DEVELOPMENT REPORT - UN Study Examines Disaster Risks
By Jill Moss
在线收听：
http://language.chinadaily.com.cn/dialogue/voa/special/2004/02/0223.rm
This is Robert Cohen with the VOA Special English Development Report.
A United Nations report says better planning could help developing countries reduce deaths from natural disasters. One-million-five-hundred-thousand people died in natural disasters between nineteen-eighty and two-thousand. These included earthquakes, volcanoes, storms and severe dry periods. On an average day, one-hundred-eighty-four people die in natural disasters.
These are the findings of a new study by the U-N Development Program. An international team of experts examined information collected over twenty years. They found that disasters put development at risk. And they also found that the choices that individuals, communities and nations make can create new risks.
Researchers found that earthquakes killed more people by comparison in countries with high growth rates in cities. They say this is mainly because of poor quality housing and crowded conditions. Flooding caused more deaths in countries with widely spread populations. Rescue workers have a hard time reaching victims.
Things like armed conflicts can turn dry weather into situations where people starve. Droughts and floods can also increase the spread of disease.
The researchers created a special measure to show that poverty and the risk of dying in a disaster are linked. They call it a Disaster Risk Index. They gathered the number of people exposed to disasters in more than two-hundred nations. Then they compared those numbers to the populations of the countries.
The researchers found that only eleven percent of people exposed to natural disasters live in developing nations. However, these people represent more than fifty-three percent of the deaths recorded.
The study urges governments to develop better city planning. It also urges them to improve methods to rescue disaster victims. More importantly, the researchers say a strong government structure is needed. They say this can reduce disaster risks and improve development.
The U-N researchers say they hope the study will improve understanding of the relationship between disaster risk and development. Their report is called "Reducing Disaster Risk: A Challenge for Development."
This VOA Special English Development Report was written by Jill Moss. This is Robert Cohen.
| VOA,Special,English,美国之音,慢速英语,特别英语,文本,Script,在线收听,下载 |
特别说明：
1.本页所提供MP3/RM下载地址均指向第三方网站，无法保证下载链接的长期有效，请尽快下载。
2.如果您在下载过程中遇到无法下载的情况，请使用Google、Lycos、Baidu、天网等搜索引擎自行搜索下载地址 -- 推荐初级上网用户使用。
3.P2P上有大量的MP3资源，几乎所有的英文歌曲都可以在P2P上找到，而且多数MP3可以找到采样率128位的版本。有关P2P软件Kazaa、Morpheus的使用和介绍请参看本站听歌学英语频道的相关文章 -- 推荐对计算机使用比较熟悉的用户使用。
4.也欢迎您将有效的下载地址发布到本文的发表意见区，以方便大家，谢谢。 |
|
