评论
打印
Many Americans are moving to the southern and western United States, despite extreme heat and a limited supply of water.
许多美国人正在往美国南部和西部迁移，虽然那里酷热难耐，供水有限。
The population of Greeley, Colorado, and the surrounding area grew by 30 percent between 2010 and 2020.
2010年至2020年期间，科罗拉多州格里利及其周边地区的人口增长了30%。
It is one of the fastest growing parts of the U.S., reports the latest U.S. census.
据最新的美国人口普查报告，这里是美国人口增长最快的地区之一。
Dick Maxfield has lived in Greeley for 60 years.
迪克·麦克斯菲尔德已经在格里利住了60年了。
During those years, he has seen the population increase by 300 percent, reaching almost 110,000.
在这期间，他亲眼见证人口增长了300%，达到近11万人。
People come to the town because there are good jobs and homes that are less costly than those in nearby Denver.
人们来到这个小镇是因为那里有比附近丹佛便宜的好工作和房子。
But there is not enough water.
但这里水资源比较匮乏。
"Anything we can do to protect our safe water supply is so important," Maxfield said.
麦克斯菲尔德说：“我们能做的任何可以保护供水安全的事情都非常重要。”
Lisa Dilling is a water researcher and a professor at the University of Colorado.
丽莎·迪林是科罗拉多大学(University Of Colorado)的水资源研究员和教授。
She said climate change makes the problem of population growth and not enough water even more difficult.
她说，气候变化使人口增长和水资源不足的问题变得更加困难。
"Where is the water going to come from?" Dilling asked.
“水该从哪里来呢？”迪林问道。
"We can still have growth, but we need to make sure we're thinking ahead."
“水资源供应量还可以增加，但我们要提前做好超前考虑。”
The lack of rain and extreme heat in the western U.S. is being called a "mega drought."
美国西部地区的少雨和酷热现象被称为“特大干旱”。
Some communities there are taking extreme steps to protect their water supply.
那里的一些社区正在采取极端措施来保证供水。
In Oakley, Utah, a town outside of Salt Lake City, officials ended home building because the water system was at its limit.
在犹他州盐湖城外的奥克利镇，官员们禁止建造房屋，因为供水系统达到了极限。
Dick Jefferies is part of a conservation group called Trout Unlimited.
迪克·杰弗瑞是“鳟鱼不设限”保护组织的成员。
He said the only thing that will stop the growth is a lack of water. "It's a limited resource," he said.
他说，唯一会妨碍人口增长的因素就是缺水。“水资源是有限的，”他说。
Many cities in states like Colorado got their start because of rivers.
科罗拉多州等州的许多城市都是因为河流而起步的。
The founders of Greeley picked the location because it was where two rivers came together.
格里利的创始人之所以选择这个地点，是因为那里是两条河流交汇的地方。
Now those rivers, and others nearby, are drying up.
现在，这些河流以及附近的其他河流正在干涸。
Federal officials recently declared a water shortage on the Colorado River, which provides water for 40 million people in the western part of the U.S.
联邦官员最近宣布科罗拉多河缺水，这条河为美国西部的4000万人提供水源。
So, the city is working to find a new water source – underground – about 100 kilometers away.
因此，这座城市正在努力寻找新的地下水源——大约在100公里外。
But taking water from a natural underground source known as an aquifer is both costly and controversial.
但是，从被称为含水层的天然地下水源取水既昂贵又会引发争议。
There is also the possibility that the water they find will have too much uranium, a radioactive material that can cause illness.
他们发现的水资源还可能铀含量超标，铀是一种可能引发疾病的放射性物质。
Some say there are ways to remove uranium from the water, others think the risk is too great.
有些人说可以想办法把铀从水中去除，另一些人则认为风险太大。
Greeley, however, said the water from the aquifer will not be the city's first water source.
然而，格里利表示，来自含水层的水不会成为该市的首选水源。
Adam Jokerst works for the city's water department.
亚当·乔克斯特在格里利市的水务部门工作。
"Greeley would never deliver unsafe drinking water to its residents, including any water that had detectable uranium,″ he said.
他说：“格里利决不会向居民提供不安全的饮用水，包括任何含有可检测到铀的水。”
Those who oppose the water plan are trying to organize a vote in November.
那些反对用水计划的人正试图在11月组织一次投票。
Citizens of Greeley seem split. One person said she did not think town officials would do anything bad.
格里利的市民似乎分为两派了。一位人士表示，她认为镇上的官员不会做任何坏事。
"They live here, too," said Aimee Huston.
“他们也住在这里，”艾米·休斯顿说。
But Sandi Cummings said the plan was "so upsetting that we are even considering this."
但桑迪·卡明斯表示，“我们竟然在考虑这种方案，这就足够让人心烦了。”
Jokerst said it is the city's responsibility to provide water to its residents.
乔克斯特说，为居民供水是该市的责任。
He added that the project will give Greeley the water it needs to continue growing.
他补充说，该项目将为格里利提供人口继续增长所需的水资源。
"We have all the ingredients for developers to build here," he said.
“开发商建造所需的材料，我们都有，”他说。
Even with plans and water testing, two experts say Greeley's plan may not be perfect.
两位专家表示，即使有了计划和水质测试，格里利的计划也可能并不完美。
Jeff Lukas studies water and climate in Colorado.
杰夫·卢卡斯研究的是科罗拉多州的水和气候。
He said taking water from the aquifer may be risky because it is far away and the water is hundreds of meters below ground.
他说，从含水层取水可能有风险，因为它离得很远，而且藏在地下数百米。
Jeff Crane studies river water projects in Colorado.
杰夫·克兰研究的是科罗拉多州的河流水利项目。
He said Greeley and other cities are going to keep running into water problems.
他说格里利和其他城市还会继续遇到水资源问题。
"They're trying to figure out how to continue to grow ... without more water. Something's got to give."
“他们正在想办法如何在没有更多水资源的情况下继续扩大。必须做出一些让步。”
I'm Dan Friedell.
丹·佛里戴尔为您播报。
译文为可可英语翻译，未经授权请勿转载！
