Name: 中國為何要扼殺亞洲第三長河？ (Why China is Killing Asia's 3rd Longest River)
Uploaded: 2022-05-20T17:00:47.000Z
Duration: 14 min 22 s

情態副詞

This is the Tibetan plateau, a huge geographic region in the middle of Asia, that's more than half the size of the european union, but with a population of only around five million people, which is less than that of Slovakia.

這是青藏高原，亞洲中部的一個巨大的地理區域，面積超過歐洲聯盟的一半，但人口只有500萬左右，還不到斯洛伐克的人口。

程度副詞

This place is extremely remote and empty of people, but it's not the numbers of people here than make an importance.

這個地方極其偏遠，人跡罕至，但這裡的人的數量並不重要。

轉承詞

Tibet is one of the most strategically important regions of the entire world to control because it is the home of tens of thousands of glaciers locked high up in the mountains that collectively store the third largest reserve of fresh water found anywhere in the planet only behind the North and south Poles.

西藏是整個世界上最具有戰略意義的控制區域之一，因為它是數以萬計的冰川的家園，這些冰川被鎖在高山上，共同儲存著地球上第三大淡水儲備，僅次於南北兩極。

And at the same time, the sources of many of the world's mightiest rivers begin up here as well, like the Yangtze, Yellow and Mekong rivers, the three longest rivers located on the Asian continent and the 3rd, 6th and 12th longest rivers in the entire world, respectively.

同時，世界上許多最強大的河流的源頭也始於此，如長江、黃河和湄公河，這三條最長的河流位於亞洲大陸，分別是整個世界上第三、第六和第十二長的河流。

The Yangtze and yellow rivers flow to the east from their source is in Tibet towards the pacific ocean entirely within just a single country, the people's Republic of china.

長江和黃河從西藏的源頭向東流向太平洋，完全在一個國家內，即中國人民共和國。

Hundreds of millions of chinese people live downstream within the basins of these two great rivers and at the end of the Yangtze across the river's delta is an area that alone comprises around 20% of china's entire Economic GDP.

數以億計的中國人生活在這兩條大河流域的下游，在長江三角洲的末端，僅這一地區就佔中國整個經濟GDP的20%左右。

These rivers are the literal arteries that supply china's huge and thirsty population and the control of their sources over in Tibet is an imperative matter of national security for Beijing.

這些河流是供應中國龐大而飢渴的人口的實際動脈，控制其在西藏的源頭是北京國家安全的當務之急。

But then there's that third river, the Mekong, which doesn't entirely run through a single country far to the contrary, Instead of flowing to the east, like the Yangtze and Yellow, the Mekong flows to the south through the territory of china initially but eventually winds its way through Southeast Asia across multiple other countries like Myanmar Laos Thailand cambodia, and finally on through the river's delta region in southern Vietnam, where it finally empties into the south china sea.

但還有第三條河流，即湄公河，它並不完全流經一個國家，恰恰相反，湄公河不像長江和黃河那樣向東流，而是向南流，最初流經中國領土，但最終蜿蜒穿過東南亞的多個國家，如緬甸寮國泰國高棉，最後穿過越南南部的河流三角洲地區，最後流入南中國海。

The key facts that make this 4500 kilometer long river one of the most important in the world is that it is the primary source of fresh water for nearly 70 million people across Southeast Asia, while simultaneously providing almost 20% of the entire world's freshwater fish supply, which understandably makes the river critical for the life of the entire region the same way that the Yangtze and yellow rivers are critical for china's civilization.

使這條4500公里長的河流成為世界上最重要的河流之一的關鍵事實是，它是整個東南亞近7000萬人口的主要淡水來源，同時提供整個世界淡水魚類供應的近20%，這可以理解為該河流對整個地區的生活至關重要，就像長江和黃河對中國的文明至關重要一樣。

But despite that massive importance, the Mekong River is currently dying for the nations of Southeast Asia and a lot of it can be blamed on the policies of china when visualizing the Mekong, it's more helpful to see it through the lens of two really separate and distinct areas.

但儘管如此，湄公河目前對東南亞國家來說已經奄奄一息，而且很多都可以歸咎於中國的政策，當想象湄公河時，通過兩個真正獨立和不同的地區的視角來看待它更有幫助。

There's the lower Mekong basin in the south that begins near the Laos china border that encompasses a broad mass of tributary rivers that covered the majority of Laos cambodia and significant amounts of Thailand and Vietnam.

南部的湄公河下游流域始於寮國和中國邊境附近，包括大量的支流，覆蓋了寮國、高棉的大部分地區以及泰國和越南的大量地區。

So while this southern basin is a large flowing spread of tons of different rivers and wetlands across five different countries, the separate upper Mekong basin to the north is almost entirely just within china where the river is more technically known as the land came.

是以，雖然這個南部盆地是一個大型的流動分佈，有數噸不同的河流和溼地，橫跨五個不同的國家，但北部獨立的湄公河上游盆地幾乎完全只是在中國境內，那裡的河流在技術上被稱為陸地。

And it's up here from the high peaks of Tibet down towards the lower elevation of Southeast Asia, that the water flows across a much steeper geography than it does further downstream.

從西藏的高峰到東南亞的低海拔地區，水在這裡流過的地理環境比在下游流過的要陡峭得多。

Think of it almost like a really long drawn out waterfall over hundreds of kilometers.

想想看，它幾乎就像一個真正漫長的、超過數百公里的瀑布。

This means that the water flows pretty quickly down this area and that means that the Land King has one major pro and one major khan.

這意味著水在這一地區流得相當快，這意味著土地王有一個大親，一個大汗。

On the one hand, it means that it's full of pretty intense falls and rapids that historically made it pretty useless for navigation and trade.

一方面，這意味著它充滿了相當激烈的瀑布和激流，在歷史上使它對航行和貿易相當無用。

But on the other hand, in recent times, it means that the Land King section of the river is one of the most ideal locations in the world to construct dams at and harvest hydro electric power from with tens of millions of people living so near to the river Today, electricity has always been a commodity that's been highly in demand and as a result, dam building across both the upper and lower basins of the Mekong have been an incredibly popular engineering activity.

但另一方面，在近代，這意味著陸家嘴河段是世界上最理想的建壩地點之一，數千萬人生活在河邊，可以從中獲取水電。 今天，電力一直是一種需求量很大的商品，是以，在湄公河上下流域建壩是一項非常受歡迎的工程活動。

More than 200 dams in total have been constructed or or planned to be constructed across the southern basin throughout Thailand Laos cambodia and Vietnam.

在整個泰國、寮國、高棉和越南的南部盆地，總共建造、或計劃建造200多座大壩。

And while that sounds like a lot, most of them are pretty small in scale and are just located on the Mekong's various tributary rivers that feed into the main section.

雖然這聽起來很多，但大多數規模相當小，只是位於湄公河的各條支流上，而這些支流都匯入主河段。

In fact, out of that huge number of 200 dams, only two of them have actually been built across the main section of the lower Mekong here.

事實上，在這200座大壩的龐大數量中，只有兩座真正建在了湄公河下游的主要地段。

The Library and the Don Suhong, both located within Laos.

圖書館和唐蘇紅，都位於寮國境內。

This means that the flow of water through the lower Mekong is primary course is generally pretty unrestricted and free flowing.

這意味著流經湄公河下游的水是主航道，通常是相當不受限制和自由流動的。

But this is far far from the case when compared with the upper steeper region of the Lancang, that's more conducive to hydro electric power generation Ever since the 19 nineties china has gone on an unparalleled building spree of dams across all of their territory, but especially on the Lancang where they've constructed 11 of them just in the past couple of decades alone, with 1/12 1 under construction right now and the 13th one planned shortly in the future.

但與瀾滄江上游的陡峭地區相比，情況就大不相同了，那裡更有利於水力發電。自19世紀90年代以來，中國在全國範圍內掀起了一場無與倫比的大壩建設熱潮，尤其是在瀾滄江上，僅在過去幾十年裡，他們就修建了11座大壩，目前還有1/12座正在建設中，未來不久還將規劃第13座。

And unlike the lower basin, all of these dams have been built directly across the rivers, primary course and not along any of the tributaries.

而且，與下游流域不同的是，所有這些大壩都是直接跨越河流，主要路線，而不是沿著任何支流建造的。

Even further, two of these 11 dams are classified as large storage dams, meaning that they're extremely large and they hold back a massive volume of water if you took just these two chinese dams on the land King alone.

甚至更進一步，這11座大壩中的兩座被歸類為大型儲水壩，這意味著它們非常大，如果你僅僅把這兩座中國大壩的地王單獨拿出來，它們就能容納大量的水。

And you didn't even include any of the other nine, they store almost as much water as the entirety of the Chesapeake bay between the U.

而你甚至沒有包括其他九個的任何一個，它們儲存的水幾乎和美國之間的整個切薩皮克灣一樣多。

States of Maryland and Virginia, a body of water that spans more than 11,000 square kilometers.

馬里蘭州和弗吉尼亞州，一個橫跨11,000多平方公里的水體。

That is a lot of water being held back already.

But when you consider that china has nine other dams on the Lancang to more being built in the near future and 11 more planned to be constructed over the next 20 years.

但是，當你考慮到中國在瀾滄江上還有九座大壩，在不久的將來會有更多的大壩被建造，還有11座計劃在未來20年內建造。

You can quickly see how this can start becoming a pretty big problem for the Southeast asian countries that are further downstream.

你可以很快看到，這對處於下游的東南亞國家來說，如何開始成為一個相當大的問題。

The existing dams in the lower Mekong basin today generate about 12,285 megawatts of total power on average, which is a lot.

今天，湄公河下游流域的現有大壩平均產生約12,285兆瓦的總電力，這是個很大的數字。

But those 11 chinese dams on the land King in the upper basin where the water flow is faster generate an astounding 31,605 megawatts of power.

但是，中國的這11座水壩位於流域上游水流較快的陸地上，可產生驚人的31605兆瓦的電力。

When combined, all of these dams on the Mekong generate about 44,000 megawatts of power, which is enough to provide the entire electricity needs of the whole region and is enough to power the entirety of New york city four times over.

湄公河上的所有這些大壩加在一起，可產生約44,000兆瓦的電力，這足以提供整個地區的全部電力需求，足以為整個紐約市提供四次電力。

And while all of this energy is theoretically clean, the big problem is that these dams are coming at an ever increasing environmental cost, made even worse by the fact that the area around the Mekong River is currently suffering from historically low water levels and drought just a couple years ago, cambodia, one of the countries that's the furthest downstream, had to completely shut down their largest dams due to a crippling lack of water flow, which caused the country to endear months of debilitating electricity blackouts and caused major disruptions across the Cambodian economy.

雖然所有這些能源理論上都是清潔的，但最大的問題是，這些大壩的環境成本越來越高，而湄公河周圍地區目前正遭受歷史上的低水位和乾旱，使情況更加糟糕。

Additionally, due to the lower water levels and pressure coming from upstream, saltwater from the south china sea has been able to intrude into the Mekong River delta in southern Vietnam, devastating Vietnamese farmland and causing fishing stocks in the southern region from there to cambodia to be depleted by as much as 90%.

此外，由於較低的水位和來自上游的壓力，來自中國南海的鹽水已經能夠侵入越南南部的湄公河三角洲，對越南農田造成破壞，並導致從那裡到高棉的南部地區的漁業資源枯竭高達90%。

And while there are other, more natural factors that are contributing to the death of the Mekong, like the recent lower than average rainfall, a significant share of the responsibility also falls on Beijing and their management of the upper Mekong and source of the river itself.

雖然有其他更多的自然因素導致湄公河的死亡，比如最近的降雨量低於平均水平，但很大一部分責任也落在北京和他們對湄公河上游和河源的管理上。

With so many dams constructed along the main path of the river just over the past couple of decades, it's not hard to see that the natural flow of the river has been dramatically clogged up.

就在過去的幾十年裡，沿著河流的主要路徑修建了這麼多的水壩，不難看出，河流的自然流量已經被大大地堵塞了。

You see prior to any of the dam construction here before the 19 nineties, the natural cycle of the river would have its water levels rise and fall based upon the season during the winter months of the monsoon and rainy season between june and october.

你看，在19世紀90年代之前，這裡的任何水壩建設之前，河流的自然週期會根據冬季的季風和6月至10月的雨季的季節，水位上升和下降。

The Mekong would be extremely full of water and fish, often reaching depths as great as seven or eight m.

湄公河的水和魚會非常多，常常達到七、八米的深度。

This flow would be even further compounded by the melting of the Himalayan snow and ice up in the Tibetan plateau near to the river source, which would sometimes push the water levels even higher and caused the lower Mekong basin of flood depositing rich sediments upon the area's fertile floodplains.

由於靠近河源的青藏高原上的喜馬拉雅冰雪融化，有時會把水位推得更高，導致湄公河下游流域洪水氾濫，在該地區肥沃的洪泛區沉積了豐富的泥沙，使這種流動更加複雜。

In the process for context, the Mekong River delta region in Vietnam produces half of Vietnam's entire rice export and 70% of their fruit and fish export and is now in a lot of danger for environmental collapse.

在這個過程中，越南的湄公河三角洲地區生產了越南整個大米出口的一半和水果和魚類出口的70%，現在正處於環境崩潰的危險之中。

And of course, the natural rhythm of the river that has been in place for thousands of years has now been almost completely interrupted.

當然，幾千年來河流的自然節奏現在也幾乎完全被打斷了。

As the dams were constructed along the river's main path in the north.

由於大壩是沿著北方的河流主幹道建造的。

Within china, enormous amounts of water began to be held back, which means that during the wet season, when the communities further downstream, we're expecting peak water heights that came up dramatically short, often as much as five m less of water than what could previously have been regularly counted upon.

在中國境內，大量的水開始被扣留，這意味著在雨季，當社區進一步向下游發展時，我們期待的高峰水位急劇下降，往往比以前可以經常指望的水少5米。

And at no point was this ever more evident than just three years ago.

而在任何時候，這都不比三年前更明顯。

Back in 2019, when the Mekong River reached some of its lowest levels ever seen on record, you see, while the Land King in the North, typically throughout most of the year, contributes just a small portion of the water flow further downstream, as little as 15% it contributes significantly more.

早在2019年，當湄公河達到有記錄以來的最低水平時，你看，雖然北方的陸王，通常在一年的大部分時間裡，只貢獻了更下游的一小部分水流量，只要15%，它的貢獻就大大增加。

During the dry season months between november and april when as much as half of the lower Mekong's water comes from sources within china with very high snow and ice melt in the Chinese Himalayas.

在11月至4月的旱季月份，湄公河下游的水有一半來自中國境內的水源，中國喜馬拉雅山脈的冰雪融化量非常大。

That year, more water than ever was held back within the land Kane, causing devastating changes in the water levels further downstream, where they peaked at just a few meters in height.

那一年，比以往任何時候都更多的水被擋在凱恩土地內，導致下游的水位發生破壞性變化，水位最高時只有幾米的高度。

In fact, in july of that year, the levels in the lower river got so atypically shallow that the thai government had to actually mobilized its army in order to conduct relief operations.

事實上，在那一年的7月，河流下游的水位變得如此之淺，以至於泰國政府不得不實際動員其軍隊，以開展救援行動。

And then of course things got even worse during the later dry season months of that year, when the lower river's water levels are already expected to be depleted naturally.

當然，在當年旱季後期的幾個月裡，事情變得更加糟糕，因為那時下游河道的水位已經預計會自然耗盡。

Sometimes with little warning, the chinese dams will suddenly just released staggering volumes of water down through their dams on the land Kane and towards the lower Mekong flooding communities up to the lower delta in Southeast Asia who are given little or no time at all to fully prepare for the sudden onslaught of water.

有時幾乎沒有任何警告，中國的大壩就會突然釋放出驚人的水量，通過他們的大壩，向湄公河下游湧去，淹沒東南亞下游三角洲的社區，而這些社區幾乎沒有時間為突如其來的洪水做充分準備。

And then for state security purposes, Beijing considers its entire nationwide water management strategy a very closely guarded secret, including its management of the land Kane.

然後出於國家安全的目的，北京認為其整個全國性的水資源管理戰略是一個非常嚴密的祕密，包括其對土地凱恩的管理。

And so despite many efforts made by the other nations further downstream around the Mekong to work together and manage the river through organizations like the Mekong River Commission china has thus far declined to ever join.

是以，儘管湄公河下游的其他國家做出了許多努力，通過湄公河委員會等組織共同管理河流，但中國至今仍拒絕加入。

The reality today is that the lower Mekong basin is entering its fourth straight year of severe drought with poorer than average rainfall, the ever advancing threat of climate change and a series of massive hydropower dams collectively causing all of these problems for the asian continents, third largest waterway, the livelihoods of more than 70 million people are at a serious risk of instability or even collapse.

今天的現實是，湄公河下游流域正進入連續第四年的嚴重乾旱，降雨量比平均水平低，氣候變化的威脅不斷推進，一系列大規模的水電大壩共同造成了亞洲大陸第三大水道的所有這些問題，7000多萬人的生計正面臨著不穩定甚至崩潰的嚴重風險。

Important steps are going to need to be taken by them And China in order to preserve the river, its natural rhythm and its natural resources.

他們和中國需要採取重要措施，以保護河流、其自然節奏和自然資源。

Now, as I mentioned, 20% of the world's supply of freshwater fish that we collectively eat as a species comes from just the Mekong River alone.

現在，正如我提到的，我們作為一個物種集體食用的世界淡水魚供應量的20%僅來自湄公河。

That is a lot and if that made you suddenly hungry you're not alone.

這是一個很大的數字，如果這讓你突然感到飢餓，你並不孤單。

If you're anything like me, you typically struggle to decide what to do at dinner time.

如果你和我一樣，你通常會努力決定在晚餐時間做什麼。

Should I order expensive, take out, eat unhealthy freezer food or make a time consuming home cooked meal.

我應該訂購昂貴的外賣，吃不健康的冷凍食品，還是做一頓耗時的家常菜。

I struggled with all of these same decisions for years until I began using.

我在所有這些相同的決定中掙扎了多年，直到我開始使用。

Hello Fresh because it's simultaneously healthy, affordable and fast.

Hello Fresh，因為它同時具有健康、實惠和快速的特點。

Every week I select all of the meals that I want on their app and then a box arrives on my doorstep with all of the ingredients needed in exactly the right quantities needed.

每週我都會在他們的應用程序上選擇我想要的所有膳食，然後一個盒子就會送到我家門口，裡面有所有需要的食材，而且數量正好。

This instantly cuts out all of your shopping time and the majority of your prep time so that you can just get straight to the most fun part.

這立即減少了你所有的購物時間和大部分的準備時間，這樣你就可以直接進入最有趣的部分。

Actually cooking as an example, I made this incredible buffalo spice chicken in less than 30 minutes at the same time.

其實做為一個例子，我在不到30分鐘的時間裡同時做了這個令人難以置信的水牛城香料雞。

Hello Fresh is also a much more sustainable choice.

Hello Fresh也是一個更可持續的選擇。

Unlike the grocery store, they offset all of their emissions.

與雜貨店不同，他們抵消了所有的排放。

Their packaging is made out of recycled material and the University of Michigan study found that the pre portioned ingredients lower food waste by 25% when compared to grocery shopping all in all.

他們的包裝是由可回收材料製成的，密歇根大學的研究發現，與雜貨店購物相比，預先分好的原料可減少25%的食物浪費。

Hello Fresh simply makes mealtime better and that's why I've been personally using them for years now.

Hello Fresh簡單地使用餐時間變得更好，這就是為什麼我個人已經使用它們多年了。

I'd highly recommend that you try them out as well, which you can do with an insanely good deal when you click the button that's here on screen right now.

我強烈建議你也嘗試一下，當你現在點擊螢幕上的按鈕時，你可以用一個非常好的交易來做。

Or go to Hello Fresh dot com and use the code real life lore.

或者去Hello Fresh dot com，使用代碼real life lore。

 16 for up to 16 free meals and three additional surprise gifts and three additional surprise gifts. 

16個免費餐和三個額外的驚喜禮物和三個額外的驚喜禮物。