When my young daughter says she's thirsty, I take for granted that the water from our kitchen tap is clean and safe. In fact, that's what most Americans assume. But should we?
小女兒說她口渴時(shí),我理所當(dāng)然認(rèn)為從廚房水龍頭流出的水既干凈又安全。事實(shí)上,大多數(shù)美國人都這么想,但這個(gè)想法是對(duì)的嗎?
As we mark World Water Day on March 22, the disturbing truth is that roughly a quarter of Americans drink from water systems that violate the Safe Drinking Water Act. Violations range from failing to properly test water to allowing dangerous levels of lead or arsenic, and occur everywhere: in rural communities and big cities, in red states and blue ones.
我們把3月22日定為世界水資源日,但令人不安的事實(shí)是,大約有四分之一的美國人喝的水來自違反《安全飲用水法案》的自來水系統(tǒng)。違規(guī)的范圍廣泛,從沒有對(duì)自來水進(jìn)行適當(dāng)檢測,到默許鉛或砷達(dá)到危險(xiǎn)標(biāo)準(zhǔn),而且這些情形處處可見,無論是在農(nóng)村小區(qū)或大城市,無論是在傾向支持共和黨的州還是民主黨的州。
The lead contamination crisis in Flint, Michigan, was extreme -- and shocking because of the role that race played. However, it was not an isolated case, and we need to consider it a national wake-up call.
密歇根州弗林特市的鉛污染相當(dāng)嚴(yán)重,而種族議題又讓這件事更加令人心驚。然而,這不是單一事件,我們必須把它看成是全美國的警報(bào)。