[ti:Officials: Air Quality Is Problem at US Schools]
[by:www.21voa.com]
[00:00.00]更多听力请访问21VOA.COM
[00:00.04]During the COVID-19 pandemic,
[00:02.80]public officials brought renewed attention
[00:06.12]to indoor air quality in schools.
[00:09.00]Improving ventilation and airflow
[00:12.04]was considered a way
[00:13.72]to prevent the spread of COVID-19 and other diseases.
[00:19.76]In January, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
[00:24.68]said indoor pollution can be two to
[00:27.88]five times higher than outdoor levels.
[00:31.68]The agency said children face higher risk
[00:34.72]from indoor pollutants like asbestos,
[00:37.32]mold, radon, and methane.
[00:40.72]They also face pollution from particulate matter,
[00:44.00]like vehicle exhaust or wildfire smoke,
[00:47.52]which can enter classrooms from the outside.
[00:50.68]The EPA said climate change
[00:53.44]has made safe indoor air quality more important.
[00:59.28]Pollutants can lead to a number of health problems for children
[01:03.24]if they breathe them for a long period, the EPA said.
[01:07.56]Health effects might include coughing, breathing diseases,
[01:12.04]allergic reactions, asthma and cancer.
[01:17.08]The agency said there are several ways
[01:19.64]to maintain healthy indoor air quality.
[01:22.24]These include controlling pollutants,
[01:25.24]ventilating outdoor air,
[01:27.08]and maintaining temperature and
[01:29.60]water in the air, or its humidity.
[01:33.64]A 2022 international study
[01:36.48]published in the Journal of Building Engineering
[01:40.12]said thousands of American schools
[01:43.04]have outdated HVAC systems.
[01:45.92]HVAC stands for heating, ventilation, and air conditioning.
[01:51.88]A 2020 study from the U.S. Government Accountability Office
[01:56.56]said that nine percent of school districts
[01:59.52]needed to fix "environmental conditions" like mold,
[02:03.28]lead, or asbestos in at least half their schools.
[02:09.04]Indoor air quality might affect school performance.
[02:12.76]Some studies say that a healthy school environment lifts attendance,
[02:17.96]increases test scores and improves learning.
[02:22.24]A study of 10,000 school districts
[02:25.24]from the National Bureau of Economic Research
[02:28.08]found that decreased pollution in schools led to higher test scores.
[02:35.44]Many schools have not taken steps to improve ventilation
[02:39.68]although research suggests it is important.
[02:42.76]During the COVID-19 pandemic,
[02:45.80]the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
[02:50.56]had recommended four ways to improve ventilation in schools.
[02:56.60]They included simple changes
[02:58.52]like opening windows and using fans
[03:01.28]to maintain airflow in buildings.
[03:03.68]Costly recommendations included replacing HVAC systems,
[03:08.84]using in-room air cleaners,
[03:11.40]or installing ultraviolet germicidal irradiation (UVGI) devices.
[03:19.56]Scientists and public health leaders
[03:22.28]pushed school districts to use
[03:24.40]federal pandemic emergency money for ventilation systems.
[03:28.56]But a 2022 CDC study of over 8,000 school districts
[03:34.40]found that about half had taken any of the four recommendations.
[03:39.48]That few districts had taken steps to improve air quality shows
[03:44.68]"the ongoing opportunity to improve indoor air quality
[03:48.20]among K–12 school buildings in the United States,"
[03:51.96]the authors of the study wrote.
[03:54.96]The aid money expires this fall.
[03:57.84]In January, the EPA announced
[04:01.80]$32 million in grant funding to reduce air pollution
[04:06.56]and greenhouse gases at schools in poor communities.
[04:10.40]Non-profit organizations and state governments
[04:14.52]could apply for the grants,
[04:16.32]which are expected to be awarded this fall.
[04:19.80]The EPA said the program was part of a set of policies
[04:24.56]from President Joe Biden's administration.
[04:27.64]The money came from the Inflation
[04:30.16]Reduction Act passed by Congress in 2022.
[04:35.36]In the announcement, EPA Deputy Administrator Janet McCabe
[04:39.76]said: "EPA is working with our partners
[04:43.08]to...improve air quality and energy efficiency."
[04:46.60]I'm Dan Novak. 更多听力请访问21VOA.COM
END OF TRACK. "END OF TRACK." The two men bowed. "Whoever was that person you were talking to?" she enquired, as soon as they stood together. The took of triumph faded from her eyes, she had grown worn and weary. The roses were wilting on the walls, the lights were mostly down now. Hetty, looking in to see if anything was wanted, found herself driven away almost fiercely. I only saw Master Jervie once when he called at tea time, The year 1747 was opened by measures of restriction. The House of Lords, offended at the publication of the proceedings of the trial of Lord Lovat, summoned the parties to their bar, committed them to prison, and refused to liberate them till they had pledged themselves not to repeat the offence, and had paid very heavy fees. The consequence of this was that the transactions of the Peers were almost entirely suppressed for nearly thirty years from this time, and we draw our knowledge of them chiefly from notes taken by Horace Walpole and Lord Chancellor Hardwicke. What is still more remarkable, the reports of the House of Commons, being taken by stealth, and on the merest sufferance, are of the most meagre kind, sometimes altogether wanting, and the speeches are given uniformly under fictitious names; for to have attributed to Pitt or Pelham their[112] speeches by name would have brought down on the printers the summary vengeance of the House. Many of the members complained bitterly of this breach of the privileges of Parliament, and of "being put into print by low fellows"; but Pelham had the sense to tolerate them, saying, "Let them alone; they make better speeches for us than we can make for ourselves." Altogether, the House of Commons exhibited the most deplorable aspect that can be conceived. The Ministry had pursued Walpole's system of buying up opponents by place, or pension, or secret service money, till there was no life left in the House. Ministers passed their measures without troubling themselves to say much in their behalf; and the opposition dwindled to Sir John Hinde Cotton, now dismissed from office, and a feeble remnant of Jacobites raised but miserable resistance. In vain the Prince of Wales and the secret instigations of Bolingbroke and Doddington stimulated the spirit of discontent; both Houses had degenerated into most silent and insignificant arenas of very commonplace business. "It certainly will be. Miss Widgeon," answered Maria, with strictly "company manners." "One who has never had a brother exposed to the constant dangers of army life can hardly understand how glad we all feel to have Si snatched from the very jaws of death and brung back to us." "Just plug at 'em as you would at a crow, and then go on your way whistlin'?" persisted Harry. "Hurroo!" echoed Hennessey; "that's the ticket." "Come forward, keeper," continued the baron, "and state how these arrows came into your hands!" "Yes." HoMEJULIA京香2018下载
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