I had dealt with a lot of natural disasters as governor, including floods, droughts, and tornadoes, but I had never seen anything like this.
担任州长期间，我曾处理过不少自然灾害，包括洪水、旱灾和龙卷风，但我从未见过如此惨状。This was partly the result of drought. Also important, however, have been higher prices of oil, since modern farming is so energy-intensive.
出现这种现象的部分原因是旱灾，但油价上涨也是一个重要因素，因为现代农业对能源需求很高。By 1934, it had turned the Great Plains into a desert that came to be known as the Dust Bowl.
到了1934年时，旱灾将大平原（GreatPlains）变成沙漠，这个沙漠就是有名的尘暴干旱区（DustBowl）。Normally at this time of year spring planting would be in full swing, but the drought has made farming impossible in parts of the province.
通常在每年的这个时节，春耕正如火如荼，但是这场旱灾却使省内部分地区的农业生产无法正常进行。Scientists say the dry weather is at least partly the result of an event half a world away.
科学家认为，干燥的气候是这次轰动世界的旱灾事件的原因之一。The Dust Bowl that affected the prairie regions of the United States was one infamous drought.
沙尘天气波及到了美国的大草原地区，了严重的旱灾。Panning across the dry, barren land it is hard to believe that this vast area used to be full of life.
遭受旱灾威胁的贫瘠土地，实在很难让人相信、它过去充满生机的模样。The trend is often ascribed to debt, drought and the ready availability of pesticides that serve as poison.
造成这一趋势的常见原因包括负债、遭受旱灾以及用作毒药的杀虫剂方便易得。Only a few months ago, parts of the southwest suffered from the worst drought in a century.
仅在几个月前，中国的西南部分地区蒙受了一个世纪以来最为严重的旱灾。