今年夏天，全球多地出现炎热天气和严重旱情，其中英国遭遇了40摄氏度的高温和低于历史水平的降水记录。面对这样的情况，英国环境署署长詹姆斯·贝文给出了自己的建议，他希望劝导民众喝废水污水净化而来的饮用水，还说“别太脆弱（less squeamish）”。

当地时间8月28日，贝文在《星期日泰晤士报》刊文，称“饮用循环污水才是未来”。他在文章中提出了英国政府、水务公司以及普通民众应该采取的措施，避免严重旱情。

Writing in the Sunday Times, James Bevan, the boss of the Environment Agency, outlined measures the government, water companies and ordinary people should be taking to avoid severe droughts.

他说道，“对于饮用水的来源问题，我们别太脆弱。部分解决方案在于对污染水的再处理，使其成为饮用水，完全安全又健康，就是很多人不喜欢。”

He said: “We will need to be less squeamish about where our drinking water comes from. Part of the solution will be to reprocess the water that results from sewage treatment and turn it back into drinking water – perfectly safe and healthy, but not something many people fancy.”

《卫报》指出，他承认这个办法“不受欢迎”，社交媒体上也是反应不一。但是贝文说，需要“改变我们对于水的看法。”

Bevan admitted the move would be “unpopular” and reactions on social media have been mixed but he said there was a need to “change how we think about water”.

“我们需要记住水从哪儿来：当我们打开水龙头，水是从江湖中来，从地下水层中来。我们用得越多，对这种资源消耗得越多，对自然和野生动物造成了压力。”

“We need to remember where it comes from: when we turn on the tap, what comes out started in a river, lake or aquifer. The more we take, the more we drain those sources and put stress on nature and wildlife.”

“我们应该把水视作宝贵的资源，而不是免费的东西。”

“We need to treat water as a precious resource, not a free good. ”

而这些“不受欢迎”的举措其实在英国已经由来已久。据英国《地铁报》报道，泰晤士水务公司在北伦敦恩菲尔德的一家试验车间进行实验后，于2013年宣布将厕所废水循环净化为自来水的计划。希望在2025年形成循环复用水的计划，以此来应对伦敦的水资源短缺问题。

These “unpopular” measures have already been long in the making in Britain.

In 2013, Thames Water announced plans to recycle toilet waste into tap water after conducting experiments at a test plant in Enfield, north London.

It hoped to have a wastewater recycling scheme ready by 2025 to take action on the capital’s water deficit.

此言一出，贝文随即登上各大外媒，“别太脆弱”刷屏……

贝文的此番言论也引起了外国网友的争议。

“当环境局的头儿说英国人对待饮用污水应该“别太脆弱”的时候，你就应该知道我们有麻烦了。”

“如果水务公司开始严肃解决漏水和污水倾倒问题，我对于饮用循环污水会感觉好一些。在那之前，这些听上去都像是指责我们这些受害者。”

“詹姆斯，如果你能在电视直播上喝这样的污水，那么你喝我就喝”

“那就引用特拉斯（英国外交大臣、下一任英国首相角逐者）的名言：好日子还在后头呢。”

《卫报》报道称，贝文2015年成为英国环境署署长，他在文章中还呼吁政府“展现政治意愿”实施改变，号召公众力所能及减少废水。

Bevan, who has been chief executive of the Environment Agency since 2015, called on the government to “show political will” to make changes and also called on members of the public to do their bit to help reduce water waste.

 

据英国天空新闻报道，就在贝文上述言论前不久，4台新闻频道的调查发现，全英国超过870条管道在未经允许的情况下倾倒污水。其中超过200条确定是水务公司使用的。

James's comments come as a Channel 4 News investigation found more than 870 water pipes in the UK could be dumping sewage without permits. More than 200 of those have been confirmed to be in use by water companies, the broadcaster said.

综合来源：天空新闻，卫报，星期日泰晤士报