久久亚洲国产成人影院-久久亚洲国产的中文-久久亚洲国产高清-久久亚洲国产精品-亚洲图片偷拍自拍-亚洲图色视频

 
 
 

當前位置: Language Tips> 新聞播報

Stamping out an unsightly pollutant

中國日報網 2017-04-21 16:15

 

Stamping out an unsightly pollutant

Get Flash Player

By James Healy

As China grows more determined to solve air pollution, things certainly seem to be looking up. But don't look down, or you'll realize how awful we're doing at ground level.

I'm not talking about heavy metals in the soil - another serious issue the government has resolved to tackle - but something far simpler.

There's even a reasonable, though potentially challenging, solution to this vexing sort of pollution, a campaign to clamp down and clean up that I call "No Ifs, Ands or Butts".

Cigarette butts, that is. Just look around. They're everywhere underfoot. If enough people notice and object, China could stamp out this ubiquitous annoyance.

To be fair, not all smokers are inconsiderate, though the number who continue to puff in public places like restaurants, even in Beijing where it is illegal, might cause one to wonder on this point.

However, many smokers do indeed seem to have no regard whatsoever for the cleanliness of the nation's streets and sidewalks or the beauty and magnificence of its parks and landscaping. One cigarette after another, ad nauseam, the worst of these human chimneys flick their butts hither and yon, as if a magical elf has been designated just to clean up after them.

Go ahead, count. You'll find cigarette butts strewn along streets, in crosswalks, on sidewalks, in flower beds, in bushes – you name it. And let's be frank: These smokers' remnants are filthy, toxic and unsightly.

Let's not even go into the ramifications to the environment of what happens when these countless discarded stubs become soaked with rain, and the toxins they hold leach into the soil or groundwater.

So, what can be done? Regulating such poor behavior, let alone enforcing a regulation or levying fines, would almost certainly be futile.

What about making smokers pay up front?

Here's my (perhaps myopic) vision: Add a self-recoverable cleanup tax to cigarettes, earmark the funds to rid our streets of cigarette leftovers — basically forcing offenders to finance the cleanup - and pay a per-butt bounty to anyone who gathers these discards and brings them to a designated collection point.

Let's say the tax is a mere 10 percent, which means someone buying a cheaper pack of 20 cigarettes, for between 5 and 10 yuan (73¢ to $1.45), would pay a tax of 0.5 yuan to 1 yuan. At up to 0.05 yuan per cigarette stub, someone who collects 500 discarded butts (which wouldn't take much time along the average Beijing street) could collect 25 yuan.

The beauty of this solution to an ugly problem is that it's loaded with incentive: Though it's unlikely, smokers who can't afford the extra tax might quit puffing (win!) or use that ingenious contraption called an ashtray to collect their own stubs to claim a tax refund (win!). Or, anyone looking for extra cash can collect the discards, thereby cleaning up the environment (win!) and reaping a reward (win!).

So, come on, China. Since it's a win-win-win-win proposition, what's there to lose?

音頻編輯:焦潔

Broadcaster:

Stamping out an unsightly pollutant

James Healy is from the United States and has been a copy editor at China Daily since 2014. He is an advanced student of Chen style tai chi and enjoys Chinese culture, food and carvings.

 
中國日報網英語點津版權說明:凡注明來源為“中國日報網英語點津:XXX(署名)”的原創作品,除與中國日報網簽署英語點津內容授權協議的網站外,其他任何網站或單位未經允許不得非法盜鏈、轉載和使用,違者必究。如需使用,請與010-84883561聯系;凡本網注明“來源:XXX(非英語點津)”的作品,均轉載自其它媒體,目的在于傳播更多信息,其他媒體如需轉載,請與稿件來源方聯系,如產生任何問題與本網無關;本網所發布的歌曲、電影片段,版權歸原作者所有,僅供學習與研究,如果侵權,請提供版權證明,以便盡快刪除。

中國日報網雙語新聞

掃描左側二維碼

添加Chinadaily_Mobile
你想看的我們這兒都有!

中國日報雙語手機報

點擊左側圖標查看訂閱方式

中國首份雙語手機報
學英語看資訊一個都不能少!

關注和訂閱

本文相關閱讀
人氣排行
熱搜詞
 
精華欄目
 

閱讀

詞匯

視聽

翻譯

口語

合作

 

關于我們 | 聯系方式 | 招聘信息

Copyright by chinadaily.com.cn. All rights reserved. None of this material may be used for any commercial or public use. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited. 版權聲明:本網站所刊登的中國日報網英語點津內容,版權屬中國日報網所有,未經協議授權,禁止下載使用。 歡迎愿意與本網站合作的單位或個人與我們聯系。

電話:8610-84883645

傳真:8610-84883500

Email: languagetips@chinadaily.com.cn

主站蜘蛛池模板: 欧美一级毛片在线观看 | 亚洲视频免费播放 | 久久久久久免费视频 | 草草在线观看视频 | 国产91久久久久久久免费 | 羞羞一区二区三区四区片 | 欧美中文字幕 | 国产一区二区三区亚洲欧美 | 国产一区视频在线播放 | 91国偷自产一区二区三区 | 国产一区曰韩二区欧美三区 | 三级大片网站 | 亚洲精品视频在线观看视频 | 国产免费一级片 | 欧美亚洲在线视频 | 一区视频在线播放 | 成年人在线观看网站 | 日本一级特大毛片 | 亚洲韩国欧美一区二区三区 | 一级毛片在线看 | 国产看午夜精品理论片 | 青青久草 | 午夜久久影院 | 欧美在线1 | 日韩欧美久久一区二区 | 国产精品一级视频 | 成年美女黄网站色大 | 国产成人mv在线观看入口视频 | 日本a级三级三级三级久久 日本a级特黄三级三级三级 | 久久毛片免费看一区二区三区 | 男人天堂免费 | 99热精品在线免费观看 | 久久精品国产免费观看99 | 草草影院私人免费入口 | 久久精品国产一区二区三区不卡 | 一区二区三区不卡在线 | 三级视频网站在线观看 | 久久精品视频一区二区三区 | 日韩美女视频网站 | 国产精品情侣久久婷婷文字 | 成人做爰全过程免费看网站 |