North American Pollution Report

 

Broadcast: May 2, 2003
By George Grow

This is the VOA Special English Environment Report.
A new study has both good news and bad news about pollution in North America. It found that industrial releases into the environment dropped five percent between nineteen-ninety-five and two-thousand. The report shows that some of North America's largest polluters reduced their pollution during this period.
But not so with smaller polluters. From nineteen-ninety-eight to two-thousand, smaller polluters put thirty-two percent more chemicals into the air, ground and water. This finding is based on a group of fifteen-thousand industrial centers across North America. These facilities release up to one-hundred tons of chemicals a year. They represent the majority of polluters in the United States and Canada.
The study also examined three-thousand-six-hundred facilities that release more than one-hundred tons of chemicals a year. These polluters reported a seven-percent reduction in pollutants¹ between nineteen-ninety-eight and two-thousand. However, they still were responsible for ninety percent of the total pollution.
Industrial polluters include factories, electric power stations, chemical producers, mines and places that treat dangerous wastes.
The report is from the Commission² for Environmental Cooperation. This group was established as part of the North American Free Trade Agreement.
The commission found more than three-point-three million tons of chemicals released into the environment in two-thousand. Some of these chemicals have been linked to cancer. Others cause developmental or reproductive problems.
The report says more than one-third of the releases in two-thousand came from five American states and the Canadian province of Ontario1. The five states were Texas, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Indiana. The commission notes that Mexico has not required polluters to report their chemical releases, but is developing such a system.
Victor Shantora is acting³ head of the Commission for Environmental Cooperation. He says it is sad to see such a large number of facilities releasing more pollution into the environment. He says small polluters might not make as much news as large ones, but their effect is being felt throughout North America.
This Special English Environment Report was written by George Grow.
1. Ontario [Cn5tZErIEu] 安大略湖[北美洲中东部](美国和加拿大共有的湖)

1 pollutants   

污染物质（尤指工业废物）( pollutant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Pollutants are constantly being released into the atmosphere. 污染物质正在不断地被排放到大气中去。
• The 1987 Amendments limit 301(g) discharges to a few well-studied nonconventional pollutants. 1987年的修正案把第301条（g）的普通排放限制施加在一些认真研究过的几种非常规污染物上。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法

2 commission   

n.委托，授权，委员会，拥金，回扣，委任状

参考例句：

• The salesman can get commission on everything he sells.这个售货员能得到所售每件货物的佣金。
• The commission is made up of five people,including two women.委员会由五人组成，其中包括两名妇女。

3 acting   

n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的

参考例句：

• Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。
• During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。