有關氣候的英語課外閱讀
有關氣候的英語課外閱讀
提高英語的水平往往可以看一些英語的新聞和閱讀,還有英語的電視劇和電影,這樣可以很快的提高我們的英語口語,接下來小編給大家?guī)碛⒄Z新聞,需要的同學們可以看一看。
英語課外閱讀1
Few would give the Bank of England top marks forbeing ahead of events when the credit crunchbegan. Having been slow to respond to one globaldisaster, it is determined not to be caught flat-footed in another. To this end its PrudentialRegulation Authority has written to 30 large insurersto probe the robustness of their business models inthe face of extreme weather.
信貸危機發(fā)生時,英國央行(Bank of England)對事態(tài)作出的反應不是十分令人滿意。在一場全球性災難中反應遲鈍的它,決心不能再毫無準備地面對另一場全球性災難。為此,該行旗下的審慎監(jiān)管局(Prudential Regulation Authority)致函30家大型保險公司,想探知在遭遇極端天氣時它們商業(yè)模式的穩(wěn)健性。
Insurance companies may well feel like rolling their eyeballs at being prodded in this way. Theywere at the sharp end when events like Typhoon Haiyan or Hurricane Katrina caused a hugeincrease in insurance claims.
面對這種鞭策,保險公司很可能會想報以白眼。在像臺風“海燕”或颶風卡特里娜(Katrina)這樣的事件導致保險索賠大幅增加時,保險公司是有切身體會的。
In 2012, weather-related disasters cost about 0bn, of which over a third was insured. People who only see the sunny side of life seldom rise far in the insurance industry. Withexposures lasting decades, most insurance CEOs will claim to have thought deeply about therisks posed by extreme weather to their business.
2012年,與天氣有關的災害造成約1500億美元損失,其中三分之一以上有保險。只看到生活中陽光一面的人在保險業(yè)很少能夠高升??紤]到這方面的敞口已經(jīng)存在了數(shù)十年,大多數(shù)保險公司的首席執(zhí)行官都會聲稱,他們已深思熟慮過極端天氣對其業(yè)務構成的風險。
Yet there are good reasons for the Bank of England to turn up the volume. The main one is thetussle between regulator and industry over the levels of capital needed to insure certain risks. Anything related to climate needs to be examined regularly. UK rules demand that insurershave enough capital on hand to withstand the sort of shock that only happens every 200 years. This is a high bar, but appropriate given that global temperatures may within decades hitlevels not seen since the prehistoric era.
不過,英國央行有充分理由提高調門。最主要的理由是,監(jiān)管機構和保險業(yè)之間圍繞某些險種所需的資本金水平有爭執(zhí)。一切與氣候有關的保險都需定期接受審查。英國的規(guī)定要求,保險公司必須持有足夠的資本金,以承受那種200年一遇的沖擊。這是個很高的要求,但考慮到全球氣溫可能會在幾十年內創(chuàng)下自史前時代以來未見的高點,這個要求是恰當?shù)摹?/p>
Moreover, the methods used to evaluate climate change risk are likely to be highlyidiosyncratic, which provides another good reason for the Bank’s interference. The manner inwhich global warming may be influencing the weather is difficult to ascertain, potentiallycovering events from floods and hurricanes to droughts and loss of biodiversity. Evaluatingfuture risks will require even more guesswork. While markets are meant to incorporate avariety of opinions, high regulatory standards are needed to stop a casual attitude to climatechange becoming a competitive advantage.
此外,用來評估氣候變化風險的方法很可能是非常特殊的,這為英國央行的干預提供了另一個不錯的理由。難以確定全球變暖正在以何種方式影響天氣,洪水、颶風、干旱、生物多樣性喪失等可能都是其體現(xiàn)。評估未來的風險將需要做更多的猜測。雖然市場應當包容各種觀點,但為了防止對氣候變化漠不關心的態(tài)度變成一種競爭優(yōu)勢,制定較高的監(jiān)管標準是有必要的。
Higher capital requirements come at a cost. Either premiums must rise or some markets arerendered unviable. Already the insurance companies blame tough regulation for limitingtheir ability to invest in more growth-enhancing areas of the economy.
提高資本金要求是有代價的。要么必須提高保費,要么某些市場會難以為繼。保險公司已經(jīng)在責怪嚴苛的監(jiān)管抑制了它們投資經(jīng)濟中更促增長領域的能力。
Any regulatory change that would leave swaths of coastal property uninsurable bringsexcruciating political dilemmas. When once-secure dwellings become at risk of subsidence andflooding, the government faces an awkward choice: between building better defences, abandoning householders to a loss of affordable insurance or subsidising cover that is noteconomic on its own terms. Sometimes abandonment will be the right answer; it makes nosense to put down bricks and mortar that will be regularly submerged in floodwater.
任何會導致大批沿海房產喪失投保資格的監(jiān)管改革,都會造成極為痛苦的政治困境。當曾經(jīng)安全的住所面臨下沉和洪水風險時,政府就面對一個尷尬的選擇:是改善防御措施,是坐視住戶買不起保險,還是向這類本質上并不劃算的保險提供補貼?有時候,放棄才是正確的答案;向那些經(jīng)常會被洪水淹沒的房產上投錢毫無意義。
Insurance will play a key part in the response to global warming. First, it must support theactivities needed to adjust to and mitigate the effects of climate change. But it should alsosend clear signals about what will not be insurable, and where state support may be required.
保險業(yè)將在應對全球變暖上發(fā)揮關鍵作用。首先,它必須支持為適應和緩解氣候變化影響所需采取的行動。但它同時也應明確說明,什么將是不能保的,以及哪一塊可能需要國家的支持。
After the heaviest rainfall in a century, this year’s squabbles between industry and governmentabout how to keep Britain’s coastal areas viable are a foretaste of what is to come. It wouldhave been better had this happened in a strategic way, and before rather than after the nextextreme weather event.
在經(jīng)歷了百年來最強的一次降雨后,今年保險業(yè)和政府之間圍繞如何維系英國沿海地區(qū)生存發(fā)展產生的爭吵,是對未來事態(tài)發(fā)展的一次小型預演。假如這場爭吵當時能以一種戰(zhàn)略性的方式展開、而且能在接下來的一起極端天氣事件之前而不是之后展開,那么本會有更好的效果。
US insurance companies have been accused of being ill prepared for climate change. Thismakes it doubly encouraging that the Bank of England is determined to be on the front foot.
美國的保險公司已被指責對氣候變化準備不足。因此,英國央行在這件事上決心主動出擊就變得更加令人鼓舞。
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