(本文选自《经济学人》20201212期)
背景介绍：
赞比亚是非洲南部的一个内陆国家，是世界最不发达国家之一。自从1902年英国殖民者在赞比亚发现了产量丰富的铅矿以来，英国的采矿公司便在赞比亚大量开采铅矿。虽然这些铅矿早已关闭，但几十年来，当地居民却一直面临铅中毒的威胁。
Toxic legacies
How a lead mine in Zambia has blighted a town
Azael tembo takes a seat in the shade of a mango tree outside his house. He kicks up the dust. “It’s affected,” he says, pointing to the plume around his feet. The 67-year-old lives in Kabwe, a town in central Zambia whose history, like that of much of the southern African country, is intertwined with mining.
阿扎尔·坦博坐在家门外一棵芒果树的树荫下。他朝地上踢了一脚，并指着脚边扬起的尘土说：“这里深受影响。”这位67岁的老人生活在赞比亚中部的卡布韦镇，与这个非洲南部国家的大部分地区一样，这个小镇的历史与采矿业紧密相连。Kabwe sprung up around a mine founded in 1904 by the Rhodesian Broken Hill Development Company, a British colonial firm. For decades miners like Mr Tembo crushed and burnt ore to extract lead. That metal made Kabwe but it also devastated it. To this day lead particles blow across town, making their way into houses and bloodstreams.
1904年，英国殖民时期的罗得西亚矿业开发公司在一处矿区附近建立了卡布韦。几十年来，无数像坦博这样的矿工通过碾碎和燃烧矿石来提取铅。这种金属造就了卡布韦，但也毁掉了它。直到今天，铅尘仍飘散在小镇的上空，不断地进入到人们的家里和血液中。Scientists generally consider soil hazardous if it has more than 400mg of lead per kilogram. In three townships near the old mine the soil contains six, eight and 15 times that amount, according to analysis in 2014 by Pure Earth, an environmental NGO. “Kabwe is the most toxic place I’ve ever been to,” says Richard Fuller, its president.
科学家们普遍认为，一旦土壤中的铅含量超过400mg/kg，那么便可将其认定为有毒土壤。据非政府环保组织“洁净地球”在2014年的调查分析，老矿区附近三个城镇的土壤中汞含量分别为原来的6倍、8倍和15倍。该组织负责人理查德·富勒表示：“卡布韦是我去过的最具毒性的地方。”Prolonged exposure to lead degrades the body’s nervous and circulatory systems, damaging the brain and other organs. It is associated with higher rates of miscarriage, convulsions, comas and death. Mr Tembo believes his poor eyesight and sore limbs are from lead poisoning.
长期接触铅会损害人体的神经系统和循环系统，对大脑及其他器官造成伤害。铅也与流产、抽搐、昏迷和死亡的高发生率有关。坦博认为，他的视力低下和四肢酸痛也是铅中毒所引起的。But his main concern is for his four grandchildren, in particular the two-year-old. She enjoys playing outside and is puckishly recalcitrant when told to stop putting things in her mouth. “I tell her mum to not let her eat the soil, but kids do what they will do,” he says.
但他最担心的是他的四个孙子，尤其是两岁的孙女。她喜欢在外面玩耍，每次让她不要把东西塞进嘴里时，她总是调皮地不听。他说：“我告诉她妈妈不要让她吃土，但孩子们总是会做他们想做的事情。”Children are more likely to inhale and ingest toxic dust. Their bodies are more susceptible to its potential effects, such as behavioural problems, learning disabilities and lower IQs.
儿童更容易吸入或食入有毒粉尘。他们的身体更容易遭受潜在危害，例如行为问题、学习障碍和智力低下。Three-quarters of Kabwe’s population are estimated to have more than five micrograms of lead per decilitre in their blood, levels scientists consider elevated. Among children the average levels are much higher. “Kabwe is the most polluted place for children on the planet,” says Jack Caravanos of the NYU School of Global Public Health.
据估计，卡布韦75%的人口血液中铅含量超过5μg/ dL，但科学家们认为实际可能会更高。儿童的平均水平要高得多。纽约大学全球公共卫生学院的杰克·卡瓦诺斯说：“卡布韦是地球上儿童受污染最严重的地方。”
In the absence of a clear plan that will end contamination in Kabwe, residents are trying to protect themselves as best they can. Local NGOs such as Environment Africa are educating people in schools and on radio shows.
由于政府没有一个明确的计划来治理卡布韦的污染，当地居民只得尽力保护自己。当地一些非政府组织（如非洲环境组织）正在学校和广播节目中对人们进行教育。Families pass on warnings. “I don’t let my younger brothers play outside,” says Joy Mbuzi, a 19-year-old student, whose grandfather, a former miner, drummed into her the dangers of lead. “I’m worried about their IQs,” she says.
家庭教育也在起作用。19岁的学生乔伊·姆布齐说：“我不让弟弟们在外面玩耍。”她的祖父过去是一名矿工，曾反复向她灌输铅的危险。她说：“我很担心他们的智力。”In his front yard Mr Tembo introduces his son, Richard. “All these years I’ve been affected,” says the 20-year-old. He struggles to focus on his college work and suffers from memory loss.
坦博在他家前院向我们介绍了他的儿子理查德。这位20岁的年轻人说：“这些年来，我一直深受其害。”他很难集中精力学习，并且还伴有记忆力减退。He worries about his younger nieces and their difficulties at school. Given all this, hasn’t his father considered leaving Kabwe? He doesn’t have the money, says Mr Tembo. “This is our home. We’ve nowhere else to go.”
他很担心他的小侄女们，担心她们在学习中面临困难。考虑到这一切，他的父亲没有想过离开卡布韦吗? 坦博表示他没有钱。“这儿是我们的家，我们无处可去。”(红色标注词为重难点词汇)
本文翻译：Vinnie
校核：Vinnie
编辑：Vinnie
由于有着非常丰富的矿产资源，采矿业一直以来都是赞比亚国民经济的主要支撑之一。因铅矿而生的小镇卡布韦却也毁于铅。几十年来，卡布韦的居民一直面临铅中毒的威胁，环境及当地居民血液中的铅含量都远远高于正常水平。而更可悲的是，即使明知有毒，但由于贫穷，人们无处可去。
重难点词汇：
blight [blaɪt] v. 破坏；使…枯萎
intertwine [ˌɪntərˈtwaɪn] v. 缠绕；纠缠devastate [ˈdevəsteɪt] v. 毁灭；毁坏hazardous [ˈhæzərdəs] adj. 有危险的；冒险的recalcitrant [rɪˈkælsɪtrənt] adj. 反抗的；反对的；顽强的susceptible [səˈseptəbl] adj. 易受影响的；易感动的contamination [kənˌtæmɪˈneɪʃn] n. 污染；玷污；污染物
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