1. Study the vocabulary:

1. Decommissioning списывание, перевод в резерв, вывод из эксплуатации

2. maintain поддерживать, обслуживать

3. unacceptable неприемлемый

4. enable давать возможность, право

5. restoration восстановление, реконструкция

6. fisheries рыбные места, рыболовство

7. riverine речной, прибрежный

8. mitigation смягчение, уменьшение

9. concern беспокойство, участие, интерес, озабоченность

10. flush прилив, приток

11. sediment осадок

12. downstream вниз по течению, низовая часть плотины

13. contaminate загрязнять, заражать

14. upstream против течения, вверх по течению

15. floodgates шлюз, шлюзные ворота

16. unrestricted неограниченный

17. removal удаление, снос

18. benefits выгода, польза

2. Guess the meaning of the following words:

Process, negative, aquatic, accumulate, toxic, critical, option, address, restoration, public, action, activity.

3. Read the text.

DECOMMISSIONING OF LARGE DAMS

The end of the 20th century saw the emergence of another trend – decommissioning dams that no longer serve a useful purpose, are too expensive to maintain safely, or have unacceptable levels of impacts in today’s view. Nearly 500 dams, mainly relatively old, small dams have been decommissioned in the United States.

Experience in North America and in Europe shows that decommissioning dams has enabled the restoration of fisheries and riverine ecological processes. However, dam removals without proper studies and mitigation actions cause public concerns and environmental problems. These include negative impacts on downstream aquatic life due to a sudden flush of the sediments accumulated in the reservoir. Where there has been industrial or mining activity upstream, these sediments may be contaminated with toxic substances. Another option is to open the floodgates of dams where this is possible, either as a form of decommissioning, or to allow natural river flows and unrestricted fish passage at critical times of the year.

There is little experience with the removal of larger dams. The bigger the dam, the more problems decommissioning or removal are likely to face, and the more expensive they are likely to be. More studies are needed to address the costs, benefits and impacts of decommissioning.

4. Find in the text the equivalents to the following word combinations:

1. Вывод дамб из эксплуатации

2. больше не служат

3. неприемлемый уровень воздействия

4. без тщательного исследования

5. смягчающие действия

6. отрицательное влияние

7. вызывать общественную озабоченность

8. осадки, накопившиеся в резервуаре

9. зараженные токсическими веществами

10. открыть шлюзы

11. неограниченный путь рыб

12. рассмотреть расходы, пользу и недостатки

LESSON 4