Will the eucalypts eat your children?
June 19, 2003

Few forest-related issues generate more heated disagreement than commercial eucalypt, acacia, pine, and poplar plantations. Proponents argue that fast-growing tree plantations offer a sustainable source of wood to meet the growing global demand for paper and other products. They also claim plantations generate substantial employment, reduce global warming and protect watersheds, and take pressure off natural forests.

Opponents disagree with these claims. They say plantations will dry up water supplies, degrade the soil, and fall victim to pests and diseases. They deny that plantations will help protect natural forests or provide many jobs. In fact, the opponents maintain that companies often destroy natural forests to grow plantations and displace small farmers and local communities, and they strongly object to calling these plantations "forests".

The issue is key because fast-growing tree plantations and global demand for paper are both increasing rapidly. There are some ten million hectares of commercial fast-growing tree plantations and the area is increasing by about one million hectares each year. FAO predicts that global paper consumption will be 80% higher in 2010 than it was in 1990.

To sort out fact from fiction about the plantation controversial, CIFOR, WWF, IUCN, and Forest Trends have just published "Fast-Wood Forestry, Myths and Realities" by Christian Cossalter and Charlie Pye Smith. It concludes that fast-growing plantations:

- often but not always replace natural forest;

- only take pressure off natural forest in special circumstances;

- sometimes improve biodiversity in degraded areas;

- use more water than lower vegetation, but that is only a problem in dry areas;

- are not as susceptible to pests and diseases as sometimes argued;

- generally degrade the soil less than commercial agricultural crops;

- can do relatively little to reduce global warming;

- provide fewer jobs than claimed by proponents;

- have frequently been associated with conflicts; and

- should generally not be subsidized with public funds.

The authors are convinced that fast-growing commercial tree plantations are here to stay. The real issue is how to manage them better. No, eucalypts and acacias are unlikely to eat your children or turn your region into a desert. But there is still a lot that could be done to improve plantations.

呵呵,拙译如下,各位专家和高手见笑了:

Will the eucalypts eat your children?
桉树们会让您的子孙断粮吗？
June 19, 2003
于2003年1月19日

Few forest-related issues generate more heated disagreement than commercial eucalypt, acacia, pine, and poplar plantations. Proponents argue that fast-growing tree plantations offer a sustainable source of wood to meet the growing global demand for paper and other products. They also claim plantations generate substantial employment, reduce global warming and protect watersheds, and take pressure off natural forests.
桉树、相思树、松树和杨树的人工林引起的热议异议之多，极少与森林关联的话题能与之相比。
其支持者称，速生树的人工林提供了源源不断的木材，满足了世界对纸张和其他产品不断增长的需求。他们还争辩道，人工林提供了可观的就业岗位，减少了全球变暖的影响，保持了水土，还减轻了天然林的压力。

Opponents disagree with these claims. They say plantations will dry up water supplies, degrade the soil, and fall victim to pests and diseases. They deny that plantations will help protect natural forests or provide many jobs. In fact, the opponents maintain that companies often destroy natural forests to grow plantations and displace small farmers and local communities, and they strongly object to calling these plantations "forests".
反对者不这么看。他们不但认为人工林会使水源枯竭，使土壤恶化，使病害和虫害肆虐，并且否认人工林对保护天然林和大量解决就业有所帮助。事实上，反对者认为，造林企业常常为了种植人工林而砍伐天然林，并且取代小农场和当地社区，他们甚至强烈拒绝把人工林称为“森林。”
The issue is key because fast-growing tree plantations and global demand for paper are both increasing rapidly. There are some ten million hectares of commercial fast-growing tree plantations and the area is increasing by about one million hectares each year. FAO predicts that global paper consumption will be 80% higher in 2010 than it was in 1990.
该问题很关键，因为速生树人工林与世界对纸张的需求同样在快速增长。目前，商用速生树人工林面积已达1000万公顷，并以每年100万公顷的速度增长。据联合国粮农组织（FAO）预计，2010年全球的纸张消耗量将比1990年增加80%。
To sort out fact from fiction about the plantation controversial, CIFOR, WWF, IUCN, and Forest Trends have just published "Fast-Wood Forestry, Myths and Realities" by Christian Cossalter and Charlie Pye Smith. It concludes that fast-growing plantations:
为了对人工林的争议去伪存真，国际林业研究中心（CIFOR），世界野生动物基金会（WWF），国际自然保护联盟（IUCN）以及森林趋势组织（Forest Trends）刚刚发布了由Christian Cossalter和Charlie Pye Smith写的名为《速生林的神秘面纱以及真实面目》报告，总结了速生人工林具有以下特点：
- often but not always replace natural forest;
- 常常但不总是取代天然林；
- only take pressure off natural forest in special circumstances;
- 仅仅在特定条件下减轻天然林的压力；
- sometimes improve biodiversity in degraded areas;
- 有时能改善已遭恶化的环境的生物多样性
- use more water than lower vegetation, but that is only a problem in dry areas;
- 比矮于其的植物吸收更多的水分，但该问题仅对于干旱地区言；
- are not as susceptible to pests and diseases as sometimes argued;
- 并非如有些争论所述般易受虫害和病害；
- generally degrade the soil less than commercial agricultural crops;
- 造成的土壤恶化后果一般而言轻于商用农作物；
- can do relatively little to reduce global warming;
- 能对改善全球变暖尽微薄之力；
- provide fewer jobs than claimed by proponents;
- 提供的就业岗位数目比支持者所称的少；
- have frequently been associated with conflicts; and
- 经常引起冲突；
- should generally not be subsidized with public funds.
- 再就是，一般而言公共基金不予资助。
The authors are convinced that fast-growing commercial tree plantations are here to stay. The real issue is how to manage them better. No, eucalypts and acacias are unlikely to eat your children or turn your region into a desert. But there is still a lot that could be done to improve plantations.
作者相信，商用速生树人工林会存在下去。真正的问题是，如何更好地管理人工林。放心好了，桉树和相思树等速生树人工林不会让您的子孙断粮，不会把您的土地变成沙漠。不过，改善人工林仍需努力再努力。

milktea粗心...
改过来了.呵呵
所谓人在此山中，自己看自己的译文不容易看出毛病。所以过后又重新看了看题目，才进一步领会该文的精神：
题目是Will the eucalypts…而不是Will eucalypts…,说明the eucalypts 是指一类与桉树相似的事物；再看正文开头第一句话，说的正是好几种速生树，结束时，桉树也是与相思树一起被提到的。
因此，题目似应为“以桉树为代表的速生树会。。。”或者“‘桉树们’会。。。”，否则以偏概全。

另，该文题目用了拟人的修辞手法，所以题目的译文也与“吃“有关，还换了一种修辞。