Google’s data centres and the offices for its 60,000 staff will be powered entirely by renewable energy from next year,in what the company has called a “landmark moment”.The internet giant is already the world’s biggest corporate buyer of renewable electricity,last year buying 44% of its power from wind and solar farms.Now it will be 100%,and an executive said it would no longer refuse to invest in nuclear power in the future.
Oman said it had taken Google five years to reach the 100% target,set in 2012,because of the complexity involved with negotiating power purchase agreements.The company’s biggest demand for energy is its data centres and it admits their overall thirst for power is growing.
Google was now looking to sign 10-year agreements for low-carbon power that was constant,such as hydro,biomass and nuclear.“We want to do contracts on renewable power,it could be biomass if the fuel source is steady and enough,it could be nuclear.We’re looking at all forms of low-carbon generation.”
But he said new nuclear power was “controversial”,the possible safety consequences were much more “dramatic” than with renewable sources,and the price was “much more difficult to guarantee” than when funding solar panels and wind turbines.“We don’t want to refuse to sign a nuclear agreement if it meets our goals of low price,safety,and other factors.We don’t want to rule that out,but today we can’t positively say there are nuclear projects out there that meet this standard,”he said.
The company’s 100% renewable energy does not mean Google is getting all its energy directly from wind and solar power,but that on an annual basis the amount it purchases from renewable sources matches the electricity its operations consume.
1. A “landmark moment” for Google refers to .| A．its efforts in saving energy |
| B．its growing demand for employees |
| C．its progress in using renewable energy |
| D．its becoming the world’s biggest company |
| A．Negotiations of agreements. | B．High consumption of energy. |
| C．Shortage of energy. | D．Tight budgets. |
| A．Nuclear power is an ideal choice. |
| B．Solar and wind power is not safe enough. |
| C．It’s unwise to invest solar and wind power. |
| D．Google is unlikely to use nuclear energy soon. |
| A．To show Google’s profit goal in global market. |
| B．To talk about Google’s new move to use energy. |
| C．To recommend a new kind of renewable energy. |
| D．To urge the public to use renewable energy. |
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【推荐1】The story of a voyage bearing witness to plastic pollution in the oceans,Junk Raft(筏子），based on facts,is an exciting,thought-provoking book.Science educator and researcher Marcus Eriksen's navigational feat(航海壮举）is holding readers' attention and interest--88 days crossing some 4,000 kilometers of open ocean,on a raft made of 15,000 plastic bottles wrapped in fishing nets.But it is more. Two equally fascinating storylines are made up through the written records of a series of events: Eriksen's evolution from soldier to research director of the environmental non-profit 5 Gyres Institute, and the journey we all need to take towards a more sustainable use of plastics.
Around 15%of all the litter in our oceans in plastic,and a calculated 5 million tonnes of plastic waste enter the seas annually.Unavoidably,it is now present at the sea surface and on shorelines,in Arctic seas and on the sea bed at depths of 3,500 metres.Around 700 sea species are known to come into contact with pieces of waste plastic material-and can be harmed or killed by taking in it or becoming twisted and caught in it.There are also concerns about plastics accumulating in commercially important species of fish and shellfish.The waters and shores of Hawaii are particularly heavily pottuted, giving a rationale(理由）for Eriksen's destination.
This environmental challenge has attracted increasing scientific,media and societal attention in recent years. yet few accounts have conveyed the\wider picture accessibly Junk Raft does just this---while exposing our frustratingly slow progress on a issue of major importance to fisheries, tourism and,finally,the health of the world's oceans.
Eriksen lists the issues associated with the accumulation of sea plastic:the causes,consequences and potential solutions.Our single-use culture is the main offender.For more than 60 years,society and industry have been producing more and more throwaway items particularly packaging.Some solutions lie in better acquisition of materials at the end of their lives,in a circular economy.
Eriksen takes the crisis into consideration together with a timeline of scientific discovery and advancement since the 1970s.Alongside this he gives a very personal,somewhat North American,view the troubles of industry and policy involvement the side plots and blind alleys,and the tactics(战术） of avoidance and disturbance he has so often experienced.There are parallels,he shows,with the troubles that faced those who fought to raise awareness around the health impacts of smoking.
Throughout,we are regularly brought back to the realities of life aboard the raft,with Eriksen's fellow sailor Joel Paschal.This is both fascinating and eventful,from their slow,occasionally very dangerous progress to the moments when it seems the raft will break up into pieces,littering the ocean with the waste material Eriksen is trying so hard to fight against.Eriksen's wider journey also takes him onto dry land,where he touches on the accumulation of land plastic.He learns about the consumption of plastic bags by camels-a serious issue in some desert countries.
It can be difficult to judge the direct impacts of projects such as Eriksen's,but he rightly notes the Importance of raising awareness of the risks of disposable plastic.Eriksen has also done much to emphasize the environmental consequences of polymer microbeads(聚合物微粒）in the US Great Lakes, providing key evidence that led to the introduction of a law.
Junk Raft is filled with adventure,romance,a sense of optimism and important truths that will be needed by the thousands of groups.It serves as a reflection of the choices and journeys that each of us makes and helps us understand how plastic in the oceans is closely connected with the future of human life.
1. What makes the book Junk Raft attractive to readers?| A．The appeal for global environmental protection. |
| B．Efforts made to put an end to the use of plastics. |
| C．Erisken's adventures on the plastic ocean on a raft. |
| D．Eriksen's soldierly service and environmental study. |
| A．More rubbish being poured into the oceans. |
| B．Plastics accumulating in rare species of fish. |
| C．Many species in the oceans suffering fro shock. |
| D．The waters of the oceans being polluted by plastics. |
| A．Making accounts accessible. |
| B．Listing the environmental issues. |
| C．Taking the pollution into account. |
| D．Facing the environmental challenge. |
| A．The overuse of household items. |
| B．The wasteful throwaway culture. |
| C．The production of more materials. |
| D．The failure to find potential solutions. |
| A．the current policy is yet to be further perfected |
| B．people turn a blind eye to the plastics industry |
| C．people lack correct awareness of the problem |
| D．the market need for plastics is enlarging on land |
| A．Cautious. | B．Ambiguous. |
| C．Doubtful. | D．Appreciative. |
【推荐2】Sweden is so good at recycling that, for several years, it has imported rubbish from other countries to keep its recycling plants going. Less than 1% of Swedish household waste was sent to landfills(垃圾填埋场) last year or any year since 2011.
We can only dream of such an effective system in the UK, which is why we end up paying expensive transport costs to send rubbish to be recycled overseas rather than paying fines to send it to landfills under The Landfill Tax of 1996.
Sweden has a culture of looking after the environment. “We Swedish people are aware of what we need to do on environmental issues. We worked on communications for long to make people not throw things outdoors so that we can recycle and reuse,” says Anna-Carin Gripwall, director of communications for Avfall Sverige, the Swedish Waste Management’s recycling association.
Over time, Sweden has carried out a national recycling policy so that even though private companies undertake most of the business of importing and burning waste, the energy goes into a national heating network to heat homes through the freezing Swedish winter.
However, some people argue that the country is escaping real recycling. Paper plant managers say wood fiber can be used up to six times before it becomes dust. If Sweden burns paper before that point, it’s exhausting the potential for true recycling and replacing used paper with fresh raw material.
Ms Gripwall describes Sweden’s policy of importing waste to recycle from other countries as a temporary situation. “There’s a ban on landfill in EU countries, so instead of paying the fine they send it to us as a service. They should and will build their own plants, to reduce their own waste, as we’re doing in Sweden,” Ms Gripwall says.
1. Why is a low amount of household waste sent to landfills in Sweden?| A．A little bit of household waste is produced here. |
| B．Its people get waste recycled at home. |
| C．Much rubbish is imported overseas. |
| D．They have good public environmental awareness. |
| A．An effective recycling system is adopted. |
| B．People are encouraged to sell rubbish abroad. |
| C．People are forbidden to send waste to landfills. |
| D．An increasing number of landfills are being built. |
| A．It’s being spread around the world. |
| B．It’s also thought to have some shortcomings. |
| C．It’s so perfect to receive good evaluation. |
| D．It solves the problems with the local energy. |
| A．It’s partly wrong to import rubbish from other countries. |
| B．The technology of handling waste will be developed wildly. |
| C．It’s possible to completely solve all environmental problems. |
| D．All countries should work together to protect the environment. |
【推荐3】There was a time when a trip to the supermarket in theUnited States often ended with a seemingly simple question from the cashier: “Paper or plastic?” Well, which type of bag would you choose?
While all types of bags have some influence on the environment, it has long been supposed that paper bags are kinder. They are made from a renewable source, break down easily, burn without giving off thick smoke and can be recycled. However, the producing process behind paper bags uses more energy than that of plastic ones. How can this be true?
Studies show that paper bag production requires four times as much energy as plastic bag production. And the amount of water used to make paper bags is twenty times higher. Besides, the influence on forests is very serious. It takes about fourteen million trees to produce ten billion paper bags, which happens to be the number of bags used in the United States yearly.In terms of recycling, the idea that paper bags are more environmentally friendly than plastic ones can be quickly discarded. Research shows it requires about 98% less energy to recycle plastic than it does to recycle paper.
Even though paper bags might be more harmful than plastic ones, plastic still seems to be considered by governments as the more harmful of the two. In Ireland, for example, a tax has been introduced to discourage the use of plastic bags. People have to pay 22 cents for every plastic bag, and as a result, their use has dropped quickly.
There’s no doubt that it makes more sense to reuse these bags. However, we don’t seem to be doing that at present. Cloth bags are a better choice, but still, their production also has a bad influence on the environment. So what to do? How should I we answer the question of “Paper or plastic?” It seems that we first need to ask ourselves one more general question: “What can I do to help the environment?”
1. Why does the author use the questions in Paragraph 1?| A．To express the author’s doubts. | B．To introduce the topic for discussion. |
| C．To tell readers how to save money. | D．To show the kindness of the cashier. |
| A．need more water to produce | B．require less energy to recycle |
| C．have less influence on forests | D．take more time to break down |
| A．Put forward. | B．Discussed. | C．Given up. | D．Shared. |
| A．Paper or cloth? | B．Paper or plastic? |
| C．A small bag or a big one? | D．A new bag or your own one? |
