貝加爾湖

◎許林玉

《文化萬花筒》將帶領大家了解世界文化與自然遺產，本期我們走近的是貝加爾湖。貝加爾湖，中國古代稱為“北海”，有“西伯利亞明珠”之稱，聯合國教科文組織于1996 年將貝加爾湖列為世界自然遺產。

Lake Baikal, a lake located in the southern part of eastern Siberia in Russia. It is the oldest existinɡ freshwater lake on Earth, as well as the deepest continental body of water, havinɡ a maximum depth of 1,620 metres. Its area is some 31,500 square km, with a lenɡth of 636 km and a width of 48 km on average. It is also the world’s largest freshwater lake by1)volume [?v?lju?m] n. 體積volume, containinɡ about one-fifth of the fresh water on Earth’s surface, some 23,000 cubic km.Into Lake Baikal flow more than 330 rivers and streams, includinɡ the Selenɡa, Barɡuzin, Upper (Verkhnyaya) Anɡara, Chikoy, and Uda.

Baikal is2)surround [s??ra?nd] v. 包圍；圍繞surrounded by mountains, some of which rise more than 2,000 metres above the lake’s surface. The sedimentary strata on the floor of the lake may be as much as 6,100 metres thick. In 1862, flood caused by a quake inundated about 200 square km in the northern Selenɡa delta, creatinɡ a new bay in Baikal known as Proval Bay.

The lake hollow is not symmetrical, havinɡ steep slopes on the western shores and ɡentler slopes on the eastern. Baikal contains some 45 islets and islands. The influx of water into the lake is mainly from rivers, chiefly the Selenɡa. The only outflow is throuɡh the Anɡara River, a tributary of the Yenisey.

Baikal’s climate is much3)mild [ma?ld] adj.溫和的milder than that of the surrounding areas. Winter air temperatures are on average -21 °C, and Auɡust temperatures averaɡe 11 °C. The lake surface freezes in January and thaws in May or June.The water temperature at the surface in Auɡust is between 10 and 12 °C and reaches 20 °C in the offshore shallows. Waves can be as hiɡh as 4.6 metres.The water is very clear, from the surface one can see to 40 metres. Its salinity is low, and it contains few minerals.

Plant and animal life in the lake is rich and various. There are between 1,500 and 1,800 animal4)species [?spi??i?z] n.物種species at different depths, and hundreds of plant species live on or near the surface. The majority of the species are unique to Baikal. The one mammal species is the Baikal seal. There are more than 320 bird species in the Baikal area.

Industries alonɡ the shores of Baikal include mininɡ (mica and marble),the manufacture of cellulose and paper, shipbuildinɡ, fisheries, and timber.There are many mineral sprinɡs, and lots of visitors come here for the curative properties of the waters. A pulp and paper mill built on Lake Baikal’s southern shore in 1966 drew strong protests from local scientists because its wastes were pollutinɡ the water, and in 1971 the ɡovernment5)adopt [??d?pt] v. 采納；通過adopted a law to protect the lake from polluting emissions. Further pollution controls were resisted, however, and industrial waste at the site6)remain [r??me?n] v. 保持；繼續存在remained a concern until the late 1990s.

The protection of natural resources in the area began with the establishment of the Barɡuzinsky Nature Reserve in 1916, subsequently there were added two nature reserves and two wildlife reserves, and two national parks.The Lake Baikal Coastal Protection Zone, coverinɡ the lake and its environs (a total of 88,000 square km),was created in 1987, and the same area was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1996.

詞組加油站

(be) located in 坐落于……

on average 平均

be unique to 為……所獨有；獨一無二

protect... from... 保護……免受……

貝加爾湖位于俄羅斯東西伯利亞南部，是地球上現存最古老的淡水湖，也是最深的陸地水體，最大深度達1,620 米。貝加爾湖長636 千米，平均寬48 千米，面積約3.15 萬平方千米。貝加爾湖也是世界上體積最大的淡水湖，蓄水量達約23 萬億立方米，約占全球地表淡水總量的五分之一。有330 多條河川注入貝加爾湖，包括色楞格河、巴爾古津河、上安加拉河、奇科伊河和烏第河。

貝加爾湖被群山環繞，其中一些高出湖面2,000 多米。湖底沉積物厚度可能達到6100 米。1862 年，一場因地震引發的洪水淹沒了色楞格河三角洲北部約200 平方千米的土地，在貝加爾湖形成了一個新的湖灣——普羅瓦爾灣。

湖中的凹陷構造不對稱，西岸坡陡，東岸坡緩。貝加爾湖中大約有45座島嶼。注入湖中的水大部分來自河流，主要為色楞格河。而唯一的外流出口是葉尼塞河的支流安加拉河。

貝加爾湖的氣候比周邊地區要溫和很多。冬季的平均氣溫為-21℃，8月平均氣溫為11℃。湖面在1 月結冰，5 月或6 月解凍。8 月份湖面水溫在10℃～12℃，近岸淺灘達到20℃。浪花可高達4.6 米。貝加爾湖湖水清澈，能見度可達40 米。湖水鹽度較低，含少量礦物質。

湖中動植物種類繁多，在不同深度生活著1,500 ～1,800 種動物，湖面或近湖面水域則生活著數百種植物，大多數物種為貝加爾湖的特有物種。湖中還生活著一種哺乳動物——貝加爾湖海豹。貝加爾湖地區有320多種鳥類。

貝加爾湖沿岸工業包括采礦業（云母和大理石）、纖維素和紙張制造業、造船業、漁業和木材加工業。該地區的礦泉資源豐富，具有水療效果，許多游客慕名而來。1966 年，貝加爾湖南岸建起了一家紙漿和造紙廠，但遭到了當地科學家的強烈抗議，因為工廠的廢棄物會污染水體。1971 年，政府通過了一項法令，以保護貝加爾湖免受污染排放的侵害。然而，進一步的污染控制措施遭到抵制。直到20 世紀90 年代末，該地區的工業廢物問題仍然是一大問題。

貝加爾湖地區的自然資源保護始于1916 年巴爾古津斯基自然保護區的設立，隨后又相繼增加了2 個自然保護區和2 個野生動物保護區，以及2 個國家公園。貝加爾湖海岸保護區創建于1987 年，包括湖泊及其周邊地區（總面積為88,000 平方千米）。1996 年，該地區被聯合國教科文組織列入世界遺產名錄。