Alaska's Mendenhall glacier is about 20 minutes by car from Juneau, the state capital.
阿拉斯加的门登霍尔冰川距离该州首府朱诺大约20分钟的车程。
It is one of the area's most popular sites for tourists.
它是该地区最受游客欢迎的景点之一。
But climate change has caused the ice to melt and the glacier to retreat.
但气候变化已经导致冰融化,冰川消退。
That means it is losing more snow and ice than it gains.
这意味着它失去的冰雪比获得的要多。
Researchers from the University of Alaska, Southeast say the Mendenhall glacier retreated about 800 meters between 2007 and 2021.
阿拉斯加大学东南分校的研究人员表示,门登霍尔冰川在2007年至2021年间消退了约800米。
Mendenhall pours down from rocky land between mountains and into a lake filled with icebergs.
门登霍尔冰川从群山之间的岩石地带倾泻而下,流入一个布满冰山的湖中。
Special signs mark the glacier's retreat, showing where the ice once stood.
特殊的迹象表明冰川消退,显示了冰川曾经存在的位置。
Experts estimate that by 2050, people will not be able to see the Mendenhall glacier from the visitor center that was built for it.
专家估计,到2050年,人们将无法从专门为观赏门登霍尔冰川而建造的游客中心看到它。
That is already the case at some other glacier visitor centers in Alaska.
阿拉斯加的其他一些冰川游客中心已经出现了这种情况。
The melting glacier leads to questions for the Alaskan tourism industry.
冰川融化给阿拉斯加的旅游业带来了问题。
Does it make sense to build visitor centers for glaciers if they will not be useful in the future?
如果冰川游客中心在未来毫无用处,那么建造它们还有意义吗?
How can tourism leaders help protect the glaciers for visitors to enjoy?
旅游业的领导者如何帮助保护冰川,以供游客欣赏?
And should there be limits on the number of tourists to the area?
应该对该地区的游客数量进行限制吗?
Local leaders, tour companies, large boat operators and the U.S. National Park Service are all considering these questions.
当地领导人、旅游公司、大型游艇运营商和美国国家公园管理局都在考虑这些问题。
Tourism is an important part of Juneau's economy.
旅游业是朱诺经济的重要组成部分。
About 1.6 million cruise ship passengers are expected to stop in Juneau in 2023.
2023年,预计将有约160万名游轮乘客在朱诺停留。
That is the most ever in one year.
这是有史以来最多的一年。
On especially busy days, 20,000 people arrive each day to a city that has only 30,000 full-time residents.
在特别繁忙的日子里,每天有2万人来到这个只有3万常住居民的城市。
Cruise ships are large boats with sleeping places that carry tourists from one place to another.
游轮是带有睡觉的地方的大船,载着游客从一个地方到另一个地方。
Many cruises start a weeklong trip to Alaska in either Seattle, Washington, or Vancouver, Canada.
许多游轮在华盛顿州的西雅图或加拿大的温哥华开始为期一周的阿拉斯加之旅。
Manoj Pillai is a cruise ship worker from India.
Manoj Pillai是一名来自印度的游轮工人。
He recently got off his ship and went to see the Mendenhall glacier.
他最近下船去看了门登霍尔冰川。
"The glacier is so beautiful now," he said.
他说:“现在的冰川太美了”。
But he wondered what it must have looked like 10 or 20 years ago.
但他想知道它在10年或20年前是什么样子的。
Jennifer Dumas lives in Washington, D.C.
詹妮弗·仲马住在华盛顿特区。
She knows what Alaska's glaciers looked like in the past.
她知道阿拉斯加冰川过去的样子。
She and her husband first visited the state and its glaciers in the 1990s.
她和她的丈夫在20世纪90年代第一次游览了该州及其冰川。
She told about seeing another glacier not too far from the Mendenhall glacier over 20 years ago.
她提到了20多年前在距离门登霍尔冰川不远的地方看到的另一座冰川。
She went to Glacier Bay National Park and spent the night near the McBride glacier.
她去了冰川湾国家公园,在麦克布莱德冰川附近过夜。
"Where we used to camp, where you could see the glacier.
“我们曾经在那里露营,在那里你可以看到冰川。
It has receded so far, you can't see the glacier anymore.
冰川已经消退了,你再也看不到冰川了。
So we have pictures of us in front of the glacier, that you can no longer take those pictures."
我们有我们在冰川前拍的照片,而你无法再拍这些照片了。”
People have many reasons to want to visit Alaska, and all the visitors help the state's economy.
人们有很多理由想去阿拉斯加旅游,所有的游客都有助于该州的经济。
But in Juneau, tourism officials are questioning whether the city and surrounding areas can deal with so many visitors each year.
但在朱诺,旅游官员质疑该市及周边地区每年能否接待这么多游客。
Alexandra Pierce is the city's tourism manager.
亚历山德拉·皮尔斯是该市的旅游经理。
She said she and others are discussing what a sustainable tourism industry should look like.
她说,她和其他人正在讨论可持续旅游业应该是什么样子。
City leaders and major cruise lines have agreed to a daily five-ship limit for next year.
城市领导者和主要游轮公司已经同意明年实施每天只限五艘船停靠的措施。
As many as seven ships a day have arrived this year.
今年,每天有多达7艘船抵达。
But critics worry that may not do much to reduce tourist numbers because the ships themselves keep getting bigger.
但批评人士担心,这可能不会对减少游客数量起到多大作用,因为船会越来越大。
Some Juneau residents say they would like one day a week without ships.
一些朱诺居民说,他们希望一周有一天没有船。
Kerry Kirkpatrick has lived in Juneau for nearly 30 years.
克里·柯克帕特里克已经在朱诺生活了近30年。
She said she can remember when the Mendenhall glacier was "long across the water and high above our heads."
她说,她还记得门登霍尔冰川“横跨水面,高高在我们头顶上”的时候。
She called the glacier a national treasure.
她称这座冰川是国宝。
She noted that the area may not be able to keep up with all the helicopters, cruise ships and visitors that want to see Mendenhall.
她指出,该地区可能无法满足所有想要观赏门登霍尔冰川的直升机、游轮和游客的需求。
"There's too many people on the planet wanting to do the same things," Kirkpatrick said.
柯克帕特里克说:“地球上有太多人想要做同样的事情。”
"You don't want to be the person who closes the door and says, you know, 'I'm the last one in and you can't come in.'
“你不想成为那个关上门说,‘我是最后一个进来的,你不能进来’的人。
But we do have to have the ability to say, 'No, no more.'"
但我们必须有能力说,‘不,不能再这样了。’”
I'm Dan Friedell.
丹·弗里德尔为您播报。
译文为可可英语翻译,未经授权请勿转载!