阅读欣赏 On World Water Day, a Mighty Global Thirst There are seven oceans on the earth. But they contain saltwater, unfit for human consumption. Only about 2.5 percent of the world's water is drinkable. That still would be an ample supply if it were clean and available where needed. It's not. Today some 1.2 billion people lack access to safe drinking water and 2.6 billion lack adequate waste water treatment. As a result, contaminated water supplies are blamed for the worldwide deaths of 1.8 million children, according to the United Nation's Human Development Report for 2006. That's 4,900 children per day under 5 years old. What's more, children worldwide miss 443 million days of school each year because of water-related illnesses. The UN also estimates that half of the world's hospital beds are occupied by patients suffering from water-borne diseases. Beyond that, millions of people (almost always women) spend hours per day carrying water up to several miles for their family's needs because no source is close at hand. In December 1992, the UN sponsored World Water Day, observed on March 22, to raise awareness of the need to protect and improve access to clean water supplies. “When the well is dry, then we know the worth of water,” said Benjamin Franklin, long before today's water challenges. It's clear that competition for water “will become more and more fierce in the decades ahead,” said Kemal Dervis, administrator of the United Nations Development Program in its 2006 report. “Water is the ultimate fugitive resource, crossing borders through rivers, lakes, and aquifers – a fact that points to the potential for cross-border tensions in water-stressed regions.”
Growing populations are draining water resources. And climate change is expected to worsen the problem as it changes rainfall patterns. A new UN study shows that as temperatures have warmed, the world's glaciers have been decreasing at accelerating rates and may disappear entirely within a few decades. China, India, and the West Coast of the United States are among populous places that rely on glacial meltwater for their water supply. Glaciers feed some of the world's great rivers, such as the Ganges, Yellow, and Mekong, which serve 1.5 billion people. One of the UN's Millennium Development Goals, established in 2000, is to cut in half by the year 2015 the population unable to reach or afford safe drinking water. Governments and private groups are working hard to solve the problem as well.
1. The UN also estimates that half of the world's hospital beds are occupied by patients suffering from water-borne diseases. 解析：suffering 是现在分词作定语，修饰patients。Water-borne diseases水传播病，类似短语有air-borne diseases 空气传播的疾病，blood-borne diseases 或blood-transmitted diseases通过血液传播的疾病。注意这里使用的是bear的过去分词borne而不是born。 2. Beyond that, millions of people (almost always women) spend hours per day carrying water up to several miles for their family's needs because no source is close at hand. 解析：Beyond that是“除此之外”之意。up to这里是强调“一直要走几英里”。 at hand是”在附近”之意。参考译文：“除此之外，因为附近没有水源，为了满足家庭的生存需要，数百万的人们（主要是妇女）每天都会花上几个小时、走上几英里的路程去挑水。” 3. Since 1992, the UN has sponsored World Water Day, observed on March 22, to raise awareness of the need to protect and improve access to clean water supplies. 解析：observe在这里不是“观察”之意，而是“遵守”的意思，意译成定在3月22日。access在这里作名词，表示”使用干净的饮用水的机会”。 参考译文：1992年，联合国设立了世界水日，把这一天定在每年的3月22日，其目的在于提高人们保护水资源的意识和向更多的人提供干净的饮用水。 4. “Water is the fugitive resource, crossing borders through rivers, lakes, and aquifers --a fact that points to the potential for cross-border tensions in water-stressed regions.” 解析：crossing 是现在分词作状语，对前面部分进行补充说明。point to是“表明、说明”之意。potential这里作名词，表示一种可能性。参考译文：“水是易耗资源。水通过河流、湖泊以及蓄水层跨越了不同国家的国界。这一事实也说明水资源短缺有可能会造成地区冲突。” 5. Glaciers feed some of the world's great rivers, such as the Ganges, Yellow, and Mekong, which serve 1.5 billion people. 解析：Ganges指恒河(在印度北境)，Yellow大写，在这里指中国的黄河，Mekong指湄公河(位于东南亚,发源于中国唐古拉山脉东北坡,名澜沧江,东南流经缅甸,老挝,泰国,柬埔寨和越南,称湄公河,入南海)。
阅读操练
1. Which of the following sentences is true? A. Although only about 2.5 percent of the world's water is drinkable, it is still an ample supply. B. World Water Day was first celebrated in 1992. C. Increasing populations are using up water resources. D. the world's glaciers slow down its pace of disappearing.
2. According to the passage, why 1.8 million children died in 2006? A. Because of contaminated water supplies. B. Because of water shortage. C. Because of absence from school. D. Because of insufficient medical treatment.
3. “When the well is dry, then we know the worth of water,” said Benjamin Franklin, long before today's water challenges. Benjamin Franklin is ________. A. an official of the UN B. an administrator of the United Nations Development Program C. a former president of the USA D. a sponsor of World Water Day
4. What is the main idea of this passage? A. World Water Day should be observed on 22nd March. B. The world is faced with water challenge. C. Climate change worsen the water supply problem. D. We have a competition for water.
