Drying Times(中英对照).doc

Drying times /node/21559381 当干旱来临The 2012 drought will dent farm profits and push up food prices2012年的干旱会导致农场利润降低和粮食价格上涨THE drought of 2012 started innocently enough, with a little less snow in the winter and a pleasantly early start to spring. But as the summer has rolled on a string of heat records have been set across America. Both lack of rain and extreme heat have conspired to create the worst drought for 55 yearswith more dry weather forecast in the weeks to come.2012年的干旱开始的毫无征兆，冬天的雪下的很少，春天在大家的满心期待中也早早降临。然而，随着夏季的到来，全美都陷入持续不断的高温之中。降雨量少和极度高温使55年来最严重的旱灾降临，接下来的几个星期里干旱天气会更加严重。 Across America farmland is parched, corn is wilting, reservoirs are low, rivers are running dry and wildfires have broken out in Utah and Colorado. Serious drought conditions are creeping across most of the contiguous 48 states, and a new report from the National Climatic Data Centre finds that 55% of the continental United States was in moderate to extreme drought and a third in severe to extreme drought as of July 10th (see map).整个美国的农田就像被放进烤箱，玉米萎蔫了，水库水位很低，河流快要干枯，犹他州和科罗拉多州都爆发了森林大火。旱灾的严重情况在48个州的大部分地区相互蔓延开来，据国家气候数据中心最新报道显示，七月十号，美国本土55%的地区干旱程度处于中等至极度严重之间，三分之一的地区处于严重到极度严重之间。（如图所示） Until recently the booming farming sector has been a small bright spot in the American economy. In Iowa it has even fuelled a state surplus. But this year the primary corn (maize) and soyabean agricultural belt has been hard hit by the drought of the past three months: crops, pastures and rangeland have deteriorated at a rate rarely seen in the past 20 years. Drought now covers all or virtually all of the corn and soyabean production areas in Illinois, Nebraska, Indiana, Kansas, Missouri, Colorado, Arkansas, Kentucky and Tennessee. Memories of the 1930s Dust Bowl have even been revived, although agricultural practices have improved greatly since then.在这之前，生机勃勃的农业一直是美国经济的一个小亮点。爱荷华州的农业曾经刺激经济并产生财政盈余。但是在今年，主要农产品玉米和大豆的农业地带在过去的三个月里遭到旱灾袭击：农作物，草地和牧场正在以20年来从未有过的速度恶化。目前，旱灾覆盖了玉米和大豆的全部或几乎全都的产区伊利诺斯州，内布拉斯加州，印第安纳州，堪萨斯州，密苏里州，科罗拉多州，阿肯色州，肯塔基州和田纳西州。有关上世纪三十年代的沙尘暴的记忆又开始活跃在人们眼前，尽管和那时候相比美国的农业手段已经进步了很多。 Across the country, more than 1,000 counties in 29 states have been designated primary natural disaster counties by the Department of Agriculture (USDA). This allows producers in these areas to apply for low-interest loans from the government, and opens up land in the conservation reserve programme for use for grazing and hay production.纵观全美，29个州中有1000多个县被农业部指定为主要自然灾害县。这些地区的生产者可以向政府申请低息贷款，并且在保护储备项目中开放土地，用于放牧和饲料草生产。On July 16th the USDA downgraded the quality of domestic corn, rating 38% as “very poor” or “poor”. This was up from 30% the week before, and is a rating not matched since 1988. At the same time 30% of soyabeans were rated in very poor or poor condition, up from 27%.七月十六号，美国农业部将国产玉米质量降级，38%的玉米“非常差”或者“差”。这比起上星期的30%又严重了，而且自从1988年以来从没有这么差过。当时，30%的大豆被评为非常差或者差，最初的范围是27%。 Already there is speculation that the economic losses of the drought will reach billions of dollars. This seems a reasonable guess. Corn is the biggest American crop, worth $76.5 billion last year. Moreover, in 2011 Texas suffered its driest year on record, and in March this year the Texan agriculture commissioner announced that it had caused farm losses of $7.62 billion.已经有推测说旱灾造成的经济损失会达到上亿美元。这个猜测似乎合情合理。玉米是美国农业之本，去年创造765亿美元的价值。而且，2011年，德克萨斯州遭受了历史上最严重的干旱，今年三月份，其农业委员长宣布干旱导致农业损失76.2亿美元。 Americas drought is already affecting the world price of corn and soyabeans. American corn represents 52.5% of world corn exports; the figure for soyabeans is 42.9%. In the past week the world price of corn has increased more than 30%, according to Maximo Torero, a director of markets, trade and institutions at the International Food Policy Research Institute.美国旱灾已经影响世界玉米和大豆的价格。美国玉米出口量占世界总额的52.5%；大豆占42.9%。马克西莫托雷罗是国际粮食政策研究所掌管市场，贸易和机构的主席，他说上星期世界玉米价格上涨超过30%。 Price increases in corn and soyabeans are not thought likely to trigger a food crisis, as they did in 2007-08, as global rice and wheat supplies remain plentiful. But since corn is used to feed livestock, any increase in its price will also cause the price of beef, pork, poultry and dairy products to rise. Corn also comes under pressure because its use is mandatory in ethanol production.玉米和大豆的价格上涨并不意味着会像2007年到2008年那样引起粮食危机，因为大米和小麦的国际供应依然充足。但是由于玉米是牲畜的饲料，不管其价格上涨多少，都会影响牛肉，猪肉，家禽和奶制品价格上涨。由于玉米强制性使用于乙醇生产，这给玉米产量增加了压力。 For soyabeans the next few weeks are critical, as their relatively long pollination period means that the outlook could improve if rain arrives. Ohio and parts of Indiana may not be as hot, and could experience some sporadic relief from showers and thunderstorms. But Brad Rippey, a meteorologist for the USDA, says that hotter- and drier-than-normal weather is expected to continu