Puerto Maldonado used to be part of one of the most remote regions in Peru.

马尔多纳多港过去是秘鲁最偏远的地区之一。

The dam, to be built at the confluence of the Inambari and Araza rivers, is one of dozens expected to power South America's economic ascent.

即将在伊纳姆巴里河与阿拉扎河交汇处修建的大坝，是推动南美经济发展的动力之一。

What once was a remote region in Peru, Puerto Maldonado is now a boomtown.

曾经地处秘鲁偏远地区的马尔多纳多港，现今已成为了一座新兴都市。

"Every year we need more and more energy," says Peru's environmental minister Antonio Brack Egg.

秘鲁环境部长安东尼奥?巴拉克?艾格说：“我们每年的能源需求越来越大。”

Rising gold prices have made mining the metal lucrative for Madre de Dios. Mining has led to water polluted by mercury, which miners use to separate the metal from river sediment.

不断上涨的黄金价格使得马德雷德迪奥斯的金矿开采业变得有利可图。但开采者常用来从河沙中分离黄金的水银也导致了河水的污染。

Gold mining has also led to deforested riverbanks.

金矿的开采也导致了河堤上的树木被砍伐殆尽。

Fishing has been vital to the Madre de Dios economy and diet, but biologists say the dam will make the river waters more toxic

渔业对于马德雷德迪奥斯的经济和饮食都至关重要，但生物学家们指出大坝将会使河水的毒性剧增。

Brack says the dam's benefits outweigh its costs, but others worry about damaging effects on local people.

巴拉克声称修建大坝的利大于弊，但其他人担心这会给当地居民带来毁灭性的效果。

Although Puente Inambari will be destroyed when the dam is built, most townspeople seem to approve of the project, citing aid for moving to higher ground and the prospect of new jobs. "It will be better for us," said one young woman.

尽管大坝的修建会破坏伊南纳姆巴里河的生态，但大部分市民似乎对这项工程没有异议，这可以从他们为寻求迁往高地而寻求援助以及对新工作的希冀中看出来。一名年轻妇女说：“这会改善我们的生活。”

Fishermen hang out along the Madre de Dios River.

在马德雷德迪奥斯河上休息的渔民。

In the weekend market in Puerto Maldonado, Matalin Choque, right, sells fish to Marcosa Condori Ramos. The local diet relies heavily on fish, but there are concerns that river fish are contaminated with mercury.

在马尔多纳多港的周末集市上，玛塔琳?休克（右）正在向马科萨?康多利?拉莫斯兜售捕捞上来的鱼。当地居民的饮食习惯对鱼的依赖性极高，但近来不断有声音指出河中的鱼类被水银污染了。

Up and down the Madre de Dios River, people mine for gold. Peru is the world’s sixth-largest gold producer and 16-20 of the 182 tons of gold it produces annually comes from illegal or quasi-legal mining along the banks of the Madre de Dios.

马德雷德迪奥斯河上下游正在开采金矿的工人。秘鲁是世界第六大黄金生产国，它每年黄金生产总量182吨中的16到20吨，都来自于马德雷德迪奥斯河沿岸非法或者看似合法的开采。

Along the Inter-oceanic highway between Puerto Maldonado and Puente Inambari, excessive gold mining has turned once lush wetlands to desert.

在马尔多纳多港和伊纳姆巴里河之间的联洋公路沿岸，过度的金矿开采已经将曾经富饶的湿地变成了沙漠。

Night falls on the gold mining town of Laberinto, the closest gold mining town to Puerto Maldonado

夜幕降临在距离马尔多纳多港最近的金矿城市—拉贝林托。

Puerto Maldonado, capital of Peru’s Madre de Dios region, is a critical part of Latin America’s economic revolution.

秘鲁马德雷德迪奥斯的首府马尔多纳多港，它是拉美国家经济变革的主要力量。

Eric Pinto Mandoza, who drives a canoe down the Madre de Dios River, enjoys a beer in Puerto Maldonado. The construction of the Billinghurst Bridge will change traffic on the river and put the barges and canoes out of work.

埃里克?平托?门多萨驾驶着小船顺马德雷德迪奥斯河而下，在马尔多纳多港享用着啤酒。毕林古斯特大桥的建造将会改变河道上的交通，那些驳船和独木船将被尘封。