VOA慢速英语：能源危机中的欧洲人开始用柴火

Europe's energy crisis has forced some people to turn to less costly heating sources such as firewood.

欧洲的能源危机迫使一些人转向成本较低的取暖资源，例如木柴。

But as demand increases, the public is facing rising prices, shortages and even reports of firewood theft. Foresters are using GPS devices to follow their logs while others fear the environmental impact of increased air pollution and tree cutting.

但随着需求的增加，民众正面临木柴价格上涨、短缺甚至被盗的风险。林务员开始使用 GPS 设备跟踪他们的原木，而其他人则担心空气污染加剧和砍伐树木对环境的影响。

In Moldova, Tudor Popescu splits firewood that will heat his home in the capital of Chisinau. As the nights turn colder, the load of firewood has been growing higher around him - his supplies for the coming winter.

在摩尔多瓦，都铎·波佩斯库正在劈柴，为他在首都基希讷乌的家供暖。随着夜幕降临，他周围的木柴越来越高——这是他为即将到来的冬天准备的物资。

In the past, Popescu depended on natural gas for warmth in the mornings and firewood at night. But gas is now in short supply, following Russia's major cut to gas exports.

过去，波佩斯库早上依靠天然气取暖，晚上依靠木柴。但随着俄罗斯大幅削减天然气出口，天然气现在供不应求。

Russian energy business Gazprom has threatened even more reductions.

俄罗斯能源企业 Gazprom 威胁要进一步减产。

"I won't use gas anymore, so it's going to only be wood," Popescu said. "But what I have isn't enough."

“我不会用汽油，所以只能用木头，”波佩斯库说。“但我所准备的还不够。”

The demand for firewood in Europe is not limited to poorer nations like Moldova. Germany, Poland and the Czech Republic's state-owned forests are seeing much stronger demand for the limited amounts of firewood they sell as part of their sustainable forest programs.

欧洲对木柴的需求不仅限于摩尔多瓦这样较贫穷的国家。作为可持续森林计划的一部分，德国、波兰和捷克共和国的国有森林，所出售的有限数量的木柴正面临着更为强劲的需求。

The German forestry service has reported getting requests for firewood from people who had never sought firewood before. The people seemed not to know that the firewood process takes two years. That is how long it takes to fully dry the wood so it will burn in wood stoves, said the forestry office in the southwestern state of Hesse.

德国林业局报告说，以前从未用过木柴的人开始寻求木柴。人们似乎不知道木柴的形成过程需要两年时间。西南部黑森州的林业办公室说，这是木材完全干燥所需要的时间，这样木材才可以在木炉中燃烧。

German forest rangers also report increased incidents of people gathering fallen wood in forests, often not knowing it is illegal.

德国护林员还报告说，人们在森林里收集落木的事件越来越多，他们往往不知道这是非法的。

State forests in the Czech Republic also report increased demand for firewood. The government sells the wood for use at home, only. Officials say they have had to limit the amount of firewood sold to individuals.

捷克共和国的国有森林也报告了对木柴的需求增加。政府只出售供家庭使用的木材。官员们表示，他们不得不限制出售给个人的木柴数量。

In Poland, demand for small firewood from state forests increased by 46 percent through the end of August from a year earlier. Larger firewood demand was up 42 percent. A spokesman for Poland's State Forests said, "small firewood is probably the cheapest heating material in the EU countries." He said theft of firewood is also on the rise.

在波兰，截至 8 月底，对国有森林小木柴的需求比去年同期增长了 46%。较大的木柴需求增长了 42%。波兰国家森林的一位发言人说，“小木柴可能是欧盟国家最便宜的取暖材料。” 他说，盗窃木柴的行为也在增加。

To prevent theft in Germany, the forestry department is experimenting with hiding GPS devices in logs. The German state of North Rhine-Westphalia is the latest to try the technology. Foresters in neighboring Hesse have been using GPS devices since 2013 and say they have been able to solve several thefts that way.

为了防止盗窃，林业部门正在尝试将 GPS 设备隐藏在原木中。德国北莱茵-威斯特法伦州是最近开始尝试这项技术的州。邻近黑森州的林务员自 2013 年以来一直在使用 GPS 设备，并表示他们已经通过这种方式解决了多起盗窃案。

Austrian police recently warned people to watch for those claiming to sell firewood online. Police in Germany have issued similar alerts.

奥地利警方最近警告人们注意那些声称在网上出售木柴的人。德国警方也发出了类似的警报。

Germany's statistics agency says prices for firewood and wood products used in home heating rose over 85 percent in August from a year earlier. Even so, heating with wood is still less costly than natural gas. Gas costs 20.9 cents per kilowatt hour of heat, while wood products cost 14.88 cents.

德国统计局表示，8 月份用于家庭取暖的木柴和木制品价格比去年同期上涨了 85% 以上。即便如此，用木材取暖的成本仍然低于天然气。天然气每千瓦时热量成本为 20.9 美分，而木制品成本为 14.88 美分。

In Britain, prices of firewood also are going up. Company Certainly Wood says it has seen "a massive increase in demand" even though the price is 15 to 20 percent higher than last year.

在英国，木柴的价格也在上涨。伍德公司表示，尽管价格比去年高出 15% 到 20%，但需求仍“大幅增加”。

In Denmark, the demand for wood-burning stoves is growing along with demand for firewood itself. The Danish sales site DBA said searches for wood-burning products have increased by over 1,300 percent in the past year.

在丹麦，对燃木炉具的需求随着对木柴本身的需求而增长。丹麦销售网站 DBA 表示，过去一年，木材燃烧产品的搜索量增加了 1,300% 以上。

At the same time, government officials and environmentalists have warned Danes about the risk of burning firewood. The smoke produced can be dangerous and adds to pollution, they say, and the tree loss adds to climate change problems.

与此同时，政府官员和环保人士警告丹麦人燃烧木柴的风险。他们说，产生的烟雾可能很危险，会增加污染，而树木的流失也会加剧气候变化问题。

I'm Caty Weaver.

凯蒂·韦弗报道。