As the freshwater of Greenland's ice sheet gradually seeps into the salt water of the oceans, low-lying lands around the globe are threatened.
当格陵兰的冰原淡水慢慢渗入海洋的咸水。地球各处低洼地区将受到威胁。
Sea levels are rising.
海平面正在上升。
Water expanding as it gets warmer caused,in the 20th century alone, a rise of 20 centimeters.
单是上世纪因海水暖化膨胀,海水升高了二十毫米。
Everything becomes unstable.
一切变得不稳定。
Coral reefs, for example, are extremely sensitive to the slightest change in water temperature.
例如 珊瑚礁对海水温度的,轻微变化非常敏感。
Thirty percent have disappeared.
三成已消失。
They are an essential link in the chain of species.
它们是生物链中重要一环。
In the atmosphere, the major wind streams are changing direction.
在大气层主要的季风已改变方向。
Rain cycles are altered.
雨水循环被改变。
The geography of climates is modified.
气候地理也被更改。
The inhabitants of low-lying islands here in the Maldives,for example, are on the front line.
住在像马尔代夫这样的低洼岛屿的居民处于最前沿。
They are increasingly concerned.
他们越来越感到忧虑。
Some are already looking for new, more hospitable lands.
有些开始寻找新的 更适宜居住的土地。
If sea levels continue to rise faster and faster,what will major cities like Tokyo,the world's most populous city, do?
如果海水上升越来越快,像东京这样人口最多的大城市会怎样做?
Every year, scientists' predictions become more and more alarming.
每一年 科学家的预测越来越令人担忧。
Seventy percent of the world's population lives on coastal plains.
全球70%的人口住在沿海平原。
Eleven of the 15 biggest cities stand on a coastline or river estuary.
十五个最大城市有十一个位于海岸线或河口。
As the seas rise, salt will invade the water table, depriving inhabitants of drinking water.
如果海水上升咸水会侵入地下水令居民失去饮用水。
Migratory phenomena are inevitable.
人口迁徙已无可避免。
The only uncertainty concerns their scale.
唯一不能肯定的只是其规模。
In Africa, Mount Kilimanjaro is unrecognizable.
在非洲 乞力马扎罗山已面目全非。
Eighty percent of its glaciers have disappeared.
它的80%冰川已经消失。
In summer, the rivers no longer flow.
在夏天 江河已断流。
Local peoples are affected by the lack of water.
当地人受缺水影响。
Even on the world's highest peaks, in the heart of the Himalayas,eternal snows and glaciers are receding.
即使在喜马拉雅山的世界最高峰终年积雪和冰川也在减少。
Yet these glaciers play an essential role in the water cycle.
这些冰川在水循环中扮演重要角色。