第二节 阅读理解

　　Natural disasters that were once anomalous(异常的)are becoming almost commonplace, and the country is clearly not prepared for them. Historic floods in Louisiana displaced thousands and led to the deaths of 17 people this month. Record-setting rain devastated(严重破坏)parts of West Virginia in June and South Carolina in October.

　　It is risky to attribute(归因于)any single storm to global warming, but the increasing frequency of these disasters is consistent with what most scientists have said we should expect from climate change. Warmer weather tends to increase evaporation(蒸发), adding moisture to the atmosphere and leading to heavier and more frequent rainstorms. And if more extreme weather events lie in our future, national, state and local policy makers need to improve the nation's defenses. Existing flood protections will need to be improved, building codes made stricter and people dissuaded from living in the areas most vulnerable to floods.

　　On Monday, the Federal Emergency Management Agency took an important step in that direction. It proposed rules that would require individuals, businesses and local governments that want to build in flood-prone areas with federal money to do so at higher elevations(海拔). Homes and businesses would have to be built at least two feet above the base flood elevation, up from the current requirement of one foot. And "critical" facilities like hospitals, nursing homes and 911 dispatch centers would have to be built three feet above the base elevation, up from two feet.

　　Over time, these changes should make it less likely that such buildings will be flooded during big storms, saving lives and reducing property damage. But the rules would apply to only the relatively small number of buildings financed by federal grants and loans. Existing buildings would be unaffected unless owners substantially improved them with the help of federal money.

Not surprisingly, some builders and other businesses are opposed to even these small changes, because they would increase the cost of construction even if they save