VOA标准英语2013--New York City Studies Response to Rising Seas

 

New York City Studies Response to Rising Seas

When Hurricane Sandy struck last October, New York got a taste of what its future could be.

One Brooklyn youngster, Jerry Gonzalez, was in the midst of it.

“The water was up to half of the door, and then we had to get buckets and try to take out all the water," he said. "Until we opened the door, and we saw the refrigerator floating on the water."

In New York City, the waters surged more than four meters above the average high tide mark.

Klaus Jacob is a research scientist at the Lamont-Doherty Observatory¹ at Columbia University. He describes what New York would look like if sea levels around the island city rise by 70 centimeters, as some studies predict they will by the year 2100.

“It would look like Wall Street doesn’t have yellow taxis. But it might have yellow taxi boats," said Jacob.

Jacob says below-grade basements would have to be sealed, and heating, cooling and electrical equipment would move to higher floors. Subways entrances and air grates would have to be redesigned.

The federal government's Emergency Management Agency, FEMA, has released new flood zone maps for New York to review. New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg calls the maps a blueprint² for the future.

“Those maps will guide us in setting new construction requirements to ensure that buildings can withstand intense winds and waves that we expect down the road," he said. "The fact of the matter is we live next to the ocean, and ocean comes with risks . If , as many scientists project, sea levels continue rising, however, there may be some coastline projections³ we can build that will mitigate⁴ the impact of a storm surge-from berms and dunes⁵, to jetties and levees."

Columbia University's Klaus Jacob believes elevation⁶ is key. Like the Highline, an abandoned railroad track turned into a fashionable promenade⁷, life above sea level could become routine.

"And we may want to have many more Highlines connecting skyscrapers," he said. "Some of them even may have transportation systems above ground instead of just subways." 

Michael Byrne is FEMA's coordinator⁸ in New York. He says decisions about building and rebuilding after Hurricane Sandy must be planned intelligently.

“Elevation is only one of the methods to protect," said Byrne. "We can build sea walls, we can build levees, we can choose not to rebuild at a place. We can do buyouts so that people can move on with their lives in a safer place.”

Scientists say the seas have risen 20 to 30 centimeters over the past 100 years and some experts believe they could rise another 1.5 meters by the end of this century. Coastal⁹ cities and island nations are at greatest risk.

But whether the sea rises by five centimeters or 70 - the prediction for New York - residents of this city know they will either have to keep the ocean out or retreat to higher ground. 

1 observatory   

n.天文台，气象台，瞭望台，观测台

参考例句：

• Guy's house was close to the observatory.盖伊的房子离天文台很近。
• Officials from Greenwich Observatory have the clock checked twice a day.格林威治天文台的职员们每天对大钟检查两次。

2 blueprint   

n.蓝图，设计图，计划；vt.制成蓝图，计划

参考例句：

• All the machine parts on a blueprint must answer each other.设计图上所有的机器部件都应互相配合。
• The documents contain a blueprint for a nuclear device.文件内附有一张核装置的设计蓝图。

3 projections   

预测( projection的名词复数 )； 投影； 投掷； 突起物

参考例句：

• Their sales projections are a total thumbsuck. 他们的销售量预测纯属估计。
• The council has revised its projections of funding requirements upwards. 地方议会调高了对资金需求的预测。

4 mitigate   

vt.（使）减轻，（使）缓和

参考例句：

• The government is trying to mitigate the effects of inflation.政府正试图缓和通货膨胀的影响。
• Governments should endeavour to mitigate distress.政府应努力缓解贫困问题。

5 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。

6 elevation   

n.高度；海拔；高地；上升；提高

参考例句：

• The house is at an elevation of 2,000 metres.那幢房子位于海拔两千米的高处。
• His elevation to the position of General Manager was announced yesterday.昨天宣布他晋升总经理职位。

7 promenade   

n./v.散步

参考例句：

• People came out in smarter clothes to promenade along the front.人们穿上更加时髦漂亮的衣服，沿着海滨散步。
• We took a promenade along the canal after Sunday dinner.星期天晚饭后我们沿着运河散步。

8 coordinator   

n.协调人

参考例句：

• The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, headed by the Emergency Relief Coordinator, coordinates all UN emergency relief. 联合国人道主义事务协调厅在紧急救济协调员领导下，负责协调联合国的所有紧急救济工作。
• How am I supposed to find the client-relations coordinator? 我怎么才能找到客户关系协调员的办公室？

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。