Formula One to Go Green 一級方程式賽車也要環保

By Jonny Hogg

媒體英語會帶大家一起學習BBC撰稿人在報道世界大事時常用到的單詞和短語。

Background: F1 也就是一級方程式賽車，因其動力十足、昂貴和耗油的特點向來都不是一項與環保相關聯的運動。但是現在，一級方程式賽車的組織者宣布他們正在計劃減少這項比賽的碳排放量。

The Formula One Teams Association believes it can reduce carbon emissions by fifteen percent in the next three years.

A 'carbon audit' was carried out looking at every aspect of the sport, from the race weekend to the challenge of moving from country to country during the season.

Teams' buying in equipment was the largest contributor to carbon emissions. Moving to each race was anotherfactor, as was electricity usage - much of it to power wind tunnels to carry out aerodynamic testing.

Improvements may include rationalising the race calendar so that teams have shorter distances to travel.

Given that the cars themselves burn around one hundred and sixty litres of fuelduring each grand prix, it is perhaps surprising that racing and testing them counts for less than one percent of emissions.

Nonetheless rules may be changed from 2013, restricting the amount of fuel that teams can use, forcing the development of more efficient racing engines.

These moves to promote a more carbon conscious Formula One seem to be being driven by pressure from sponsors.

There are also hopes that the sport can become an attractive testing ground for more efficient technologies.