VOA慢速英语听力：联合国集团即将开始接受深海采矿许可证申请 UN Group to Soon Begin Accepting Deep Sea Mining Permit Application

VOA慢速英语听力：联合国集团即将开始接受深海采矿许可证申请 UN Group to Soon Begin Accepting Deep Sea Mining Permit Application

The International Seabed Authority (ISA) is the United Nations body that makes rules about the world’s ocean floor. It is preparing to continue negotiations that could open the international seabed for mining, including for materials central to the move to green energy.
国际海床管理局（ISA）是联合国机构，负责制定关于世界海床的规则。它正准备继续进行谈判，可能会开放国际海床进行采矿，包括与推动绿色能源发展相关的材料。

The organization will soon need to begin accepting mining permit applications after years of negotiations.
经过多年的谈判，该组织将很快需要开始接受采矿许可申请。

But environmental activists and some scientists are expressing concerns over the possible effects on animal life and the deep-sea environment.
然而，环境活动家和一些科学家对可能对动物生命和深海环境产生的影响表示担忧。

What is deep sea mining?
深海采矿是什么？

Deep sea mining involves removing minerals and metals from the ocean’s seabed. There are three kinds of deep sea mining.
深海采矿涉及从海洋底部取出矿物和金属。深海采矿有三种形式。

The first involves taking materials known as polymetallic nodules off the ocean floor. The second involves mining seafloor sulphide deposits. And the third involves taking cobalt crusts from rock.
第一种方法涉及从海底取出被称为多金属结核的材料。第二种方法涉及采矿海底硫化物矿床。第三种方法涉及从岩石中取出钴结壳。

These mined materials contain nickel, rare earth, cobalt and more. Such materials are needed for batteries and are used in developing renewable energy. The materials are also for everyday technology like phones and computers.
这些被开采的材料包含镍、稀土、钴等。这些材料是电池所需，用于发展可再生能源。这些材料也用于日常技术，如手机和电脑。

Companies and governments view these resources as very important as current reserves decline and demand continues to rise.
随着现有储量的减少和需求的不断增长，公司和政府认为这些资源非常重要。

What are the current rules for deep sea mining?
深海采矿的现行规则是什么？

Countries control their ocean territory and special economic areas. But the high seas and the international ocean floor are governed by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Seas. It is considered to be a rule for all states, whether or not they have signed or officially approved it.
各国控制着其海洋领土和专属经济区。但公海和国际海床受联合国海洋法公约的管理。该公约被认为是适用于所有国家的规则，无论他们是否签署或正式批准。

Under the treaty, the seabed and its mineral resources are considered the “common heritage of mankind.” The resources must be managed in a way that protects the interests of humanity. The idea is to share economic benefits, support scientific research, and protect ocean environments.
根据该条约，海床及其矿产资源被视为“人类共同遗产”。这些资源必须以保护人类利益的方式进行管理。目的是分享经济利益，支持科学研究，并保护海洋环境。

Companies interested in deep sea mining are partnering with countries to help them get exploration licenses.
对深海采矿感兴趣的公司正在与各国合作，帮助它们获得勘探许可证。

More than 30 exploration licenses have been issued so far. Most of these have activity in an area called the Clarion-Clipperton Fracture Zone, which crosses 4.5 million square kilometers between Hawaii and Mexico.
迄今为止已发放了30多个勘探许可证，其中大多数在克拉里昂-克利普顿断层带这一区域活动，该断层带横跨夏威夷和墨西哥之间的450万平方公里。

Why must ISA establish rules now?
为什么国际海床管理局现在必须制定规则？

The U.N. Convention on the Law of the Seas says that the ISA is supposed to complete rules governing deep sea mining by July 2023.
《联合国海洋法公约》规定，国际海床管理局应该在2023年7月前制定完深海采矿的规则。

Countries and private companies can start applying for early, or provisional licenses if the U.N. body fails to approve a set of rules by July 9.
如果联合国机构在7月9日之前未能批准一套规则，各国和私营公司可以开始申请提前或临时许可证。

What are the concerns?
有哪些担忧？

Yet environmental activists and scientists are concerned about deep sea mining.
然而，环保活动人士和科学家对深海采矿表示担忧。

Only a small part of the deep seabed has been explored and some worry that the environment will be damaged by mining.
深海底部仅有一小部分进行了探索，一些人担心采矿会对环境造成破坏。

Engineering and technology used for deep sea mining are still developing.
用于深海采矿的工程和技术仍在发展中。

Some companies are looking to get materials from the seafloor using large pumps. Others are developing artificial intelligence-based technology that would teach deep sea robots how to get materials from the floor. Some are looking to use special machines that could mine materials off the sides of underwater mountains and volcanoes.
一些公司正在寻求使用大型泵从海底获得材料。其他公司正在开发基于人工智能的技术，教会深海机器人如何从海底获取材料。还有一些公司希望使用特殊的机器从水下山脉和火山的侧面开采材料。

Damage from mining can include noise and light pollution, as well as possible leaks and spills of fuels and other chemicals used in the mining process.
采矿可能造成噪音和光污染，以及可能发生的燃料和其他化学品泄漏和溢出。

The full effects on the deep-sea environment remain unclear. But scientists have warned that biodiversity loss is sure to happen and could be irreversible.
深海环境的全部影响仍不清楚。但科学家们警告称，生物多样性的丧失肯定会发生，并可能是不可逆转的。

Christopher Kelley is a biologist with research expertise in deep sea ecology.
克里斯托弗·凯利是一位研究深海生态学的生物学家。

“We’re constantly finding new stuff and it’s a little bit” early “to start mining the deep sea when we don’t really understand the biology, the environments... or anything else,” he said.
“我们不断发现新的东西，现在开始开采深海还为时尚早，因为我们真的不了解生物学、环境...或者其他任何事情，”他说道。

What comes next?
接下来会发生什么？

The ISA’s Legal and Technical Commission, which oversees the development of deep sea mining regulations, will meet in early July to discuss the mining rules.
国际海床管理局的法律和技术委员会将于7月初召开会议，讨论采矿规则。

The earliest that mining under ISA rules could begin is in late 2024 or 2025. Applications for mining must be considered and environmental studies need to be carried out.
按照国际海床管理局的规定，采矿的最早开始时间可能在2024年底或2025年。必须考虑采矿申请，并进行环境研究。

For now, some companies — such as Google, Samsung, BMW and others — have backed the World Wildlife Fund’s call to promise to avoid using minerals that have been mined from the planet’s oceans.
目前，一些公司，如谷歌、三星、宝马等，支持世界自然基金会的呼吁，承诺避免使用从地球海洋中开采的矿物。

More than ten countries—including France, Germany and several Pacific Island nations— have officially called for a ban or pause on deep sea mining, at least until environmental protections are in place.
包括法国、德国和几个太平洋岛国在内的十多个国家已正式呼吁禁止或暂停深海采矿，至少在环境保护措施到位之前。

Other countries, such as Norway, are proposing opening their waters to mining.
其他国家，如挪威，正提议将他们的水域开放给采矿。

I’m John Russell.
我是约翰·拉塞尔。

And I'm Ashley Thompson.
我是阿什莉·汤普森。

Words in This Story

seabed – n. the ground that is at the bottom of the sea

permit – n. an official document that shows that a person is allowed to do or have something

application – n. a formal and usually written request for something

battery – n. a device that is placed inside a machine to supply it with electricity

heritage – n. the traditions or achievements that are part of the history of a group

license – n. an official document that gives you permission to do, use, or have something

irreversible – n. impossible to change back to a previous state