鮮花與空調(diào)
張海迪
Bamberg位于德國巴伐利亞州，是個美麗而古樸的小城，那里漂亮的小街讓人流連忘返。我更喜歡Bamberg樓房的窗戶，因為很多窗臺上都擺放著美麗的花。那些花姹紫嫣紅，千姿百態(tài)，美得讓人感動。此時想起自己的家——濟南，我生活了很多年的一個中國中部城市。這些年，我們中國的城市汽車越來越多，道路越來越擁擠。路旁的樓房也越來越高，越來越密集了，但樓房的窗臺上很少擺放鮮花，每一個窗下幾乎都掛著大大小小的空調(diào)。每當酷暑來臨，我們的各種媒體上都會有商家銷售空調(diào)的報道，比如一天售出幾百臺，或是一個月售出幾千臺。
但是卻沒有人去計算這么多制冷劑會產(chǎn)生多少有害氣體，這么多空調(diào)又會消耗多少能源.排放多少二氧化碳?夏天，我去開會，一些會議室的空調(diào)開得很大，溫度低得讓人發(fā)冷，還有的辦公室甚至開著窗子吹空調(diào)。
盡管Bamberg的夏天也有很炎熱的日子，但居民樓房都沒有裝空調(diào)，大多數(shù)商店和公共汽車上也沒有空調(diào)。我曾想人們怎么度過夏天呢?那里的朋友告訴我，即使溫度達到42攝氏度的日子，人們也只是用各種其它方法避暑。比如，他們到河邊去，到樹林里去，或是吹電扇，喝冷飲，但就是不裝空調(diào)。他們說，空調(diào)是造成溫室氣體的原因之一，要保護環(huán)境，就要減少這些氣體的排放。這話讓我很感動——為了保護環(huán)境，人就要做出犧牲。
但有多少人能夠這樣自覺地去實踐8呢?
人類是從遠古走來的，不同的人種都有過與風霜雨雪、酷暑嚴冬的搏斗經(jīng)歷。正是因為這些鍛煉和忍耐，人類才進化了，有了健壯的體魄和聰明的頭腦。而現(xiàn)代文明卻讓人對工業(yè)產(chǎn)品有了越來越多的依賴，人們的耐受力正在下降。夏天，一些人吹電扇已經(jīng)不能滿足散熱的需要了，他們白天要開著空調(diào)工作，晚上還要開著空調(diào)睡覺。尤其是一些孩子，已經(jīng)成為“空調(diào)一代’’，冬天不冷，夏天不熱，變得經(jīng)不起風吹日曬……
Bamberg的朋友們說，自然環(huán)境是人類生命延續(xù)的保障，有了良好的自然環(huán)境，人們才能有更好的生活質(zhì)量。這里山青水綠，鳥鳴花香，令人心曠神怡。而且綠色多了，也能調(diào)節(jié)氣濕¨。
中國科技部發(fā)布的《全民節(jié)能減排手冊》指出，即使只是出門前3分鐘關(guān)空調(diào)，按每臺每年可節(jié)電約5度的保守估計，相應減排4.8千克。如果對中國1.5億臺空調(diào)都采取這一措施，那么每年可節(jié)電約7.5億度，減排72萬噸。
夏天你可以不用空調(diào)嗎，或者至少是可減少它的使用?你是希望看到樓房窗臺上擺放著鮮花呢還是更愿意看到窗下掛著嗡嗡作響的空調(diào)?
Flowers and Air Conditioner
Zhang Haidi
The narrow streets of Bamberg, a charming old town in the German state of Bavaria, are hard to forget. I am particularly fond of the windows, many of which are decorated with window boxes of flowers displaying a profusion of colors.
And then I think of Jinan, the eastern Chinese city where I have lived for many years. The number of cars in Chinese cities has rocketed in recent years, with roads becoming ever more congested and the buildings alongside becoming taller. Instead of window boxes full of flowers, the only decoration on the outside of Chinese buildings tends to be air-conditioning units.
As summer approaches, the news media carry reports of air-conditioning manufacturers' sales promotions, with hundreds of new systems being sold in a single day, thousands in a single month. But there's no mention of the ozone-depleting substances produced by some refrigerant gases, or how much power these appliances will consume and the associated emissions of carbon dioxide ( CO2). In summertime business meetings, the air conditioning often is on at full blast, leaving attendees shivering. Sometimes a window is even left open to let some cold air out.
Summer in Bamberg can also be scorching, but no homes have air conditioning, and very few shops or buses do either. I used to wonder how they survived summer. A friend told me that even though the temperature can reach 42℃ ( about 1070 Fahrenheit) , the locals have their ways of coping with the heat: take a walk by the river; sit under the trees; use an electric fan; have a cold drink - but do not install air conditioning. They know that air conditioning produces greenhouse gases and, to protect the environment, emission of those gases needs to be reduced.
I was impressed. To protect the environment, the people of Bamberg are willing to make a sacrifice. But how many people are able to put this into practice? Humanity has always struggled with the weather. It is one of the processes that helped us evolve into strong and intelligent creatures. But our modern civilization sees us rely more and more on the products of industry, and our resilience is decreasing. Some feel that a simple electric fan is not enough to keep them cool in summer and that they need air conditioning, even while they sleep. Some children have become part of an "air-conditioned generation": they don't get hot in summer or cold in winter, and are unable to cope with either wind or sun.
My friend in Bamberg said that the natural environment is essential for humanity's survival.
Improved quality of life depends on a good natural environment - green hills and clear water, wildlife and flowers. Not only do these leave us happy and carefree, they also help to regulate the temperature.
China's Ministry of Science and Technology has published a handbook on ways the public can reduce energy use and emissions. One way is to turn off your air conditioning three minutes before you leave the house, rather than as you walk out of the door. At a conservative estimate, one person doing this would save five kilowatt-hours ( kWh) of electricity a year and reduce CO2 emissions by 4.8 kilogrammes. If all the users of China's 150 million air-conditioning units did the same, 750 million kWh of electricity could be saved annually, with CO2 emissions reduced by 720,000 tonnes.
Could you do without air conditioning in summer, or at least reduce its use? Would you rather see flowers or humming machines on the window sills of buildings?
