為什麼風力發電機葉片如此難以回收 | World Wide Waste：英語精讀講義

Until recently, 表達脈絡

直到不久前，

wind turbine blades were almost impossible to recycle.

風力發電機葉片幾乎無法回收。

They have to be replaced about every 20 years.

它們大約每20年就得更換一次。

Now, one company is the first in the US to shred the blades, 文法

現在，有一家公司率先在美國將這些葉片粉碎，

so they can be used to make cement.

讓它們能用來製造水泥。

But is this the best way to deal with old blades?

但這是處理舊葉片的最佳方式嗎？

Making cement is a major source of greenhouse gases. 片語搭配

製造水泥是溫室氣體的一大來源。

Can producing it this way really reduce emissions?

用這種方式生產水泥，真的能減少排放嗎？

We went to Missouri to see if recycling wind turbine blades 文法

我們前往密蘇里州，想看看回收風力發電機葉片

could help reduce a growing source of worldwide waste.

能否幫助減少一種在全球日益增加的廢棄物。

The first wind turbine in the US was built in the late 1800s.

美國第一台風力發電機建於19世紀末。

The tower was 60 ft tall,

塔架高60呎，

and it could power about three modern homes. 用詞

產生的電力足以供應大約三戶現代家庭。

Now, land-based wind turbines have an average height of 525 ft. 用詞

如今，陸域風力發電機的平均高度為525呎。

The average turbine can power over 460 homes.

平均每台風力發電機可為460多戶家庭供電。

The largest offshore turbine is more than 850 ft tall.

最大的離岸風力發電機高達850多呎。

Land-based turbine blades are typically 170 ft long.

陸域風力發電機的葉片通常長170呎。

That's more than four school buses parked end-to-end. 用詞

這比四輛校車首尾相連還要長。

The blades are usually made from a combination of fiberglass and balsa wood. 片語搭配

葉片通常由玻璃纖維和巴沙木複合製成。

This material is incredibly robust.

這種材料極為堅固。

The challenge is reversing that engineering and physically breaking the material down. 片語動詞

難點在於逆轉這種工程設計，從物理上把材料分解開來。

Turbine blades have been piling up in landfills in recent years. 講解

近年來，風力發電機葉片在垃圾掩埋場越堆越多。

That's the problem the company Veolia set out to solve. 片語動詞

Veolia公司著手解決的正是這個問題。

It gets the blades from GE Renewable Energy.

該公司從GE再生能源接收這些葉片。

These ones are only between 8 and 12 years old.

這些葉片才使用了8到12年。

The blades come from all over the US to the town of Louisiana, Missouri. 文化背景

這些葉片從美國各地運到密蘇里州的路易斯安那鎮。

Here, workers cut them down before sending them to the shredder.

工人會先在這裡把它們切小，再送進粉碎機。

The biggest challenge is just getting them cut perfectly just to feed them through the shredder without damaging anything. 文法

最大的挑戰，就是要把它們切得尺寸剛剛好，才能順利送進粉碎機，又不損壞任何東西。

This machine is powerful enough to crush the 20-ft sections 文法

這台機器的動力足以將20呎長的葉片段

into pieces roughly the size of a football. 片語搭配

壓碎成大約一顆美式足球大小的碎塊。

Then the blade chunks go to another shredder that grinds them down even more.

接著，葉片碎塊會進入另一台粉碎機，被磨得更細。

Next, a sorting machine filters out any remaining large pieces. 片語動詞

然後，分選機會濾除所有殘留的大塊材料。

It's hard to believe that this was once a 120-ft long wind turbine blade. 語氣意圖

很難相信，這些碎料曾是一片長達120呎的風力發電機葉片。

Veolia also recycles non-hazardous medical waste,

Veolia也回收非有害醫療廢棄物，

and some of that is mixed in with the blade material.

其中一部分會與葉片材料混合。

So back and forth we'll go 慣用語

所以我們會來回調整，

until we get what we think is our correct recipe.

直到調出我們認為正確的配方。

Right now, GE pays Veolia to recycle the blades, 文法

目前，GE付費請Veolia回收葉片，

and Veolia pays to send the final product to cement factories.

Veolia則要付費把最終產品送到水泥廠。

So currently, there isn't a profit associated with it.

所以目前這項業務並沒有利潤。

The real motivator here is to prevent this material 文法

真正的動力，是避免這種材料

from ending up in landfills. 片語動詞

最後被送進垃圾掩埋場。

Cement factories burn the turbine blades for fuel.

水泥廠燃燒風機葉片，把它們當作燃料。

Veolia says their product burns cleaner than coal. 文法

Veolia表示，他們的產品燃燒起來比煤炭更乾淨。

Still, it probably won't make that much of a dent in the cement industry's carbon footprint. 講解

不過，這對降低水泥業的碳足跡，恐怕起不了多大作用。

That's because most of the emissions don't come from burning coal.

因為大部分排放並不是來自燃煤。

They come from heating limestone inside giant kilns.

而是來自在巨型窯爐中加熱石灰石的過程。

Right now, the cement industry produces roughly 8% of all greenhouse gases,

目前，水泥業產生的溫室氣體約占總量的8%，

three times more than the aviation industry. 文法

是航空業的三倍。

So, is making new cement the best we can do with turbine blades? 文法

那麼，用風機葉片生產新水泥，就是我們能想到的最佳處理方式嗎？

It might not reduce emissions from cement making, 表達脈絡

這或許無法減少水泥製造過程中的排放，

but it still prevents the blades from ending up in landfills.

但至少能避免葉片被送進垃圾掩埋場。

But not everyone agrees that shredding and burning the blades is the best approach. 文法

但並非所有人都認為，粉碎並燃燒葉片是最好的做法。

Seems to me a tremendous waste of all the energy and resources 語氣意圖

在我看來，這簡直是對所有能源和資源的巨大浪費，

that have gone into producing the blade in the first place. 講解

畢竟它們一開始全都投入在葉片製造上。

Researchers like Larry Bank say reusing the blades is a better option.

Larry Bank等研究人員認為，重新利用葉片是更好的選擇。

Instead of disposing of it as waste, 講解

與其把它當成廢棄物處理，

you look for ways to use it in a second life or an alternative industry.

不如設法讓它獲得第二次生命，或用於其他產業。

Larry and other researchers at Re-Wind are building a pedestrian bridge in Ireland.

Larry和Re-Wind的其他研究人員正在愛爾蘭建造一座人行橋。

And they have proposals to turn wind turbines into cell phone towers and fencing. 片語動詞

他們也提議把風力發電機改造成手機基地台和圍籬。

We're hopeful that these demonstration projects will

我們希望這些示範計畫能夠

convince people that repurposing is a viable alternative. 片語搭配

讓大家相信，改造再利用是可行的替代方案。

And they aren't the only ones doing this.

而且，這麼做的不只有他們。

Architects in the Netherlands turned old blades into a playground

荷蘭的建築師把舊葉片改造成一座遊樂場，

and a public monument.

以及一座公共紀念碑。

Another company in Denmark created a bike shed.

丹麥另一家公司則打造了一座自行車棚。

So why aren't blades turned into more projects like these? 表達脈絡

那為什麼沒有更多葉片被用在這類計畫中呢？

The main reason is that it's incredibly cheap to dump them in a landfill.

主要原因是，把它們丟進垃圾掩埋場實在太便宜了。

And unless there is a regulation in the United States, 文法

除非美國訂出相關法規——

which seems unlikely, 語氣意圖

但這似乎不太可能——

a landfill will probably be the preferred solution.

否則掩埋很可能仍會是首選方案。

After this video was first published,

這部影片首次發布後，

Veolia responded and said reusing blades is interesting,

Veolia回應表示，重新利用葉片的想法很有意思，

but that these projects aren't enough to deal with the growing waste problem. 講解

但這些計畫不足以應付日益嚴重的廢棄物問題。

These other uses do not provide the scale necessary 用詞

這些其他用途達不到所需規模，

to manage the current volumes needed for sustainable wind turbine blade management.

無法處理目前的廢棄量，滿足風機葉片永續管理的需求。

As America installs more turbines, 文法

隨著美國安裝更多風力發電機，

the waste problem could grow.

廢棄物問題可能會加劇。

There are already more than 70,000 turbines in the United States.

美國目前已有超過7萬台風力發電機。

And with plans to expand offshore wind,

隨著離岸風電擴建計畫推進，

the US could have 2,000 more within the next decade.

未來十年內，美國可能再增加2,000台。

The 2021 infrastructure bill allocated at least $100 million to expand wind energy. 講解

2021年的基礎建設法案編列至少1億美元，用於擴大風力發電。

One study predicts global waste from turbine blades will exceed 47 million tons by 2050.

一項研究預測，到2050年，全球風機葉片廢棄物將超過4,700萬噸。

But even if that does happen, 文法

但即使真的如此，

it would still amount to about an eighth of the plastic that is thrown away every year. 片語動詞

也仍只相當於每年遭丟棄的塑膠總量的約八分之一。

In the scheme of things, 慣用語

從整體來看，

it's not much of an impact compared to most other industrial processes.

與大多數其他工業製程相比，它的影響並不算大。

And for both Veolia and Re-Wind,

而對Veolia和Re-Wind來說，

figuring out what to do with the blades is a welcome challenge. 講解

想辦法處理這些葉片，是一項他們樂於迎接的挑戰。

It's a cliche,

這是句老生常談，

but you know, one man's junk is another man's treasure. 慣用語

但你也知道，一個人的垃圾，可能是另一個人的寶物。

We have a finite amount of resources.

我們擁有的資源是有限的。

And so we've got to find innovative ways to find new resources. 文法

所以，我們必須用創新的方式尋找新資源。

And those new resources can come from materials we've already used. 文法

而這些新資源可以來自我們已經用過的材料。

If we can find applications for these materials in a second or even third life 慣用語

如果我們能為這些材料找到第二次、甚至第三次利用的方式，

after they have been used in the initial applications,

讓它們在完成最初用途後繼續發揮作用，

then you know, it's a win-win for everybody. 慣用語

那就是人人都能受益的雙贏局面。