Walking on Water|水足迹

　

by Matthew Brown

The idea of the water footprint is helping to save the world's most precious liquid.

水足迹这个概念对节省世界上最珍贵的液体很有帮助。

By now, the idea of the carbon footprint has become common knowledge. _(1)_ According to statistics, the average global carbon footprint per person is four tons per year. Now there's another kind of environmental footprint to learn about. The water footprint is an idea that's starting to spread, and it is another important way to understand how our consumption affects the Earth.

Water seems to be everywhere, and all you have to do is turn on a tap to watch it flow. _(2)_ In the future, however, water shortages are expected to spread due to global warming, pollution, and other man-made problems. Some people are even predicting that wars will be fought over water. _(3)_ This is why we all need to start watching how we use water.

Like the carbon footprint, the water footprint is a way to calculate the water used by you, a community, a business, or a nation. The results might surprise you. _(4)_ These calculations include the amount of water needed to raise a cow and to turn raw milk into the finished product found in the store. One cup of coffee takes 140 liters of water to produce. _(5)_ Figuring out the ways you use water helps you make better choices, which in turn makes your water footprint smaller. The water footprint idea has been around since 2002, and as we start to realize how valuable water is, it is sure to spread.

说明：请依文意在所提供的 (A) 到 (F) 6 个选项中，选出最适当的 5 个选项。

(A) For example, to produce one liter of milk, 1,000 liters of water are required.

(B) When fossil fuels burn, they emit greenhouse gases that lead to global warming.

(C) This way of thinking about pollution has helped people figure out how much carbon they use when they drive a car, fly in an airplane, or use an air conditioner.

(D) As a result, this simple liquid, which seems so easy to find today, might be one of the world's most precious commodities tomorrow.

(E) Not surprisingly, meat is particularly bad—16,000 liters of water are required to produce one kilogram of beef.

(F) Therefore, it's hard to imagine that drinkable water is scarce in many parts of the world.

　　现在，碳足迹已经成为一门常识。这种思考污染的方式帮助人类算出开车、搭飞机或开冷气时碳的排放量。根据数据，全球每个人每年的碳足迹达到 4 吨。现在有另一种环境足迹等待我们认识。水足迹这个概念才刚开始推广而已，这是另一种了解我们的消耗如何影响地球的重要方式。

　　水似乎到处都有，你只要打开水龙头，就能看到水流出来。因此，我们很难想象世界上有许多地方缺乏饮用水。不过因为地球暖化、污染和其他人为因素，预计未来缺水的地区会扩大。有人甚至预言未来会为了争夺水源而引发战争。因此，这种今日似乎随手可得、再普通不过的液体，未来可能成为世界上最珍贵的物品之一。这就是为何我们都需要开始检视自己的用水习惯。

　　和碳足迹一样，水足迹也是用来计算个人、小区、公司或国家用水量的一种方式。计算出来的结果可能会让你吓一跳。举例来说，生产 1 公升的牛奶需要 1 千公升的水。这些计算包括养一头牛所需的水，以及将生乳变成架上商品所需要的用水量。生产一杯咖啡需要 140 公升的水。不令人意外的是，肉品的情况最糟——生产 1 公斤的牛肉需要 1 万 6 千公升的水。了解自己用水的方式帮助你做出较好的选择，进而让你的水足迹变少。水足迹这个概念约始于 2002 年，在我们开始认知水的宝贵之际，它一定会更广为人知。

标准答案: 1. (C)　2. (F)　3. (D)　4. (A)　5. (E)

For Your Information

荷兰 Twente 大学所经营的网站（http://www.waterfootprint.org），可提供消费者了解自己消费习惯之下的隐形影响。从一般的日用品到衣服、文具和电器用品都可上该网站计算出水足迹的多寡。据估计，美国以每人每年 2,500 立方公尺的用水量成为最大的水消费国，而意大利紧接在后，英国的水足迹则相对比较少，每人每年是 1,245 立方公尺。（数据源：http://e-info.org.tw/node/32319）