VOA慢速英语：联合国会谈关注有害化学物质

Only a small number of the 100,000 chemicals sold worldwide have been safety tested.

销往世界各地的10万种化学品中只有一小部分已经进行安全检测。

An international conference on chemicals has a plan that could prevent more than 1 million people from dying every year from chemical-related issues.

关于化学品的国际会议提出一项可靠的方案，它可以防止一百多万人每年死于与化学品相关的问题。

The UN says the infant death rate from chemical causes is 12 times higher in developing countries than in developed countries. Lead causes about 600,000 new cases of mental disabilities in children every year.

联合国声称，在发展中国家，由于化学品原因造成的婴儿死亡率比发达国家高12倍。每年，在儿童中，铅会导致60万智力障碍新发病例。

Toxic gas leaked from a chemical plant in Bhopal, India in 1984, killing 5,200 people and injuring several thousand others. Thirty years later, few of the 100,000 chemicals sold worldwide have been safety tested. Children are particularly vulnerable.

Conference delegates said it is important to gather more information about chemicals and how they can harm us.

与会代表表示，收集有关化学品及它们如何伤害我们的更多信息，这一点至关重要。

More than 800 delegates of the United Nations Environment Program met for a week. They included government officials, members of the chemical industry and leaders of civil society.

联合国环境规划署的800多名代表进行了为期一周的会见。他们当中包括政府官员、化工行业成员与民间社会领袖。

They agreed on a plan to reduce the risk of death and injury from chemicals. Because the plan is not fully funded, there is some worry that it will not be carried out.

他们商定出一项方案，旨在减少化学品所带来的死亡危险与伤害。该方案由于资金不足，因此对于它是否会被执行实在令人有些担心。

Olga Speranskaya helps lead an international group of more than 700 organizations. Her group works to fight dangerous chemicals. It also helps people who have beencontaminated by farm pesticides, mercury and other toxic products. Visit the website www.chinavoa.com to get more information!

斯佩兰斯卡亚（Olga Speranskaya）帮忙领导一个700多个组织的国际组。她的组织致力于对抗危险化学品。该组织也帮助那些受到农业杀虫剂、汞和其他有毒产品感染的人们。

She says her group is pleased with the plan that was approved by the conference delegates. She says if the risk reduction activities that the delegates called for are put into place, there will be a "reduction of toxic exposure on human health and the environment."

她说，她的团队对与会代表所批准的方案非常满意。她表示如果与会代表所呼吁的降低感染风险活动可以实施，有关人类健康及环境所能接触的有毒物质就会减少。

But she is not sure the plan will be put into place by 2020, as the delegates hope. She says the chemicals management program has received funds of only $27 million. She says it needs $100 million to pay for all of the actions the delegates called for.

但她并不确定，到2020年，该方案是否正如与会代表们所希望的那样，将落实到位。她表示化学品管理计划只获得2700万的资金。她说，支付与会代表们所呼吁的所有行动需要1亿。

I'm Jim Tedder.

我是吉姆特德。

Are you worried about toxic chemicals where you live? Write to us in the Comments section below, or on ourFacebook page.

Correspondent Lisa Schlein reported this story from Geneva. Christopher Jones-Cruise adapted it for VOA Learning English. Kathleen Struck was the editor.

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Words in This Story

contaminated– adj. dangerous, dirty or impure; having something harmful or undesirable

pesticide– n. a chemical that is used to kill animals or insects that damage plants or crops

mercury – n. a silver metal that is liquid at normal temperatures

toxic– adj. containing poisonous substances

exposure– n. the fact or condition of being affected by something or experiencing something; the condition of being exposed to something