In the United States, it had been common practice since the late 1960s not to suppress natural forest fires. The “let it burn” policy assumed that forest fires would burn themselves out quickly, without causing much damage. However, in the summer of 1988, forest fires in Yellowstone, the most famous national park in the country, burned for more than two months and spread over a huge area, encompassing more than 800,000 acres. Because of the large scale of the damage, many people called for replacing the “let it burn” policy with a policy of extinguishing forest fires as soon as they appeared. Three kinds of damage caused by the “let it burn” policy were emphasized by critics of the policy.

　　在美国，从1960年代末开始就非常普遍地对森林大火采取不扑灭的策略。这种“随它燃烧”的策略认为森林大火可以在不造成太多损失的情况下迅速燃烧完。然后，1988年发生在美国最出名的黄石国家公园的森林大火却整整燃烧了两个月，蔓延了80万英亩。鉴于这次造成的巨大损失，很多人主张取消“随它燃烧”的策略，转而开始全力扑灭森林大火的策略。评论家们提供了三个由“随它燃烧”策略造成的损害来支持自己的观点。

　　First, Yellowstone fires cause tremendous damage to the parks trees and other vegetation. When the fires finally died out, nearly one third of Yellowstone’s land had been scorched. Trees were charred and blackened from flames and smoke. Smaller plants were entirely incinerated. What had been a national treasure now seemed like a devastated wasteland.

　　首先，黄石大火给公园里的树木以及其他植物造成了巨大的损失。当火燃尽的时候，黄石公园接近三分之一的面积已成焦土。火焰烧焦树木，浓烟熏黑树木。小型植物则被彻底烧成灰烬。当看到宝贵的国家财富成为一片荒地的时候，会是何种感觉?

　　Second, the park wildlife was affected as well. Large animals like deer and elk were seen fleeing the fire. Many smaller species were probably unable to escape. There was also concern than the destruction of habitats and the disruption of food chains would make it impossible for the animals that survived the fire to return.

　　第二，公园的野生动物也遭到了伤害。像鹿或者麋鹿这些大型动物在火灾中都逃脱了，但是很多小型动物却不能逃脱。同时，大火还破坏了动物的栖息地并打乱了食物链，这使得当或在结束之后，逃离的动物也无法回来栖息于此。

　　Third, the fires compromised the value of the park as a tourist attraction, which in turn had negative consequences for the local economy. With several thousand acres of the park engulfed in flames, the tourist season was cut short, and a large number of visitors decided to stay away. Of course, local businesses that depended on park visitors suffered as a result.

　　第三，火灾会降低公园对游客的吸引力，进而对当地的经济造成不良的影响。由于数千英亩的土地被火焰吞没，旅游旺季缩短了，而很多游客都会选择放弃游览黄石公园。当地的经济对于旅游业依赖很大，自然会受到负面影响。

　　阅读部分需要提取的观点是：

　　- Main point: 专家主张废除“随它燃烧”的策略

　　- Sub point 1: 会对国家公园的植物造成伤害

　　- Sub point 2: 会对国家公园的动物造成伤害

　　- Sub point 3: 火灾会降低公园对游客的吸引力