VOA慢速英语-Agriculture Report - Probable Sale of America’s Larg

Florida is to get more than 75,000 hectares of land to help restore famous wetlands. Transcript¹ of radio broadcast:
21 July 2008

This is the VOA Special English Agriculture Report.
　

U.S. Sugar is based in Clewiston, Florida. The company plans to sell its land to the state for Everglades restoration.

The United States Sugar Corporation and the State of Florida are negotiating² final sale of more than seventy-five thousand hectares of the company's land to the state. The land is north of America's famous Everglades National Park. The park is a protected wild area of wetlands sometimes called "a biological treasure."

U.S. Sugar is America's largest cane³ sugar producer. The sale is to be completed by November thirtieth. A temporary agreement calls for Florida to pay one-point-seven-five billion dollars for the land and other U.S. Sugar properties.

U.S. Sugar is to continue farming the land for six years. Then the company will surrender the land and its other holdings and close operations. It employs about one thousand seven hundred people.

Florida has been seeking to restore and improve the Everglades for years. The state government controls a large system of park, forest and wildlife centers in the area. Buying U.S. Sugar would give Florida an improved link between Lake Okeechobee and the Everglades. Farming and development in the area has cut off the natural flow of water. With farms removed, water could collect and run down into the part of the Everglades called the River of Grass. The River of Grass is a natural wetland.

Activists⁵ for the environment say they are extremely pleased by the planned sale. It comes after disputes between U.S. Sugar and state and private groups about water flow and pollution. One environmental activist⁴ group suggests creating environmental centers for tourists to provide jobs lost in the sale.

U.S. Sugar produces only about nine percent of the raw sugar in the nation. The United States gets its sugar mainly from Caribbean, South American and other countries.

The sugar industry in the United States has been trying hard to compete with less costly⁶ imported foreign sugar. U.S. Sugar is among leaders in representing sugar industry interests to national and state lawmakers. Some observers say the sugar industry will be less effective in influencing legislation⁷ without U.S. Sugar.

The company was established in nineteen thirty-one, during the Great Depression. The company's Southern Gardens Citrus operation grows and processes citrus fruit.

And that's the VOA Special English Agriculture Report, written by Jerilyn Watson. I'm Faith Lapidus.

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 negotiating   

n. 谈判 动词negotiate的现在分词

参考例句：

• They were coerced into negotiating a settlement. 他们被迫通过谈判解决。
• We want to get all the parties back to the negotiating table. 我们想把有关各方拉回到谈判桌上来。

3 cane   

n.手杖，细长的茎，藤条；v.以杖击，以藤编制的

参考例句：

• This sugar cane is quite a sweet and juicy.这甘蔗既甜又多汁。
• English schoolmasters used to cane the boys as a punishment.英国小学老师过去常用教鞭打男学生作为惩罚。

4 activist   

n.活动分子，积极分子

参考例句：

• He's been a trade union activist for many years.多年来他一直是工会的积极分子。
• He is a social activist in our factory.他是我厂的社会活动积极分子。

5 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• 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》

6 costly   

adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的

参考例句：

• It must be very costly to keep up a house like this.维修这么一幢房子一定很昂贵。
• This dictionary is very useful,only it is a bit costly.这本词典很有用，左不过贵了些。

7 legislation   

n.立法，法律的制定；法规，法律

参考例句：

• They began to draft legislation.他们开始起草法规。
• The liberals band together against the new legislation.自由党员联合一致反对新的立法。