美国国家公共电台 NPR--Encore: Beach grass could be key to protecting the Aquinnah Wampanoag homeland

Encore: Beach grass could be key to protecting the Aquinnah Wampanoag homeland

Transcript¹

Beach grass could be key to protecting the Aquinnah Wampanoag homeland

A MARTINEZ, HOST:

On a Massachusetts island, members of a Native American tribe are determined² to protect their homelands from the impacts of climate change. Their solution - planting 20,000 stems of beach grass by hand. From member station WCAI, Eve Zuckoff reports from Martha's Vineyard.

JAMES MOREIS: We're going to go further down.

EVE ZUCKOFF, BYLINE³: On a sunny spring morning, James Moreis and his 6-year-old daughter Akinah are poking⁴ holes in a sand dune⁵ on a remote, picturesque⁶ beach. They're among the many volunteers and members of the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head Aquinnah who showed up to plant beach grass along an 800-foot stretch.

AKINAH: This is how you make holes.

MOREIS: Yeah? Then what?

AKINAH: Then you make more holes.

ZUCKOFF: The holes are spaced about a foot apart at the base of the dune. And into each, they place two stiff spears of tan grass that resembles hay.

MOREIS: You want me to help you?

AKINAH: OK. Let's do it together, Daddy.

MOREIS: All right.

ZUCKOFF: With sun and time, the spears will become the green blades common on postcard-worthy island vistas⁷.

MOREIS: When you do it now, this time of the year - it's the wet season - gives it time for the roots to build up and everything.

ZUCKOFF: Over the last few years, volunteers have planted about 100,000 blades of beach grass to create a mile-long dune in this area that was restored to the tribe during its federal recognition process in 1987. Now the land is threatened by erosion, sea level rise and more frequent and intense storms - all impacts of climate change jeopardizing⁸ many coastal⁹ communities. But beach grass planting could save the area before it's too late.

ANDREW JACOBS: It takes, you know, one huge storm to come in and take that all away.

ZUCKOFF: That's Andrew Jacobs, laboratory manager for the Aquinnah tribe. He says Hurricane Sandy in 2012 washed away much of the dune and the adjacent road. In 2016, his team trucked in around 116 million pounds of sand to replenish¹⁰ the beach. But that still wasn't enough. Without the unsung hero that is beach grass, there'd likely be no dune left today. Jacobs says that's because of how this little plant grows.

JACOBS: The roots - they overlap¹¹. They intertwine. They create this beautiful lattice that really just holds in the sand.

ZUCKOFF: Dunes¹² with beach grass are more stable when storms strike. They're the first crucial line of defense¹³ against powerful waves, protecting homes, businesses and everything that lies behind them. Plus, beach grass is native to the East Coast, so planting it won't cause ecological¹⁴, economic or cultural harm. That's according to Alyson Eberhardt, a coastal ecologist with the University of New Hampshire.

ALYSON EBERHARDT: If you're working in dune restoration in our part of the country, then you are immediately going to beach grass because it's a critical tool in restoring sand dunes.

ZUCKOFF: With climate change, the work keeps getting harder and more essential for people like Bret Stearns, who's helped manage the tribe's natural resources department for nearly three decades.

BRET STEARNS: When I started this career, we were planners. And now I think we're emergency responders. We have to be looking five, 10, 20 years out all the time. But the 20 come sooner than we think all the time.

ZUCKOFF: And for the Aquinnah Wampanoag people, making the island more resilient is necessary to maintain their homes and their heritage.

For NPR News in Woods Hole, Mass., I'm Eve Zuckoff.

(SOUNDBITE OF NUJABES' "SPIRAL")

1 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

2 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。

3 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

4 poking   

n. 刺，戳，袋 vt. 拨开，刺，戳 vi. 戳，刺，捅，搜索，伸出，行动散慢

参考例句：

• He was poking at the rubbish with his stick. 他正用手杖拨动垃圾。
• He spent his weekends poking around dusty old bookshops. 他周末都泡在布满尘埃的旧书店里。

5 dune   

n.(由风吹积而成的)沙丘

参考例句：

• The sand massed to form a dune.沙积集起来成了沙丘。
• Cute Jim sat on the dune eating a prune in June.可爱的吉姆在六月天坐在沙丘上吃着话梅。

6 picturesque   

adj.美丽如画的，（语言）生动的，绘声绘色的

参考例句：

• You can see the picturesque shores beside the river.在河边你可以看到景色如画的两岸。
• That was a picturesque phrase.那是一个形象化的说法。

7 vistas   

长条形景色( vista的名词复数 )； 回顾； 展望； （未来可能发生的）一系列情景

参考例句：

• This new job could open up whole new vistas for her. 这项新工作可能给她开辟全新的前景。
• The picture is small but It'shows broad vistas. 画幅虽然不大，所表现的天地却十分广阔。

8 jeopardizing   

危及，损害( jeopardize的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Plans may also become inefficient in the attainment of objectives by jeopardizing group satisfactions. 用危及群体利益方法去达到目标的计划，也是无效率的。
• That boosted government revenues in the short term, but is now jeopardizing them. Morales将天然气工业，电信业和部分采矿业收归国有的举措吓跑了投资者们。

9 coastal   

adj.海岸的，沿海的，沿岸的

参考例句：

• The ocean waves are slowly eating away the coastal rocks.大海的波浪慢慢地侵蚀着岸边的岩石。
• This country will fortify the coastal areas.该国将加强沿海地区的防御。

10 replenish   

vt.补充；(把…)装满；(再)填满

参考例句：

• I always replenish my food supply before it is depleted.我总是在我的食物吃完之前加以补充。
• We have to import an extra 4 million tons of wheat to replenish our reserves.我们不得不额外进口四百万吨小麦以补充我们的储备。

11 overlap   

v.重叠，与…交叠；n.重叠

参考例句：

• The overlap between the jacket and the trousers is not good.夹克和裤子重叠的部分不好看。
• Tiles overlap each other.屋瓦相互叠盖。

12 dunes   

沙丘( dune的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The boy galloped over the dunes barefoot. 那男孩光着脚在沙丘间飞跑。
• Dragging the fully laden boat across the sand dunes was no mean feat. 将满载货物的船拖过沙丘是一件了不起的事。

13 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

14 ecological   

adj.生态的，生态学的

参考例句：

• 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.