VOA慢速听力3篇As It Is【592-594】Natural Gas to Overtake Coal by 2030
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*【592】
AS IT IS
Natural Gas to Overtake Coal by 2030
November 12, 2018
A worker helps monitor water pumping pressure and temperature, at a hydraulic fracturing and extraction site, outside Rifle, in western Colorado, March 29, 2013.
Demand for natural gas is expected to be higher than the demand for coal by the year 2030.
The International Energy Agency (IEA) reported on Tuesday that, 12 years from now, gas will be the world’s second largest energy fuel, after oil. This would be a result of efforts to reduce air pollution and increased use of liquefied natural gas, the agency predicted.
The IEA report said that energy demand would grow by more than 25 percent between 2017 and 2040 if people use energy more efficiently. Demand would rise by at least 50 percent without such improvements, it added.
The estimates are based on the IEA’s “New Policies Scenario” model. It considers legislation and policies to reduce pollution and fight climate change. The estimates also consider more energy efficiencies in fuel use, buildings and other things.
The report said, “Natural gas is the fastest growing fossil fuel in the New Policies Scenario, overtaking coal by 2030 to become the second-largest…energy after oil.”
China is currently the biggest oil and coal importer in the world. It would soon become the largest importer of gas, the IEA predicted. The report said that the level of Chinese imports would be similar to those of the European Union by 2040.
The Reuters news agency examined information from China’s General Administration of Customs. Reuters found that China is already importing more natural gas than Japan, the world’s top importer of gas.
China is the world’s third-biggest user of natural gas, following the United States and Russia. China imports about 40 percent of its natural gas because local production cannot provide as much as the country needs.
Developing economies in Asia make up about half of worldwide gas demand growth. Their share of liquefied natural gas imports would double to 60 percent by 2040, the IEA report said.
When gas is cooled, it can be turned into a liquid and transported by ship.
The report noted the demand for natural gas is not yet as great as the demand for oil. But it said gas is now being shipped to new markets.
Oil and gas tanks are seen at an oil warehouse at a port in Zhuhai, China October 22, 2018. REUTERS/Aly Song Coal and carbon
The United States could be responsible for 40 percent of total gas production growth until 2025, the IEA said. But U.S. companies are recovering less gas from shale rock formations. The report noted that other nations are turning to untraditional methods of gas production, such as fracking.
Worldwide electricity demand will grow 2.1 percent a year, mostly pushed up by greater use in developing countries. Electricity will make up 25 percent of energy used by consumers and businesses by 2040, it said.
The IEA believes that the use of coal will fall from about 40 percent today to 25 percent in 2040. Wind power and other renewable energy would grow to over 40 percent during the period.
However, the world’s coal-burning power centers cause 33 percent of energy-related carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. Many of those power plants are in Asia, where average coal plants are usually about 11 years old with many years left to operate. In the United States and Europe, coal plants operate for about 40 years.
Power plant chimneys stand behind a coal burning neighborhood covered in a thick haze on the outskirts of Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, Jan. 19, 2017. The IEA’s executive director said there are ways to contain the pollution that comes from liquefied natural gas. But it would take an international agreement on economic policies.
The IEA said energy-related CO2 emissions could reach a record high this year. They will continue to grow at a slow rate up to 2040.
From 2017 levels, the IEA said emissions would rise by 10 percent to 36 gigatonnes in 2040 because of the growth in oil and gas.
The report said these efforts barely begin do what the scientific community believes must be done to stop climate change.
I’m Jonathan Evans.
The Reuters news agency reported this story. Susan Shand adapted the report for VOA Learning English. The editor was George Grow.
Write to us in the Comments Section or on our Facebook page.
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Words in This Story
efficient – adj. capable of producing desired results without wasting materials, time, or energy
scenario – n.a description of what could happen
emission – n.the act of producing or sending out something (such as energy or gas) from a source
fossil – n.something left in or on the ground from ancient times
consumer– n.someone who purchases goods or uses something
scenario– n.a written description of a story or a series of developments
fracking –n. a method used for getting oil and gas from underground rocks by injecting liquid into the rocks so that they break apart
gigatonnes – n.a unit of explosive force equal to one billion tons of TNT
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AS IT IS
US Vice President, Japan’s Leader Discusses Trade, North Korea
November 13, 2018
U.S. Vice President Mike Pence shakes hands with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe at Abe’s official residence in Tokyo, Japan.
A United States official says a new trade agreement with Japan is the best way to deal with a trade imbalance between the two countries.
U.S. Vice President Mike Pence made the statement during a visit Tuesday to Tokyo. He spoke at a joint press conference with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
Pence pressed for a new U.S. trade deal with Japan.
“American products and services too often face barriers to compete fairly in Japanese markets,” Pence said. He called on the two sides to negotiate a new trade deal that will be, in his words, a “model,” for other nations.
U.S. President Donald Trump and his administration have criticized existing trade agreements with Japan and other allies. Trump has said these agreements are not fair or balanced. He also has said that he believes bilateral trade agreements are better for the United States.
Trump has expressed dissatisfaction with Japan’s $69 billion trade surplus with the U.S. He accuses Japan of setting up barriers to imports of U.S. automobiles and agriculture.
Japanese officials say the country’s markets are open; however, the Japanese government does protect some farm products.
The government has been unwilling to negotiate a bilateral ‘free trade’ deal. It also has hoped that the United States would return to the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade agreement with Japan and 10 other nations.
After speaking with reporters, both Pence and Abe traveled to Singapore for a meeting of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.
North Korea also discussed
During their Tokyo meeting, the two men talked about efforts to remove nuclear weapons from the Korean peninsula. Pence praised Abe for providing leadership while working with U.S. and South Korean officials to make progress on the issue.
A Digital Globe satellite image taken March 29, 2018 shows what CSIS' Beyond Parallel project reports is an undeclared missile operating base at Sakkanmol, North Korea and provided to Reuters Last week, North Korea cancelled planned talks with U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. However, the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley, said those would likely take place at a later date. Haley also said she expects President Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un to meet early next year.
On Sunday, a U.S.-based research group said it had identified at least 13 North Korean missile bases that the North has yet to declare. The Center for Strategic and International Studies prepared a report on the missile sites. Its writer, Joseph Bermudez told VOA that the threat from North Korea’s nuclear and missile programs “remains very significant and has not changed in the last ten years.”
In Washington, Trump criticized a New York Times newspaper report on the findings.
“We fully know about the sites being discussed, nothing new – and nothing happening out of the normal,” Trump wrote in a message on Twitter. He added, “I will be the first to let you know if things go bad.”
ASEAN meetings
In Singapore, Pence was expected to talk about the new U.S. International Development Finance Corporation. The new $60 billion effort supports private investments for transportation and other infrastructure projects around the world. It seeks to give nations choices for development financing and to compete with China’s Belt and Road Initiative.
After the ASEAN meeting, Pence will travel to Papua New Guinea for a meeting of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation group.
I’m Mario Ritter.
Steve Miller reported this story for VOA News with information provided by Nike Ching, Ira Mellman and Lee Ju-hyun. Mario Ritter adapted the report for Learning English. George Grow was the editor.
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Words in This Story
bilateral – adj. involving two groups or countries
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AS IT IS
CNN Sues Trump, Demands Return of Reporter’s Pass
November 12, 2018
FILE - A White House staff member reaches for the microphone held by CNN's Jim Acosta as he questions President Donald Trump.
American television network, CNN, took legal action against the administration of President Donald Trump Tuesday over one of its report’s press documents.
CNN demanded that reporter Jim Acosta’s press pass, which permits him to enter the White House, be returned. CNN said the action by White House officials violated the constitutional right of freedom of the press. The first amendment of the U.S. Constitution bars Congress from passing laws that harm the freedom of the press.
The administration removed Acosta’s press pass following a heated news conference last week.
Acosta had questioned President Trump’s use of the word “invasion” to describe groups of migrants heading to the U.S. Acosta then refused to give up a microphone when Trump said he did not want to hear anything more from him.
Trump said, “CNN should be ashamed of itself, having you work for them. You are a rude, terrible person.”
The White House took away Acosta’s pass later in the day. At the time, officials said he “placed his hands” on a woman working for the White House who was trying to take the microphone. White House spokesman Sarah Sanders also shared a disputed video of Acosta’s movements toward the woman.
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The AP said action in part of the video was made to appear faster than it really was, making Acosta’s actions look more threatening.
CNN also said Acosta was not given warning of the action or a chance to appeal the decision.
Trump has repeatedly used the term “fake news” to describe CNN and its reporters. The president has also called some members of the media “enemy of the people.”
Theodore Olson is representing CNN in the legal case against the Trump administration. He said, “Mr. Acosta’s press credentials must be restored so that all members of the press know they will remain free to ask tough questions, challengegovernment officials and report the business of the nation to the American people.”
White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said “this is just more grandstandingfrom CNN.” She said the administration would defend against the legal case.
She added, “The First Amendment is not served when a single reporter, of more than 150 present, attempts to monopolize the floor.”
As President Donald Trump points to CNN's Jim Acosta, a White House aide tries to take the microphone from him during a news conference in the East Room of the White House, Nov. 7, 2018, in Washington. The White House Correspondents’ Association supported CNN in the legal case in Washington. Olivier Knox is president of the reporters’ organization. He said the president should not choose some reporters who cover him over others for no reason.
During the weekend, Acosta received permission from the French government to report on Trump’s visit to Paris. But the U.S. Secret Service, which protects the American president, denied him entrance.
CNN said in the legal case that without his press pass, “a daily White House correspondent like Acosta effectively cannot do his job.” The network also asked the court for a ruling to immediately stop the action and to return the pass to Acosta.
I’m Jonathan Evans.
Hai Do adapted this AP story for VOA Learning English. Mario Ritter was the editor.
Write to us in the Comments Section or on our Facebook page.
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Words in This Story
ashamed –adj. feeling shame or guilt
rude –adj. not having or showing concern or respect for the rights and feelings of other people; not polite
credentials –n. a document which shows that someone is qualified to do a certain job
challenge –v. to question the action or authority of someone
grandstanding –v. to behave or speak in a way that is intended to impress people and to get public approval
monopolize –v. to do something in a way that prevents others from doing the same thing
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