(单词翻译:单击)
中英文本
A study in the June edition of the international journal Remote Sensing showed that parts of eastern Beijing had subsided by as much as 11 centimeters per year. The study was headed by Chen Mi, an associate professor from Capital Normal University.
国际期刊《遥感科学》七月刊发表报告显示，北京东部部分地区每年下沉多达11厘米。这份报告是由首师大副教授陈蜜带头进行的一项研究。
Using technology known as Satellite Radar Interferometry, or InSar, Chen and his team found that the crowded districts of Chaoyang and Haidian are sinking fastest, subsiding an average of 4 to 8 centimeters yearly. Less populated areas in central and western Beijing sank only one centimeter per year.
利用合成孔径雷达干涉测量技术，陈蜜和他的团队发现，相对拥堵的朝阳和海淀区下沉速度最快，年下沉速度为4-8厘米。人流较少的中部和西部年下沉仅为1厘米。
How did this subsidence issue come about? While active faults and the thickness of the soft soil layer may contribute to subsidence, groundwater overexploitation remains the largest issue in Beijing. Why the focus on groundwater? A 2012 survey by Peking University’s Beijing Development Institute found that Beijing has under 100 cubic meters of surface water per resident, less than one-tenth of the internationally accepted level. The city relied on groundwater to make up the difference, causing groundwater depth to recede by an average of one meter per year between 1999 and 2013.
下沉是如何发生的？活断层以及软土层的厚度都会导致下沉，地下水过度开采仍是北京最大的问题。为什么是地下水？2012年，北京大学首都发展研究院发布研究报告，指出北京人均地表水不到100立方米，不到国际标准水平的三分之一。从1999-2013年，北京主要依靠地下水，导致地下水水位年平均下沉1米。
The plummet in groundwater levels has recently slowed, particularly after canals built as part of the South-to-North Water Diversion Project began to channel water from the Yangtze River to Beijing in late 2014. The Beijing Water Authority expects the city’s groundwater level to begin rising again in 2025.
近些年，地下水水位下降幅度有所缓解，特别是2014年南水北调工程，修建运河引入长江水之后。北京市水务局预计地下水水位将在2025年回升。
But this promising news may be too little, too late. Li Guoping, vice director of the Beijing Development institute, warns that the city’s sinking could pose a threat to buildings, underground pipelines, and the subway system.
但这一消息或许来得太晚了。首都发展研究院副院长李国平警告称，地表下沉会对房屋建筑，地下管道以及地铁线路构成威胁。
译文属可可英语原创，未经允许，不得转载。
重点讲解
1.contribute to 促成
例句：Various factors contributed to his downfall.
多种因素的作用导致了他的倒台。
2.pose a threat 构成威胁
例句：This could pose a threat to jobs in the coal industry
这可能会给煤炭产业的就业造成威胁。
3.begin to 开始
例句：The horns of some deer begin to shed.
有些鹿开始换角了
4.active faults 活断层
例句：Active faults and lineaments, and recent volcanic activity were re-examined.
对活断层，线状区和近期火山活动进行了重新研究。
