India, Bangladesh and China are most at risk from river floods, with an increasing number of people threatened because of climate change and economic growth in low-lying regions, a study said on Thursday.
本周四公布的一份研究稱，印度、孟加拉共和國、中國為洪水多發區，由于氣候變化和低洼地區的經濟發展，越來越多的人們將受到洪水的威脅。
The U.S.-based World Resources Institute think-tank and four Dutch research groups estimated that some 21 million people worldwide were affected by river flooding in a typical year.
總部位于美國的世界資源研究所和四個荷蘭研究小組估計，通常全球每年有2100萬人飽受洪水之災。
"That number could increase to 54 million in 2030 due to climate change and socio-economic development," their report said.
報告中提到：“由于氣候變化和社會經濟發展，這個數字在2030年會增長到5400萬。”
People living in 15 emerging nations, led by India, Bangladesh, China, Vietnam andPakistan, accounted for almost 80 percent of all those affected by floods in an average year, it said. In India alone, almost five million people were at risk.
受災人口主要分布在15個國家，以印度、孟加拉共和國、中國、越南和巴基斯坦為首，佔到全球每年受災人口的80%。報告中説，僅僅印度每年就有將近500萬人受洪水影響。
The United States had 167,000 people exposed to floods in a average year, the most for any developed nation, putting it 18th on a ranking of more than 160 nations.
美國每年有16.7萬人受洪災影響，居于發達國家之首，在160多個國家中位居第18名。
The U.N. panel of climate scientists said last year that global warming would lead to more risks of floods, heatwaves, storms, downpours, landslides, air pollution, water scarcity, sea level rise and storm surges.
聯合國氣候小組的科學家去年表示，全球氣候變暖使發生洪災、熱浪、風暴、暴雨、山體滑坡、空氣污染、水資源短缺、海平面上漲、風暴潮的危險性增加。
Thursday's study estimated that $96 billion of annual global gross domestic product was exposed to river floods every year, led by India on $14 billion and Bangladesh on $5.4 billion. This amount could rise to $521 billion by 2030. it said.
據該報告估計，每年全球因洪災或會損失大約960億美元生産總值，印度損失最高（140億美元），其次是孟加拉共和國（54億美元）。並且這個數字在2030年會升至5210億美元。
"There will be a huge increase in risk, especially in South East Asia," Hessel Winsemius, an author of the study at Dutch independent research institute Deltares, told Reuters.
該報告的一位作者、獨立研究所荷蘭三角洲研究所（Deltares）的埃塞爾 文塞繆斯（Hessel Winsemius）告訴路透社：“災害會大幅增加，特別是東南亞。”
Such flooding can also impact multinational companies which spread their production capacity -- monsoon floods in Thailand in 2011 killed more than 800 people and closed many factories -- including some making parts for firms such as Intel and Apple.
洪水還會影響生産力各地遍布的跨國公司。比如2011泰國的季風洪水導致800多人死亡且使許多工廠停工，其中包括為跨國公司如英特爾、蘋果服務的配件制造工廠。
Many cities on flood plains were expected to expand in coming years, putting more people and businesses at risk. Multinational companies should think more about flood risks, including back-up suppliers or insurance from vulnerable areas.
未來幾年，洪泛平原的城市將不斷擴大，這將更多的人和産業置于危險之中。跨國公司應該更多地考慮到洪災，設立後備供應商或為易受災地區購買保險。
Developing nations are working to adapt.
發展中國家正為適應洪災而努力。
Thailand, for instance, is experimenting with floating homes that can rise up above the waters on pontoons filled with styrofoam.
比如泰國正在試驗漂流屋，洪水來臨時，這些置于泡沫浮舟上的漂流屋可以漂浮在水面。
