阴霾笼罩下的马来西亚

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia — For much of the year, the Petronas Towers, the world’s tallest twin buildings, are gleaming landmarks visible far from the city center here. But last weekend, the 88-story structures were shrouded in a smoky haze that prompted doctors to warn people with respiratory problems to wear masks.

吉隆坡，马来西亚——在一年的大多数时间里，人们都能从远离市中心的地方看到那座闪闪发亮的地标性建筑——双子塔，世界上最高的双子建筑。但是上周末，这座88层高的建筑被阴霾笼罩，医生不得不警告患有呼吸系统疾病的人戴上面具。

The haze, attributed mostly to fires burning on the Indonesian island of Sumatra, has become a recurring summer blight, engulfing parts of Malaysia, Thailand, Brunei and Singapore, and leaving a litany of health and economic costs in its wake.

这些阴霾主要来自印度尼西亚苏门答腊岛的大火，已经成为夏日常态，祸及马来西亚、泰国、文莱以及新加坡的部分地区，造成了一连串的健康问题和经济损失。

Experts say that some progress has been made in the 15 years since the Association of Southeast Asian Nations first pledged to combat the problem, after one of the worst forest fires in the region’s history. That fire was traced to the clearing of land by burning in Indonesia.

专家说，15年前印尼因烧荒而引发了该地区史上最严重的森林火灾，当时东南亚国家联盟(Association of Southeast Asian Nations)第一次承诺解决这一问题，自此之后，情况确实有所改善。

But experts say far more must be done before the area will see clearer skies, including better law enforcement and international cooperation.

但专家表示，该地区想要重见蓝天，还有许多工作要做，包括加强执法以及国际合作。

The haze that hit Kuala Lumpur last weekend was the worst so far this year, according to Halimah Hassan, director general of Malaysia’s Department of Environment, with readings on the air pollution index exceeding the threshold for unhealthy.

马来西亚环境部(Malaysia’s Department of Environment)部长哈莉玛·哈森(Halimah Hassan)表示，上周末侵袭吉隆坡的阴霾是今年以来最严重的，空气污染指数超过了不健康指数界限。

By Monday, winds had begun pushing the haze north. Asean’s Web site on the haze reported that the smoke was also affecting southern Thailand early last week.

周一，大风已经开始将阴霾向北推移。与阴霾相关的东盟网站报道说，上周早期，阴霾还影响到了泰国的南部地区。

The skies over Kuala Lumpur were clearer on Friday, and pollution levels in the capital had dropped to mostly moderate levels. But unhealthy levels were reported in Miri, in Sarawak State, on the island of Borneo, because of a peat fire that started in the area on Thursday.

周五，吉隆坡的天空趋于晴朗，大部分区域的污染降低到了中等水平。但加里曼丹岛沙捞越州米里地区的空气污染达到了危害健康水平，原因是周四爆发了泥炭火灾。

Ms. Halimah warned that the haze could continue to be a problem in the coming months, given predictions of dry weather and southwesterly winds until September.

哈莉玛女士警告说，阴霾可能会持续几个月，原因是干燥的气候和西南风预计会延续到9月。

The environment department has imposed a blanket ban on open fires in Malaysia and has increased efforts to control local sources of air pollution. However, Ms. Halimah said, fires in Indonesia were primarily responsible for pushing the air pollution index to unhealthy levels.

马来西亚环境部下达了有关野外用火的全面禁令，并且加大了控制本地污染源的力度。不过，哈莉玛女士说，印尼的火灾才是导致空气污染指数达到不健康水平的主要因素。

A major source of smoke, researchers say, are fires set on palm oil and rubber plantations, primarily in Sumatra, to get rid of old trees and to clear land for new plantations.

研究人员称，阴霾的主要成因是焚烧棕榈树和橡胶种植园的举动，目的是清除老树，腾出土地种植新树。这样的举动主要出现在苏门答腊岛。