|
As record-breaking fires burn across the western United States, President Donald Trump remains skeptical that climate change is a factor. 这一次,美国西部的火灾史无前例，气候变化是否加剧此次火灾，唐纳德.特朗普对此持怀疑态度。 Here he is Monday at a meeting with California officials. 周一，在与加州官员开会时，他表示。 It'll start getting cooler, you just watch. 天气会变凉的，拭目以待吧。 I wish science agreed with you. 我希望科学能认同你的观点。 Oh well I don't think science knows actually. 我认为科学并不知道这一点。 Yet science has been sounding the alarm about climate change for a long time says university of California Merced wildfire expert Leroy Westerling. 然而，加州大学默塞德野火专家勒罗伊.韦斯特林表示，科学早已敲响了气候变化的警钟。 We' ve been doing modeling and simulation for years now that indicates that these really severe widespread fire seasons are coming. 多年来，我们一直在做建模和模拟。现在，这些模拟结果表明，真正严重且大范围的火灾季节即将到来。 And we' re seeing that emerge in real time. 不久后，我们将目睹这一情况。 Wildfires need dry plants to burn. 野火需要干燥的植物。 And climate change is increasing the supply he says. 韦斯特林表示，气候变化增加了干燥的植物。 Studies show the west has warmed over the last century and warmer air dries things faster. 研究表明，在过去的一个世纪，西方变暖了，温暖的空气使植物更快变干。 That means even a normal year would be drier. 这意味着即使是正常年份植物也将更干燥。 But these have not been normal years he says. 但他表示，最近几年不是正常年份。 We had a drought for five years earlier in the 21st century here that was unprecedented in probably the last thousand to twelve hundred years at least. 21世纪早期，我们经历了五年干旱，在过去的1000到1200年间，这前所未有。 And warmer weather is melting the west's water reserves in the mountains. 温暖的天气融化了西部山区的水源储备。 The region relies on winter snow accumulation to provide long- lasting water supplies says wildfire expert Jessica Holovsky with the US forest service. 美国林业局野火专家杰西卡.霍洛夫斯基表示，美国西部依靠冬季积雪获得长期的水源补给。 We're seeing more precipitation falling as rain rather than snow. 未来，更多的降水将通过降雨而非降雪。 The snowpack isn't lasting as long with the higher temperatures. 温度越高，积雪持续时间就越短。 So it's running off earlier in the season. 所以，积雪在这个季节已经过早融化。 Leaving less water when the dry summer months arrive. 干燥夏季到来时，积雪将更少。 And warmer drier conditions have helped tree-killing beetles multiply. 天气更温暖、更干燥，能杀死树木的甲虫因此能大量繁殖。 All this has left roughly 150 million dead flammable trees standing in California's forests alone. 仅加州的森林就有约1.5亿棵极度易燃的树木。 But Hollowski says humans share the blame for the fires. 但是霍洛夫斯基表示，此次火灾也要归咎于人类。 Smaller fires used to happen naturally which thinned out the forests. 在过去，小型火灾经常是自然发生，从而使森林稀疏。 We have suppressed fire very effectively since World War-II that means there are more fuels now than there used to be. 自二战以来，我们已经非常有效地压制了火势，这意味着现在的燃料远多于过去。 And so when fires do occur, there's more fuel to burn and they' re more severe. 所以， 当火灾发生时，有更多的燃料燃烧，情况也更严重。 Plus more people are living in areas that are prone to burn. 此外，越来越多的人生活在火灾易发地区。 So when fires do break out, they' re more destructive and more costly. 所以，当火灾发生时，破坏性更大，损失也更大。 Conditions will get worse as the planet continues to warm Hollowski says. 霍洛夫斯基表示，随着地球继续变暖，情况将变得更糟。 There's going to be more fire you know. 你知道，还会有更多火灾。 A kind of ballpark is maybe two to three times the annual area burned in the future. 未来每年的森林烧毁面积可能是一个棒球场面积的三分之一到二分之一。 Scientists say this year's record-breaking fire season is just а taste of what's to come. 科学家表示，今年破纪录的火灾季节只是未来火灾爆发的开端。 |
|
|
