Deep trouble

海洋问题

Earth is poorly named.

“地球”这个名字起得不好，

The ocean covers almost three-quarters of the planet.

这个星球表面四分之三都是海洋，

It is divided into five basins:

分为五个海洋盆地：

the Pacific,

太平洋、

the Atlantic,

大西洋、

the Indian,

印度洋、

the Arctic and the Southern oceans.

北冰洋和南冰洋。

Were all the planet’s water placed over the United States, 如果将地球上所有的水都集中到美国国土之上

it would form a column of liquid 132km tall.

将形成一道132千米高的巨型水柱。

The ocean provides 3bn people with almost a fifth of their protein

海洋为30亿人口提供了近五分之一的蛋白质，

(making fish a bigger source of the stuff than beef).

使得鱼类成为比牛肉更大的蛋白质来源。

Fishing and aquaculture assure the livelihoods of one in ten of the world’s people.

渔业和水产养殖是世界十分之一人口的生计所依。

Climate and weather systems

气候和天气系统

depend on the temperature patterns of the ocean and its interactions with the atmosphere.

取决于海洋的温度模式及其与大气的相互作用。

If anything ought to be too big to fail, it is the ocean.

如果说有什么事情万般紧要，容不得一点差池，那就数海洋了。

Humans have long assumed

人类长久以来都以为，

that the ocean’s size allowed them to put anything they wanted into it

既然海洋浩瀚无边，人类可以任意倾倒废物、

 and to take anything they wanted out.

予取予求。

Changing temperatures and chemistry, overfishing and pollution have stressed its ecosystems for decades.

数十年来，海洋温度和化学环境的变化，以及过度捕捞和污染都让海洋生态系统不堪重荷。

The ocean stores more than nine-tenths of the heat trapped on Earth by greenhouse-gas emissions.

被温室气体困在地球上的热量有九成以上都储存在大海里，

Coral reefs are suffering as a result;

珊瑚礁因此遭殃。

scientists expect almost all corals to be gone by 2050.

科学家预计，到2050年，珊瑚礁将消失殆尽。

By the middle of the century

到本世纪中叶，

the ocean could contain more plastic than fish by weight.

海洋中塑料垃圾的总重量可能将超过鱼类。

Ground down into tiny pieces,

it is eaten by fish and then by people, with uncertain effects on human health.

磨成细小碎片的塑料被鱼吃掉，人再吃鱼，这对人体健康的影响仍未可知。

Appetite for fish grows nevertheless:

然而人类对鱼类的需求仍在增长：

almost 90% of stocks are fished either at or beyond their sustainable limits.

近90%的鱼类的捕捞量已达到或超出可持续的限度。

The ocean nurtures humanity.

海洋滋养人类，

Humanity treats it with contempt.

人类却回以傲慢不恭。