2022年10月29日 VOA慢速英語：歐洲養(yǎng)蜂人警告“災難性”收獲

 

A large European beekeeper group held its yearly meeting this week in France. The group said it is concerned about the effects of climate change, parasites and pesticides on both bees and the world food supply.
一個大型的歐洲養(yǎng)蜂人團體本周在法國舉行了年度會議。該組織表示，它擔心氣候變化、寄生蟲和殺蟲劑對蜜蜂和世界糧食供應的影響。
 
The beekeepers said bees are dying in large amounts. They also noted that bees are not producing as much honey as in the past.
養(yǎng)蜂人說蜜蜂正在大量死亡。他們還指出，蜜蜂生產(chǎn)的蜂蜜不像過去那么多。
 
The beekeepers said Europe only produces about 60 percent of the honey it consumes. Production in France, the group said, has fallen by more than 50 percent since the 1990s.
養(yǎng)蜂人說，歐洲只生產(chǎn)其消費的蜂蜜的 60% 。該組織表示，自 1990 年代以來，法國的產(chǎn)量下降了 50% 以上。
 
The beekeeping group said its announcement about the bee situation in Europe gives beekeepers and scientists a chance to react to climate concerns.
該養(yǎng)蜂組織表示，其關(guān)于歐洲蜜蜂狀況的公告使養(yǎng)蜂人和科學家有機會對氣候問題做出反應。
 
The spokesperson for the National Union of French Beekeepers is Henri Clement. He is a beekeeper from southeastern France. He said he has been working as a beekeeper and trying to keep bees healthy for 30 years. However, if he had to consider a career for himself today, he said, he might not want to raise bees.
法國養(yǎng)蜂人全國聯(lián)盟的發(fā)言人是亨利·克萊門特。他是來自法國東南部的養(yǎng)蜂人。他說，他從事養(yǎng)蜂人工作 30 年，一直在努力保持蜜蜂的健康。但是，如果他今天必須考慮為自己謀一份事業(yè)，他說，他可能不想養(yǎng)蜜蜂。
 
He is close to retirement and wonders if young people will take up the work.
他即將退休，想知道年輕人是否會從事這項工作。
 
The people at the event were all talking about chemicals known as pesticides, which hurt bees. They also discussed climate change and invasive insects and parasites that kill bees and harm beehives.
參加活動的人都在談論被稱為殺蟲劑的化學物質(zhì)，這種化學物質(zhì)會傷害蜜蜂。他們還討論了氣候變化以及殺死蜜蜂和危害蜂箱的入侵昆蟲和寄生蟲。
 
Climate danger
氣候危險
 
Jeff Pettis is an insect expert based in the United States. He is also president of Apimondia, a group that represents beekeepers in 110 countries. He said bees are at risk because of climate change. When some parts of the world are hotter and drier than in the past, the plants that bees depend on cannot grow. Sometimes, he said, "there are no flowers." Without flowers, bees cannot collect pollen, which means they can die of hunger.
Jeff Pettis 是美國的昆蟲專家。他還是 Apimondia 的總裁，該組織代表 110 個國家的養(yǎng)蜂人。他說，由于氣候變化，蜜蜂處于危險之中。當世界某些地方比過去更熱、更干燥時，蜜蜂賴以生存的植物就無法生長。有時，他說，“沒有花。” 沒有花，蜜蜂就無法采集花粉，這意味著它們會餓死。
 
Pettis also said wildfires hurt bees. He called the fires "a big issue."
佩蒂斯還說野火傷害了蜜蜂。他稱火災是“一個大問題”。
 
Pettis wrote a report in the past about the plant called goldenrod, which produces a large amount of pollen. He wrote that, as the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere grows, the amount of protein in pollen decreases.
佩蒂斯過去曾寫過一篇關(guān)于一種叫做黃花的植物的報告，這種植物會產(chǎn)生大量的花粉。他寫道，隨著大氣中二氧化碳含量的增加，花粉中的蛋白質(zhì)含量會減少。
 
Many of the bees in North America depend on goldenrod pollen to get through winter.
北美的許多蜜蜂都依靠黃花花粉度過冬天。
 
He said the pollen problem could affect other plants, too.
他說花粉問題也可能影響其他植物。
 
In both France and the United States, between 30 and 40 percent of beehives are dying each winter.
在法國和美國，每年冬天都有 30% 到 40% 的蜂箱死亡。
 
Man-made dangers
人為的危險
 
French researcher Jean-Marc Bonmatin said some pesticides hurt bees more than others. A kind of pesticide called a neonicotinoid is absorbed, or taken in, by the entire plant. Other pesticides only affect the part of the plant upon which they are applied. The neonicotinoids can affect the pollen and nectar that is taken in by the bees. The pesticides then poison the bees.
法國研究員 Jean-Marc Bonmatin 說，一些殺蟲劑對蜜蜂的傷害比其他殺蟲劑更大。一種叫做新煙堿的殺蟲劑被整個植物吸收或吸收。其他殺蟲劑只影響施用它們的植物部分。新煙堿類物質(zhì)會影響蜜蜂攝入的花粉和花蜜。然后殺蟲劑毒害蜜蜂。
 
Beginning in 2013, the European Union restricted the use of some of these pesticides. The EU banned them fully in 2018. However, some countries are permitting farmers to use them again under "emergency authorizations."
從 2013 年開始，歐盟限制了其中一些農(nóng)藥的使用。歐盟在 2018 年全面禁止它們。然而，一些國家允許農(nóng)民在“緊急授權(quán)”下再次使用它們。
 
Bonmatin said there is one thing that might help farmers make better choices. A newly developed computer program will permit them to find out if the pesticide they want to use is harmful to bees. The farmers will not have to pay for the computer program.
Bonmatin 說，有一件事可以幫助農(nóng)民做出更好的選擇。一個新開發(fā)的計算機程序?qū)⒃试S他們找出他們想要使用的殺蟲劑是否對蜜蜂有害。農(nóng)民不必為計算機程序付費。
 
Pettis noted that there are ways people can help bees. He said farmers should start planting a wide range of crops, and not depend as much on crops that need pesticides. He called that kind of farming "sustainable" and "organic."
佩蒂斯指出，人們可以通過多種方式幫助蜜蜂。他說農(nóng)民應該開始種植多種作物，而不是過度依賴需要殺蟲劑的作物。他稱這種農(nóng)業(yè)為“可持續(xù)的”和“有機的”。
 
In addition, he said, bees can sometimes survive on their own without special help from humans. He talked about a black bee found in the northwestern part of France. The bee is still living even though it has been attacked by parasites and not given extra food by humans.
此外，他說，蜜蜂有時可以在沒有人類特別幫助的情況下自行生存。他談到了在法國西北部發(fā)現(xiàn)的一只黑蜂。即使蜜蜂受到寄生蟲的攻擊并且人類沒有提供額外的食物，它仍然活著。
 
He said the bees "survive pretty well even without us."
他說蜜蜂“即使沒有我們也能活得很好”。