The UN may remove the world's deepest and oldest lake from the World Heritage list because of concerns over pollution by a Russian pulp and paper mill.
Lake Baikal holds one fifth of the world's fresh water and is home to many unique plants and animals.
At its 34th session about to kick off in Brazil, the World Heritage Committee will discuss the effect of the plant's wastewaters on the unique ecosystem.
Baikal was awarded World Heritage Site status in 1996.
A representative from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (Unesco) says that as a result of the mill, the lake may end up on the list of World Heritage in danger - or get struck off it altogether.
Ecologists say the mill affects more than 50% of Baikal's ecosystem.
But the business's owners deny doing any harm, and say they are helping local people survive by giving them jobs.
The mill is located on the south-eastern shore of the Siberian lake in Baikalsk, a so-called "monotown" - meaning that its infrastructure largely depends on one single enterprise.
The Baikalsk Pulp and Paper mill first opened back in the Brezhnev era in 1966.
Ever since, Russian ecologists and NGOs have been struggling to shut it down.
The plant produces bleached cellulose. It bleaches paper with chlorine and discharges the wastewaters into Baikal, dubbed the Pearl of Siberia - one of the cleanest lakes on Earth.
Ecologists say the mill has been spewing thousands of tonnes of dioxins and other harmful by-products into Baikal.
[원문 : http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-10739378 ]
위 스크립트는 원문보다 짧고, 중간 중간에 원문과는 다른 단어가 포함되어 있을 수 있음.
* strike (something/someone) off : (전문가 집단 등의 명단에서) ~을 제명하다[삭제하다]
ex) Strike her name off the list. 명단에서 그녀의 이름을 삭제해요.
* mill : 제조공장, 제작소
* end up on : (명단 등에) 오르다.
* bleach : 표백제, 표백하다.
* chlorine : (화학) 염소
* discharges : 방출, 배출
* dub : 별명을 붙이다
dubbed : ~라는 별명을 가지고 있는
* spew : 뿜어져 나오다. 분출하다.
댓글 없음:
댓글 쓰기
참고: 블로그의 회원만 댓글을 작성할 수 있습니다.