Environmental pollution is a term that refers to all the ways by which man pollutes his surrounding. Man dirties the air with gasses and smoke, poisons the water with chemicals and other substances, and damages the soil with too many fertilizers and pesticides. Man also pollutes his surrounds in various other ways. For example, people ruin natural beauty by scattering junk and litter on the land and in the water. They operate machines and motor vehicles that fill the air with disturbing noise. Nearly everyone causes pollution in some way.

Environmental pollution is one of the most serious problems facing mankind today. Badly polluted air can cause illness, and even death. Polluted water kills fish and other marine life. Pollution of soil reduces the amount of land available for growing food. Environmental pollution also brings ugliness to man's naturally beautiful world.

环境污染是指人们用各种方式污染周围环境的一个术语。人们通过气体和烟雾来污染空气，用化学物质以及其他物质污染水源，还用大量的化肥和杀虫剂破坏土壤。人们还通过其他的方式污染着他们的环境。例如，总有人在地面上和水里扔垃圾，破坏自然美。 人们使用的一些及其和交通工具噪音很大。 可以说，几乎每个人都在某种程度上对周围环境造成了污染。

境污染是当今人们所面对的一个非常严重的问题。被严重污染的空气将引起各种疾病，甚至死亡。 被污染的水源会引起鱼类以及其他海洋生物的死亡，被污染的土壤会减少种植农作物的面积。同时。环境污染使得人们周围美丽的自然环境日益变得丑陋。

Chapter 2

A new study warns that about thirty percent of the world's people may not have enough water by the year 2025.

A private American organization called Population Action International did the new study. It says more than three-hundred-thirty-five-million people lack enough water now. The people live in twenty-eight countries. Most of the countries are in Africa or the Middle East.

P-A-I researcher Robert Engelman says by the year 2025, about three-thousand-million people may lack water. At least 18 more countries are expected to have severe water problems. The demand for water keeps increasing. Yet the amount of water on Earth stays the same.

Mr. Engelman says the population in countries that lack water is growing faster than in other parts of the world. He says population growth in these countries will continue to increase.

The report says lack of water in the future may result in several problems. It may increase health problems. Lack of water often means drinking waters not safe. Mr. Engelman says there are problems all over the world because of diseases, such as cholera, which are carried in water. Lack of water may also result in more international conflict. Countries may have to compete for water in the future. Some countries now get sixty percent of their fresh water from other countries. This is true of Egypt, the Netherlands, Cambodia, Syria, Sudan, and Iraq. And the report says lack of water would affect the ability of developing to improve their economies. This is because new industries often need a large amount of water when they are beginning.

The Population Action International study gives several solutions to the water problem. One way, it says, is to find ways to use water for more than one purpose. Another way is to teach people to be careful not to waste water. A third way is to use less water of agriculture.

The report also says long-term solutions to the water problem must include controls on population growth. It says countries cannot provide clean water unless they slow population growth by limiting the number of children people have.

一项新的研究结果提出警告：到2025年，世界上将有30%的人没有足够的水饮用。

这项研究是由美国一家名叫“人口行动”的私立机构进行的。报告说现在世界上有三亿三千五百万人没有足够的水。这些人主要分布在非洲或中东的28个国家。

人口行动组织的研究人罗博特.安格曼说，到2025年大约三十亿人缺水。至少还有其他18个国家将可能面临同样严重的水短缺问题。人类对水的需求不断上升，但地球上水的还是保持不变。


安格曼先生说，水短缺的国家的人口增长率要高于世界其他地区的人口增长率。他还说这些国家的人口出生率将持续增长。


报告表明，在未来，水资源的缺乏可能会导致一些严重的后果。首先它可能会产生更多的健康问题。水资源的缺乏就意味着饮用水不再有保障。安格曼先生说，诸如霍乱等在水中传播的疾病会使世界出现许多问题。水缺乏也会引起更多的国际纷争。各国可能由于水而发动战争。现在有些国家，例如埃及，荷兰，柬埔寨，叙利亚，苏丹和伊拉克等，60%的纯净水是从国外进口的。报告认为水缺乏将影响发展国家发展经济的能力。这是因为新工业在开始阶段经常需要大量的水。

人口行动组织的研究报告为世界的水短缺问题提出了几个解决的办法。第一，找到多用途的用水方法。第二，教育人们不要浪费水资源。第三就是少用农业水。

报告同时表明，控制人口增长是长远解决水缺乏问题不可缺少的措施之一。它说除非各国能通过限制生育来降低人口的增长，否则它们不可能提供干净的水。