[E354]A thousand cuts
本文音频及原文摘自杂志The Economist《经济学人》2016年第7期，International版块。
Corals in the South China Sea
Greed and politics are destroying some of Asia’s most valuable coral reefs
Feb 13th 2016
THE giant clams[大砗磲/巨蚌/库氏砗磲] that lurk in the coral reefs[珊瑚礁] of the South China Sea can live for more than a century and grow more than a metre wide. Their shells[贝壳] are coveted[垂涎;渴望;贪图] by China’s rich as swanky furnishings[豪华家具] or cut into trinkets[小玩意儿;小装饰品], such as jewellery. Large specimens[样品,样本;标本] can sell for thousands of dollars. The trade is damaging some of the world’s most important ecosystems.
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▷ lurk [lɜːk]
【注释】
a) (of an unpleasant feeling or quality) to exist although it is not always noticeable
（不好的感觉或特征）潜伏，潜藏
Danger lurks around every corner.
每个角落里都潜伏着危险。
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China’s giant-clam industry operates from the port of Tanmen[潭门镇] on the southern Chinese island of Hainan. There skippers[队长;船长;机长] load rickety[摇晃的;虚弱的;患佝偻病的] wooden fishing vessels[木质渔船] with provisions[食品] for a month. Barrels of water[一桶桶的水] are lashed down[扎牢;捆紧] at the stern[船尾;末端] and pigs led to pens at the bow[船头]. On the sidedecks[舷边甲板] sit crude[粗糙的;天然的,未加工的] open boats[无甲板艇/敞舱船] with single-cylinder[单缸] engines and long propeller shafts[传动轴;螺旋轴]. Once the mother ship reaches distant reefs, these are lowered and the propellers used to chew up[嚼碎;毁坏;消耗] submerged[水下的,在水中的] coral. When the murk clears divers bring up any giant clams that are revealed. The plunder is illegal in China, and trade in giant-clam shells is banned under international treaties[国际条约]. But in Tanmen it operates in broad daylight[在大白天;公开地].
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▷ plunder ['plʌndə]
【注释】
a) to steal or remove something precious from something, in a way that does not consider moral laws or is more severe than it need be
骗取；窃取；侵吞，侵占
Someone has been plundering funds from the company.
有人在盗用公司资金。
b) to steal goods violently from a place, especially during a war
（尤指战争期间的）掠夺，抢劫，劫掠
After the president fled the country, the palace was plundered by soldiers.
总统逃出该国后，士兵洗劫了总统府。
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Recently the fleets have pushed deeper into the South China Sea and into waters claimed by neighbouring countries[周边国家], including Vietnam and the Philippines. Satellite photos collated by Victor Robert Lee, an analyst, show that tell-tale scarring from clam-harvesting is now visible on more than two dozen reefs.
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▷ tell-tale
A tell-tale or telltale is an indicator, signal, or sign that conveys the status of a situation, mechanism, or system.
▷ telltale
allowing a secret to become known:
She found lipstick on his shirts - the telltale sign that he was having an affair.
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Enforcement[执行,实施;强制] has become laxer[更为宽松的;更松懈的] since China stepped up its claim to all the islands, reefs and rocky outcrops[岩石] contained within a “nine-dash line[九段线]” that encompasses[包含;包围,环绕;完成] most of the South China Sea. In some places the build-up of Chinese naval and coastguard vessels[海军/军舰/巡逻艇] has made it less likely that clam-harvesters will be chased off[赶走] by foreigners. Many Chinese feel that fishermen help to project sovereignty[表达主权/宣誓主权], and should be allowed to secure for China a bounty[慷慨;丰富;奖励金;赠款] which “poachers[偷猎者;侵入者]” from abroad might otherwise seize. Three years ago President Xi Jinping even visited fishing boats on Tanmen’s quay[码头], though the offending shells were hidden from photographers.
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If this were not enough, reefs are also suffering from efforts to build new islands in the sea, mainly but not only by China. Seeking a stable base for runways[跑道], weather stations[气象站] and other installations[设施;装置] which might help promote territorial claims[领域主张/要求], dredgers[挖泥船;疏浚机;挖泥机] have been sucking debris from the sea bed[海底;海床] and spraying it over reefs which sit just beneath the surface. Such muck-spreading not only kills many square kilometres of coral, but obliterates any chance that it will regrow.
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▷ obliterate [ə'blɪtəreɪt]
【注释】
a) to remove all signs of something, either by destroying it or by covering it so that it cannot be seen
彻底毁掉，抹去，覆盖（使不留痕迹）
The missile strike was devastating - the target was totally obliterated.
这次导弹袭击是毁灭性的——目标荡然无存。
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Ecologists fret that the tense security situation[紧张的安全形势] prevents them from measuring the extent of the vandalism[破坏程度]. Chinese authorities are not entirely deaf to their complaints; since last year they seem to have tightened restrictions on[严格限制] clam-harvesting somewhat (and an anti-corruption drive led by Mr Xi may be lowering demand for the showiest[艳丽的;炫目的;显眼的] shells). But China’s stance[立场;姿态] on island-building is uncompromising[不妥协的,不让步的;坚定的]. In January one Chinese bigwig[权贵之人；有重大影响的人] promised that any damage being done to reefs was “recoverable[可收回的;可恢复的;可补偿的]”. Almost no one outside China agrees.
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▷ fret [fret]
【注释】
a) to be nervous or worried
烦躁不安，苦恼，发愁
Don't fret - I'm sure he's OK.
别发愁——他肯定没事。
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