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People invented plastic less than two hundred [200] years ago.
人们发明塑料的时间还不到两百年。
But Charles Moore shares a sad fact: “Except for the small amount that has been destroyed - and it is a very small amount - every bit of plastic ever made still exists.”
但是查尔斯·摩尔分享了一个令人悲伤的事实：“除了已经被破坏的少量塑料——而且这是非常少量的——曾经制造的每一点塑料仍然存在。”
Plastic waste sits in places like the North Pacific gyre.
塑料垃圾堆积在北太平洋环流等地方。
This and other gyres cover about twenty-five percent of the earth’s surface.
太平洋环流和其他环流覆盖了地球表面约百分之二十五的面积。
Even the very small broken down plastic particles still produce harmful chemicals.
甚至非常小的塑料碎片仍然会产生有害的化学物质。
Some also escape from the water into the air.
有些还会从水里逃到空气中。
So people eat the particles, drink them, and breathe them in.
所以人们会吃这些颗粒，喝这些颗粒，吸入这些颗粒。
Researchers say that the effects of these chemicals are beginning to show in people.
研究人员表示，这些化学物质的影响开始在人类身上显现。
Many groups are trying to fix these problems.
很多团体都在试图解决这些问题。
There are now some plastics that will naturally biodegrade.
现在有一些塑料可以自然生物降解。
But it will take time for these to be used widely.
但是，要被广泛使用还需要时间。
Unfortunately, people may not have much time left.
不幸的是，人们可能没有太多时间了。
Curtis Ebbesmeyer is a retired oceanographer.
柯蒂斯·埃贝斯迈尔是一位退休的海洋学家。
But he continues to study the ocean.
但是他仍然在继续研究海洋。
The amount of plastic he finds on the beaches makes him sad and angry.
他在海滩上发现的塑料数量让他既悲伤又愤怒。
He believes that things must change.
他相信事情必须改变。
Or, he says, the future will be very depressing.
或者，他说，未来将会非常令人沮丧。
He says: “If you could go ten thousand [10,000] years into the future and do an archaeological dig, you would find a little line of plastic... You might ask, ‘What happened to those people?’ Well, they ate their own plastic.
他说：“如果你能去到一万年以后的未来，进行一次考古挖掘，你会发现一条小小的塑料线……你可能会问，‘那些人怎么了？’”嗯，他们吃了他们自己制造的塑料。
They destroyed their genetic structure.
他们破坏了自己的遗传结构。
And they were no longer able to have children.
并且他们不再能够有孩子了。
They did not last very long because they killed themselves with plastic.”
他们没有持续很长时间，因为他们被塑料杀死了。
Curtis believes that the plastic waste he finds on the beach is a warning message.
柯蒂斯认为，他在海滩上发现的塑料垃圾是一个警告信息。
And he believes that people must start to listen, or there will be serious costs.
并且他认为，人们必须开始倾听，否则将会有严重的代价。
“Nature is writing to us, and she writes to us through the waste on the beach.
“大自然正在给我们写信，她通过海滩上的垃圾给我们写信。
The ocean is warning us.
海洋正在警告我们。
And if we do not listen, it is very easy for nature to get rid of us.”
如果我们不听，大自然很容易就能甩掉我们。”
What can we do - just normal people?
我们能做什么——只是普通人？
Can we help to stop the dangers of plastic waste?
我们能够帮助阻止塑料垃圾的危害吗？
If so, how?
如果可以做到，如何做呢？
Write to us with your ideas.
写信给我们，分享你的想法。
