6月3日，联合国环境规划署代理执行主任乔伊斯•姆苏亚女士一行来参加江苏省“六五环境日”的”四方对话 打一场蓝天保卫战”和“我来测一测”两个活动期间造访了江苏省环境监测中心。前期已经对江苏省“六五环境日”有关活动做过报道，下面是联合国环境规划署对省环境监测中心有关情况的再次详细介绍。

“看，过来了一个。”顺着工程师所指的方向， 一眨眼的功夫，一个油漆桶大小的真空罐就从天花板上气动管道的这头穿到了那头。里面采集的是江苏数百个土壤监测样点中的一个。

“Oh, here comes one now,” the engineer says, pointing up. In a blink, a capsule about the size of a paint can has shot across the ceiling in a pneumatic tube. Inside is a sample of soil collected from one of hundreds of monitoring spots across Jiangsu province, on China’s central eastern coast.

真空罐落入类似自动售货机的设备中，实验室技术人员刷卡将其取出。在位于监测中心8楼的实验室中，他将测试样品中是否存在挥发性有机化合物。某些化合物成分复杂，甚至具有很强的毒性，如果没有精密复杂的仪器设备，很难检测出来。

The capsule lands in a device like a vending machine, and a lab technician swipes his key card to lift it out. Here on the 8th floor of the Jiangsu Environmental Monitoring Centre, he’ll test the sample for the presence of volatile organic compounds. Certain compounds are extremely poisonous and can cause liver, brain and kidney damage. They can also be extremely difficult to detect without complex equipment and processes.

不同的土壤样品送到中心不同实验室进行检测。挥发性有机化合物和重金属等污染物可能通过工业污染、受污染的地下水、其他途径等浸入土壤。该监测中心正致力于研究污染来源，防止土壤、空气和水污染对人类健康和生态环境造成威胁。

Other samples of the soil have been delivered throughout the building for other tests. Pollutants such as volatile organic compounds or heavy metals may have found their way into the soil through industrial waste, contaminated groundwater or other methods. The Centre is working to identify and prevent risks to health and the environment from soil, air and water pollution.

气动管道还可以在监测中心综合楼的11个楼层间传输空气样本。相较这种充满“蒸汽朋克”气息的气动管道输送模式，水样本却是由一尺多高的自动机器人背运的。

The pneumatic tubes also ship the air samples around the 11-floor complex. In contrast to the steampunk conveyance of the tubes, water samples are shuttled around on the backs of autonomous shin-high robots.

土壤实验室外，一群前来参观的学生无意间挡住了机器人的去路，机器人“不耐烦”地绕开人群，缓慢挪步。 突然，它在由拥挤的人群构筑的密集大腿障碍物间找到了间隙，飕地一下穿越而过，继续奔驰在大厅内运送货物。东张西望的学生对机器人而言完全不是障碍。小机器人甚至可以独自上下楼梯。

Just outside the soil lab, one of them is impatiently trying to navigate around a visiting group of students who have accidentally blocked its path. The robot inches forward. Suddenly, it sees a gap in the forest of legs and whirs off down the hall to deliver its cargo. Absentminded students are hardly an obstacle. The little robot will even navigate stairs on its own.

机器人和气动管道不仅仅是新奇事物，更是庞大的自动化系统的一部分，江苏——这个全国人口最密集的省份希望能借助自动化系统缓解环境问题。

Robots and pneumatic tubes may seem only a novelty, but they are part of a larger system of automation that China’s most densely populated province hopes will help them proactively neutralize environmental problems.

自动化绝不是噱头。江苏省已花费逾8.4亿元人民币（约1.2亿美元）用于生态环境监测系统建设，于2019年初更新先进遥感监测设备及实验室仪器设备。江苏现已成为全国首个实现县、市级空气自动监测站全覆盖的省份。全省200多个监测站从各地收集空气质量自动监测数据。这些数据将用于该省投资近3,000万元人民币（约430万美元）的监测和分析计划，使环境监测中心能够预测空气环境质量状况，并通过官网、客户端和其他媒体平台向公众发布每月监测结果和每周预测。

The automation is anything but a gimmick. Jiangsu has spent over US$120 million (CNY840 million) on retooling their monitoring efforts, rolling out advanced remote sensors and lab equipment in early 2019. Jiangsu is now the first province in China to have automatic air quality monitoring stations in every county and city. Over 200 stations are gathering data from sensors located across the province—even on drones and unmanned ships. This data is fed into a custom US$4.3 million (CNY30 million) monitoring and analysis programme that allows the Centre to predict environmental conditions. They release monthly results and a weekly forecast to the public, available on a website, app and through other media.

“关于环境问题的讨论已进行得如火如荼，但采取切实行动才是关键。”联合国环境署代理执行主任乔伊斯·姆苏亚（Joyce Msuya）说，“江苏为环境和8000万居民的福祉进行了大量投资。 这就是领导力，而我们需要更多这样的领导力。“

“Talk about the environment has reached a fever pitch, but it’s critical we back this up with action.” said Joyce Msuya, Acting Executive Director of UN Environment. “Here in Jiangsu we have a massive investment in the environment and the well-being of the 80 million people living here. It’s leadership and it’s what we need more of.”

每周预测不仅告知公众，也为政府决策提供支撑。当预测的空气污染严重到一定程度时，会发布不同级别的预警，用不同颜色表示。政府也将启动重污染应急措施，控制污染物。 若启动黄色（三级）预警，部分公司需要减产减排。若启动（二级）橙色预警，部分车辆将被限行。 在红色（一级）预警下，钢铁和水泥厂将停产或限产减排，施工工地停工以减少扬尘。

The weekly forecasts don’t only inform the public. They inform government policy. When air quality is forecasted to worsen to a certain level, colour codes are issued and the government implements predetermined controls to rein in pollutants. A specific list of companies may have to reduce production for low-level yellow alerts. At orange, certain vehicles will be prohibited from the roads. In an extreme red code situation, steel and cement plants may have to reduce output or shut down entirely and construction can be halted to reduce dust.

上述最严峻的情况较为罕见。 去年只发布了少数黄色和橙色预警。 即便如此，江苏省环境监测中心主任程炜并没有忽视污染问题的严重性。 “空气污染是摆在全人类面前的挑战。”他说。

These worst-case scenarios are rare. Last year there were only a handful of yellow and orange codes. Even so, Wei Cheng, Director of the Centre, is not dismissive of the problem. “Air pollution is a challenge for all humankind,” he says.

但他对未来持乐观态度。 “我相信空气污染和水污染问题会得到改善。 正如习主席所说，未来是开放共享的。 我们需要汇集多方资源来解决我们面临的问题。 所有国家都应尽最大努力保护环境。”

But he is hopeful. “I’m confident that air and water pollution will be improved. As President Xi has said, it’s a shared future. We need to pull together resources to tackle this problem we all face. All countries should do their utmost to protect the environment.”