Shipwrecks from the Second World War could cause catastrophic damage to the environment, scientists have warned. Oil spills from 1,080 ships on the Pacific floor could equate to the damage caused by the Exxon Valdez disaster in 19891. Researchers for the South Pacific Regional Environment Programme believe the greatest dangers are from sunken oil tankers which will continue to corrode. After a typhoon two years ago the USS2 Mississinewa, a fuel tanker sunk by a Japanese human torpedo in 1944, suffered a ruptured hull. The Mississinewa, located at Ulithi Atoll near the Philippines, could still contain millions of litres of oil, as could another tanker, the USS Neosho, which lies near Australia's Great Barrier Reef and was sunk in 1942. Trevor Gilbert, who advised the Programme, told New Scientist magazine: "With every year that passes, these vessels deteriorate more and the risk of significant oil release becomes more likely." Another adviser, Sefania Nawadra, said: "In tropical conditions, oil remains fluid even at depth. For example, the oil on the Mississinewa is as fluid as the day it came out of the refinery." The researchers, yet to receive funding for their work, have produced a map of the wrecks and hope governments will act on their work.

1． 1989年3月24日，埃克森·瓦尔迪兹号（Exxon Valdez）油轮搁浅并泄出 267,000 桶共1,100万加仑的油，油污进入阿拉斯加威廉王子海峡，对环境造成严重破坏。此次意外是美国有史以来最严重的漏油事件。

2． USS：美国船，United States Ship的缩写。

科学家们警告，二战时期的沉船可能对环境造成灾难性的破坏。从太平洋底1080艘沉船中漏出的油对环境的损害可与1989年“埃克森·瓦尔迪兹号”油轮泄漏事件相提并论。南太平洋地区环境项目的研究者们认为，最大的危险来自那些还在继续朽坏的油轮。美国燃油运输船“密西西尼瓦号”于1944年被一枚日本“人体鱼雷”击沉，两年前的一次台风使它的船体出现了裂缝。“密西西尼瓦号”沉没在菲律宾附近的尤利斯环礁，船上可能还有数百万升油，1942年沉没在澳洲大堡礁附近的另一艘美国油轮“纽硕号”情况与此类似。这一项目顾问特鲁弗·吉尔伯特对《新科学家》杂志说：“这些沉船的状况逐年恶化，发生重大漏油事故的风险也越来越大。”另一位顾问瑟法尼亚·娜瓦德拉说：“在热带气候条件下，即使在深海中油也保持着流动性。举例来说，‘密西西尼瓦号’上的油的流动性一如当初它们从炼油厂新鲜出炉之时。”目前还没有人为这些研究者的工作提供资金支持，他们已经制作了一份沉船分布图，并希望有关国家政府据此采取行动。

Remarks：这样的报道总让我觉得我们正走在自我毁灭的道路上——与核武器和生化武器带来的严重生态隐患相比，漏点油也只是小事一桩了。