(单词翻译:单击)
听力文本
From VOA Learning English, this is the Technology Report.
The world's largest solar thermal plant is set to begin producing power in the United States by the end of the year. Wind and energy from the sun are generally considered clean, unlike energy from coal-burning power stations. However, environmentalists now worry that to much solar power development could harm the local environment.
Ivanpah Solar Power Facility OnlineA California company -- Bright
Source Energy is building a huge solar power plant in the Mojave desert, about 60 kilometers southwest of Las Vegas, Nevada. The plant is known as the Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System. Joe Desmond works for the company.
"This is actually one of the highest concentrations of sunlight in the world, out here in Ivanpah," explained Desmond.
BrightSource Energy will deploy 170,000 specially designed mirrors to direct solar energy towards boilers on top of three power towers. The steam produced in the boilers will drive turbines to make electricity.
Joe Desmond says the steam can reach temperatures of more than 260 degrees Celsius.
"We can store the sun's thermal energy in the form of molten salt, so we can produce electricity even when the sun goes down. There is a lot of interest in concentrating solar power around the globe in environments where you have lots of sun, such as China, South Africa, the Middle East, North Africa," explained Desmond.
Environmentalists generally support the idea of solar power, however, many are concerned about the effect of power plants on sensitive environment.
Lisa Belenky is a lawyer with the Center for Biological Diversity, a private group. She says environmentalists are specifically worried about the effect of the Ivanpah Solar Project on the sensitive plant and animal life in that part of Mojave desert.
"Even though the desert seems big, when you start cutting it up, it can really affect how the species and the animals and the plants are able to survive in the long run," said Lisa Belenky.
BrightSource Energy has already spent more than $50 million to move endangered desert tortoises away from the power plant, but Lisa Belenky says this is not the answer.
"We should be reusing areas that have already been disturbed, [like] old mining sites, for example... either on homes, on businesses, parking lots," said Belenky.
There have also been reports of birds dying at the Ivanpah Plant and others like it. Some birds die after colliding with solar equipment which the animals mistake for water. Other birds were killed or suffered burns after flying through the intense heat at the solar thermal plant. As solar projects increase, environmentalists and developers are considering what to do to reduce bird death.
And that is the Technology Report from VOA Learning English. For more news about science and technology, visit our website at learningenglish.voanews.com. We are also on Facebook, YouTube, LinkedIn and Twitter at VOA Learning English. I'm June Simms.
文本来自51voa，译文属可可原创，仅供学习交流使用，未经许可请勿转载
词汇解释
1.thermal adj. 热的；热量的；保热的 n. 上升的热气流
Volcanic activity has created thermal springs and boiling mud pools.
火山活动产生了温泉和沸腾的泥浆池。
2.concentration n. 浓度；集中；浓缩；专心；集合
The area has one of the world's greatest concentrations of wildlife.
该地区有世界上野生生物最集中的区域之一。
3.turbine n. [动力] 涡轮；[动力] 涡轮机
The new ship will be powered by two gas turbines and four diesel engines.
那艘新轮船将由2台燃气涡轮机和4台柴油机驱动。
4.tortoise n. 龟，[脊椎] 乌龟（等于testudo）；迟缓的人
The tortoise wins the race while the hare is sleeping.
兔子正睡觉时，乌龟赢得了比赛。
内容解析
1.Some birds die after colliding with solar equipment which the animals mistake for water.
collide with 冲突，碰撞
The car collided with a bus and turned over.
这辆轿车与公共汽车相撞而翻车。
In running around the corner, John collided with another boy.
约翰跑到拐角处时和另一个男孩相撞。
参考译文
这里是美国之音慢速英语科技报道。
美国世界最大的太阳热能发电站将在年底之前开始发电，太阳制造的风能和太阳能被视为清洁能源，和燃烧煤炭的发电站不同。然而，环保主义者称担心太多的太阳能开发会破坏当地环境。
加州的亮源公司开始在莫哈韦沙漠建造巨大的太阳能电厂，地点是内华达拉斯维加斯西南60公里处。该电厂名叫艾文帕太阳能发电系统，乔·德斯蒙德就职于该公司。
“这里是全世界太阳光最集中的地区。”
亮源公司将使用17万个专门制造的镜子来将太阳能聚焦到三个发电塔上的锅炉，锅炉里的蒸汽驱动涡轮来发电。
乔·德斯蒙德称蒸汽的温度可达到260摄氏度以上。
“我们将太阳热能以熔融盐的形式储存起来，这样就能在太阳落山后发电。全世界太阳能集中的地方都对此很感兴趣，比如中国、南非、中东和北非。”
环保主义者一般支持太阳能的构想，但很多担心发电站对敏感环境的影响。
丽莎·贝兰奇是私营组织生物多样化中心的律师，她说环保主义者们尤其担心艾文帕太阳能项目对莫哈韦沙漠该地区敏感植物和动物的影响。
“尽管沙漠很大，一旦将地段隔离开，就会影响物种、动物和植物长远的生存。”
亮源公司已经耗资5000多万美元将濒危沙漠龟转移到发电站以外，但丽莎·贝兰奇称这解决不了问题。
“我们应该重新利用那些已经受干扰的地区，比如旧矿场，或者住宅、商业区、停车场。”
同时有报道称有鸟类在艾文帕电厂等地方死亡，有的鸟在撞上太阳能设备后误以为是水后死亡，有的鸟因飞过太阳热能电厂高温区后死亡。随着太阳能项目的增加，环保主义者和开发者开始考虑如何减少鸟类死亡。
这里是美国之音慢速英语科技报道，登陆learningenglish.voanews.com获得更多科技报道。
