美国每30秒，就会失去一个足球场那么大的自然空间

据报道，美国每30秒就会失去一个足球场那么大的自然空间

Between 2001 and 2017, 24 million acres of natural lands have been destroyed in the United States, according to scientists.

据科学家称，2001年至2017年间，美国有2400万英亩的自然土地被毁。

That equates to losing roughly the size of a football field of natural space every 30 seconds, according to the report, “How Much Nature Should America Keep,” released this week by the think tank Center for American Progress — or the equivalent of nearly nine Grand Canyon National Parks.

根据智库美国进步中心本周发布的一份名为《美国应该保留多少自然空间》的报告称，这相当于每30秒失去一个足球场大小的自然空间，相当于将近九个大峡谷国家公园。

The authors of the report, published in partnership with the Conservation Science Project, primarily blames the development of roads, cities and power plants for the disappearing landscape, and the authors claim the US could lose an area equivalent to South Dakota of forests, wetlands and wilderness by 2050 if the trend continues.

该报告的作者与保护科学项目合作出版，主要将消失的景观归咎于道路、城市和发电厂的发展，作者声称如果这种趋势继续下去，到2050年，美国可能会失去一整个相当于南达科他州森林、湿地和野生动物的面积。

“America must confront the conservation crisis head-on and address the role that it wants nature to play in society, the economy and communities in the decades ahead,” the report states.

报告指出：“美国必须直面保护危机，并在未来几十年内解决大自然在社会、经济和社区中发挥的作用。”

“Science should inform this debate; indeed, scientific recommendations to protect at least 30 percent of lands and oceans in a natural state by 2030 offer a much-needed starting point for a vision and a baseline for a plan.”

“科学应该为这场辩论提供信息;事实上，到2030年保护自然状态下，至少30%的土地和海洋的科学建议，为制定一个远景规划提供了一个急需的起点和一个规划的基线。”

However, the study isn’t all doom and gloom. The authors also note that America has made tremendous progress over 150 years in land conservation, and through passing the Clean Air Act and Clean Water Act to safeguard air and water for its citizens.

然而，这项研究并不完全是悲观的。作者还指出，美国在过去150年里在土地保护方面取得了巨大进展，并通过了《清洁空气法》和《清洁水法》，为公民保护空气和水。

But the report still urges a redoubling of efforts to protect the country’s beautiful natural landscape for future generations of Americans.

但该报告仍敦促政府应加倍努力，为美国子孙后代保护美丽的自然景观。

“The United States is entering an era in which it will rely more than ever on the integrity and stability of the natural world to provide economic prosperity, safeguard the health of communities and weather the effects of a changing climate,” the report warns in its conclusion.

报告在其结论中警告说：“美国正进入一个新时代，一个比以往任何时候都更依赖于自然世界的时代，一个自然界的完整和稳定将对经济繁荣、保障社区健康和抵御气候变化产生重大影响的时代。”

“With the nation’s dependence on the natural world growing, now is the time to confront and reverse the rapid decline of its natural systems.”

“随着国家对自然世界的依赖日益加深，现在是时候面对并扭转自然系统的迅速衰落了。”