| Dust storms are one of the repercussions of humans messing around with Mother Nature. 沙尘暴就是人类任意破坏大自然，所造成的影响之一。 Although they are a natural phenomenon, dust storms have been occurring more often, at shorter intervals, and with greater force in recent years, and human activity is the cause. 沙尘暴虽是自然现象，但是近年来发生的频率却逐渐增加，间隔的时间也愈来愈短，破坏力更强大了，人的活动是罪魁祸首。 It is a fact that excessive herding of animals and exploitation of grasslands are responsible for the majority of dust storms. 事实上，沙尘暴形成的主要原因是过度放牧及滥垦草原， This means that dust storms are largely a result of human actions; in other words, they are controllable. 这表明沙尘暴大多是人的活动所导致，也就是说，它们是可加以控制的。 We seem to think, however, that economic development and preservation of the environment cannot go hand in hand. 不过，我们似乎认为经济发展与环境保护无法同时兼顾。 For most countries, economic development comes first, at the expense of the environment. 对大部分国家来说，经济发展是第一位的，为此可以不惜牺牲环境。 It is high time everyone came to grips with the consequences of overusing the earth's resources, including the misuse of land in the pursuit of economic wealth. 然而，我们已过度使用了地球的资源，包括为了追求经济繁荣而滥用的土地，如今该是我们认真面对这个后果的时候了。 |
