加州或干旱再临

李劲松

干旱从古至今都是人类面临的主要自然灾害。即使在科学技术如此发达的今天，它造成的灾难性后果仍然比比皆是。

难词探意

1. snowpack / sno··p·k/ n. 积雪

2. powder keg 炸药桶

3. parched /pɑ：t·t/ adj. 焦的;炎热的

4. offset /offset/ v. 抵消

5. divert /da··v·：t/ v. 转移

6. reservoir /·rez·vwɑ：（r）/ n. 水库

7. meager /mi：g·/ adj. 贫乏的

8. retain / r··te·n/ v. 保存

原文复现

Californias mountain snowpack is about half of its normal level， raising fears that the state could return to drought after a period of mostly abundant wet years.

On Thursday， officials of the states Department of Water Resources conducted a survey at a measuring station near Lake Tahoe that recorded 29 inches of snow， or 47% of average for this time of year. The reduced snowpack follows a roughly sixweek stretch that has been one of the driest periods on record in California. With no rain in sight until at least Sunday， downtown San Francisco is on track to record no measurable rain in February for the first time since 1864， and only the second time in its history. Similarly， state officials say the northern part of the Sierra Nevada mountains are on track to experience no rainfall this month for the first time since records started there 100 years ago. At the same time last year， by contrast， the Sierra mountains were buried under a snowpack that stood at 144% of normal—and nearly double the average amount in 2017. Jerry Brown declared an end to a fiveyear drought that hurt the farm economy and turned forests into powder kegs for wildfires.

While California has seen more rain and snow in recent years， the drought left much of the state so parched that the rise in rainfall has done little to offset persistent fire risks.Weather forecasters attributed the dry period to a strong ridge of high pressure that has been parked off the coast of California since midJanuary， diverting Pacific storms to Northwestern cities like Seattle， which has had an unusually wet winter. Yet state water officials said they had never seen weather conditions change as dramatically in recent years， and named climate change as a possible contributing factor. “Were seeing a lot of things now that we havent seen before，” said Sean de Guzman， chief of snow surveys and water supply forecasting for the Department of Water Resources.

The good news for Californians is that reservoirs remain mostly full around the state， while the snowpack has retained most of its water content without melting off early， Mr. Guzman said. Besides， Californias other major source of water—from the Colorado River—is enjoying a snow season.The states farms are likely to feel the pinch（節制） this year. The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation earlier this week said that， based on the dry conditions， it was reducing allocations of federally controlled irrigation water to an initial level of as little as 15% of normal for some farm districts.

文章来源： 《华尔街日报》

文本探究

探究视角1：语篇分析

本文是一篇说明文，通过对加州的干旱情况进行描述，介绍了加州近年来的气候和降水情况，并对造成其现象的可能原因和潜在影响作出分析，引起读者思考和注意。说明文是一种以说明为主要表达方式的文章体裁。为了把事物特征说清楚，或者把事理阐述明白，必须有相适应的说明方法。常见的说明方法有举例子、分类别、作比较、列数字、下定义、作诠释、打比方、摹状貌、引用、画图表等。

探究视角2：语言学习

Ⅰ. 文本填空

1. The roughly sixweek stretch has been one of the driest （period） on record in California.

2. Jerry Brown declared an end to a fiveyear droughthurt the farm economy.

3. Californias mountain snowpack is about half of its normal level，（raise） fears that the state could return to drought.

4. The good news for Californians is reservoirs（蓄水池） remain mostly full around the state.

5. The states farms are likely （feel） the pinch（节制） this year.

Ⅱ. 难句分析

1. Californias mountain snowpack is about half of its normal level， raising fears that the state could return to drought after a period of mostly abundant wet years.

加利福尼亚的积雪量只有正常水平的一半左右，人们担心，在经历了一段多雨的时期之后，加州可能会再次出现干旱。

【点石成金】本句中，Californias mountain snowpack为主语，谓语动词为is，about...level 为表语，raising fears作结果状语，that引导同位语从句，解释说明fears。

2. Jerry Brown declared an end to a fiveyear drought that hurt the farm economy and turned forests into powder kegs for wildfires.

杰瑞·布朗宣布结束长达五年的干旱，这场干旱损害了农业经济，把森林变成了野火的火药桶。

【点石成金】该句为一个主从复合句。主句为Jerry Brown declared an end to a fiveyear drought，后面that hurt...wildfires为定语从句，先行词为drought。

探究视角3：思维拓展

干旱的原因及预防

从自然因素来说，干旱的发生主要与偶然性或周期性的降水减少有关。从人类活动方面来看，人口的大量增加，森林植被遭破坏和水资源浪费都是导致干旱发生的因素。植树造林，兴修水利研究应用现代技术和节水措施都是预防干旱的有效措施。以下是与干旱有关的表达：

1. Drought can be caused by not receiving rain or snow over a period of time. 干旱可能是由于在一段时间内没有雨或雪造成的。

2. Dry conditions often lead to brush fires or wildfires. 干燥的环境通常导致灌木丛火灾或野火。

3. Of all the weatherrelated phenomena that can cause severe economic impacts in the United States， droughts come in second only to hurricanes. 在所有可能对美国经济造成严重影响的天气现象中，干旱仅次于飓风。

4. Drought is caused by not only lack of precipitation and high temperatures but by overuse of water and overpopulation. 造成干旱的原因不仅仅是缺少降水和高温，还有水资源过度使用和人口过剩。

5. Drought can be devastating to an areas economy and dangerous for human health. 干旱对一个地区的经济是毁灭性的，对人类健康也来说，也是很危险的。

6. In fact， population booms can trigger droughts almost by themselves. 事实上，人口激增几乎可以自行引发干旱。

7. As the human population increases in arid regions as well as wet ones， so will the demand for water， and — with water supplies dropping at a faster rate — so will the likelihood of drought. 随着干旱地区和潮湿地区人口的增加，对水的需求也会增加，而且随着水供应以更快的速度下降，发生干旱的可能性就會增加。

8. Aside from the human population explosion， global warming also fuels the increased frequency and severity of droughts in many parts of the globe， now and in future. 除了人口爆炸之外，全球变暖还加剧了在全球许多地区，现在和未来干旱的频率和严重程度。