漠等不一而足。 来自辞典例句
- The region has been declared an ecological disaster zone.这个地区已经宣布为生态灾难区。
- Each animal has its ecological niche.每种动物都有自己的生态位.
- The foreign guest has a license on the person.这个外国客人随身携带执照。
- The driver was arrested for having false license plates on his car.司机由于使用假车牌而被捕。