2023年考研英语二阅读 Text 1 原文翻译及答案解析

In the quest for the perfect lawn, homeowners across the country are taking a shortcut-and it is the environment that is paying the price. About eight million square metres of plastic grass is sold each year but opposition has now spread to the highest gardening circles. The Chelsea Flower Show has banned fake grass from this year's event, declaring it to be not part of its ethos. The Royal Horticultural Society ( RHS) , which runs the annual show in west London, says it has introduced the ban because of the damage plastic grass does to the environment and biodiversity.

在追求完美草坪的过程中，全国各地的房主们都在走捷径——而环境正在为此付出代价。每年大约售出800万平方米的塑料草皮，但反对声现已蔓延至园艺界的最高层。切尔西花展已禁止在本届活动中使用假草，声称这不符合其宗旨。运营该年度西伦敦展览的皇家园艺学会（RHS）表示，实施此禁令是因为塑料草皮对环境和生物多样性造成的损害。

Ed Home, of the RHS, said: "We launched our sustainability strategy last year and fake grass is just not in line with our ethos and views on plastic. We recommend using real grass because of its environmental benefits, which include supporting wildlife, alleviating flooding and cooling the environment. "

RHS的Ed Home表示：“我们去年推出了可持续发展战略，假草完全不符合我们的宗旨和对塑料的看法。我们推荐使用真草，因为其环境效益包括支持野生动物、缓解洪水和降低环境温度。”

The RHS's decision comes as campaigners try to raise awareness of the problems fake grass causes. A Twitter account, which claims to "cut through the greenwash" of artificial grass, already has more than 20,000 followers. It is trying to encourage people to sign two petitions , one calling for a ban on the sale of plastic grass and another calling for an " ecological damage " tax on such lawns. They have gathered 7,276 and 11,282 signatures.

RHS的决定是在活动人士试图提高人们对假草造成问题的认识之际做出的。一个Twitter账户声称能“揭露”人造草的“绿色洗白”，已有超过20,000名关注者。它正试图鼓励人们签署两份请愿书，一份呼吁禁止销售塑料草皮，另一份呼吁对此类草坪征收“生态损害”税。它们分别收集了7,276和11,282个签名。

However, supporters of fake grass point out that there is also an environmental impact with natural lawns, which need mowing and therefore usually consume electricity or petrol. The industry also points out that real grass requires considerable amounts of water, weed killer or other treatments and that people who lay fake grass tend to use their garden more. The industry also claims that people who lay fake grass spend an average of £500 on trees or shrubs for their garden, which provides habitat for insects.

然而，假草的支持者指出，天然草坪也有环境影响，因为它们需要修剪，通常消耗电力或汽油。该行业还指出，真草需要大量水、除草剂或其他处理，而铺设假草的人往往更常使用他们的花园。该行业还声称，铺设假草的人平均花费500英镑购买树木或灌木用于花园，这为昆虫提供了栖息地。

In response to another petition last year about banning fake lawns, which gathered 30,000 signatures, the government responded that it has " no plans to ban the use of artificial grass. "

针对去年另一份关于禁止假草坪的请愿书，该请愿书收集了30,000个签名，政府回应称“没有计划禁止使用人造草。”

It added: "We prefer to help people and organizations make the right choice rather than legislating on such matters. However, the use of artificial grass must comply with the legal and policy safeguards in place to protect biodiversity and ensure sustainable drainage, while measures such as the strengthened biodiversity duty should serve to encourage public authorities to consider sustainable alternatives. "

政府补充道：“我们更倾向于帮助个人和组织做出正确选择，而不是就此类事项立法。然而，人造草的使用必须遵守现有的法律和政策保障，以保护生物多样性并确保可持续排水，同时加强生物多样性义务等措施应鼓励公共当局考虑可持续替代方案。”