1 . Over the last two days, much of Spain has been coated with dust (灰尘) , and the skies have turned bright orange. A huge cloud of dust from the Sahara Desert is causing the strange weather. The dust cloud is expected to spread to other parts of Europe.
Across much of Spain on Tuesday morning, a thin layer (层) of red dust coated everything outside. From streets to sidewalks to balconies, everything was covered with a layer of dust. As the sun rose, the dust in the air turned the skies in some cities a strange orange. The cause of the dust and unusual sky colour wasn’t a forest fire, but dust from the Sahara Desert.
Every year, a large cloud of dust rises from the Sahara Desert. It’s called the Saharan Air Layer. Usually, it crosses the Atlantic Ocean as part of a natural cycle that helps develop farmland and beaches in Central and South America.
But sometimes, depending on the weather, the layer of dust gets forced to the north. Large sandstorms in northern Africa lift sand and dust into the air, where it gets blown towards Spain. Though the particles (微粒) in the air come from sand, they’re much more like dust than sand at a beach.
These kinds of storms aren’t unknown in Spain. In fact, it has a special name. It’s called a “calima”. This calima is so large that it can be seen from space. A NASA scientist who studies weather in the atmosphere says it’s like a river of dust in the air. That river of dust has met with a river of wet air driven by strong winds.
Spain’s weather service described the dust storm as being “very intense (强烈) ”. At one point on Tuesday, the air quality in Madrid was the worst in the world. Government health experts warned people not to go outside without a mask, and to keep their windows and doors closed at home.
1. What turned Spain’s skies orange?| A．A huge cloud. | B．Pollutant from Europe. |
| C．Dust from Sahara. | D．Heavy rainfall. |
| A．It’s helpful for farming. | B．It hits Spain every year. |
| C．It’s from South America. | D．It leads to forest fires. |
| A．Attractive. | B．Unbelievable. | C．Common. | D．Useful. |
| A．Travel. | B．Nature. | C．Science. | D．Health. |
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3 . This summer we witnessed interview teams at the North Pole wearing short sleeve shirts due to the warm weather. A study published on Aug 29 revealed more concerning issues in the supposedly coldest area of the world. Zombie ice from a massive Greenland ice sheet was confirmed to be melting, which would eventually raise global sea levels by at least 10 inches (27 centimeters) on its own, reported Associated Press (AP).
Zombie ice is the kind of ice that is still attached to thicker areas of ice, but is no longer getting fed by larger glaciers. Since glaciers are getting less snow to make up for the amount of ice melted, once the zombie ice is melted, it cannot be re-formed.
Scientists decided to look at the balance of the ice. In perfect equilibrium (平衡),snow in the mountains of Greenland flows down and thickens the sides of glaciers, balancing out what’s melting on the edges, according to AP. But in the last few decades, there is less refill and more melting, creating an imbalance.
Study co-author William Colgan at the Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland told AP that 3. 3 percent of Greenland’s total ice volume will melt eventually. “Starving would be a good phrase” for what’s happening to the ice, Colgan added.
With a great number of natural resources buried under the earth, areas of melted ice revealed treasures that attracted the world’s richest men. According to CNN, in early August, there was a “treasure hunt” in Greenland. Billionaires, including Bill Gates and others, financially backed KoBold Metals, a US-based mineral exploration company, to explore the rare metals under the glaciers in Greenland. The company told CNN that since there were enough minerals to power hundreds of millions of electric vehicles, the critical resource is capable of powering the green energy transition (过渡).
While investors are taking advantage of global warming, experts express their concerns that the mineral exploration is likely to worsen the local environment, running out of the world’s resources at a faster rate.
1. What do we know about zombie ice?| A．It’s made up by nearby glaciers. | B．It will melt away from the ice cap. |
| C．It’s independent from large glaciers. | D．It has increased sea levels by 10 inches. |
| A．How zombie ice was formed in the past. | B．Why more zombie ice can’t be created. |
| C．What the melting of zombie ice can lead to. | D．How zombie ice functions in the ecosystem. |
| A．Supportive. | B．Tolerant | C．Indifferent. | D．Worried. |
| A．To report on the melting zombie ice. | B．To explain a natural phenomenon. |
| C．To call for environmental protection. | D．To comment on the “treasure hunt”. |
4 . When rains fell in the Atacama Desert for the first time in centuries, scientists had expected to see life blossom (繁盛). Instead, almost everything died. The shocking discovery was published in the journal Scientific Reports. Found in northern Chile, the dry core of the Atacama Desert hadn’t experienced rain for the past 500 years. But three years ago, rain started to fall once again in the region.
A changing climate in the Pacific Ocean resulted in the desert’s dry core experiencing rain on March 25 and August 9, 2015, and it rained again on June 7, 2017. There was no evidence of rain in this region for the past 500 years, although climate models suggested it should occur every century.
The international team of scientists who studied the region were hoping for deserts springing to life. “Instead, we learned the contrary, as we found that rain in the dry core of the Atacama Desert caused a massive extinction of most native microbe (微生物) species there, ”said study co-author Alberto Fairén.
Before the rain fell, this region of the Atacama had been home to 16 different ancient microbe species. But after the rain fell, just two to four species were still found to be surviving in the resultant pool of water. The cause of the extinction event, believed to have been about 85 percent of life in the soil, was caused by the sudden influx of water. In particular, these microbes were adapted to survive in extreme dryness. They were unable to adapt quickly enough to the unexpected rainfall.
But it’s not all bad news. The team also found nitrates (硝酸盐) in the Atacama Desert that were indicative of a lengthy dry period, while also acting as food for the microbes. And we’ve recently found nitrates on Mars, which could be indicating a similar process there.
1. How did the scientists find their discovery according to Alberto Fairén?| A．Satisfying. | B．Astonishing. | C．Amusing. | D．Comforting. |
| A．Shortage. | B．Need. | C．Arrival. | D．Test. |
| A．The resultant pool of water was a wildlife habitat. |
| B．The team plans to turn the desert into a green land. |
| C．Scientists have observed lots of microbes on Mars. |
| D．The finding brought some hope to relevant studies. |
| A．Unexpected Rainfalls Hit a Desert Badly |
| B．A Science Magazine Increased in Popularity |
| C．Scientists Unlocked the Secret behind Drought |
| D．A Breakthrough Occurred in Space Exploration |
5 . Carbon dioxide emissions from transportation are now thought as the top source of green-house gases. One of the most effective ways to reduce your carbon footprint is to reconsider how much, and how often, you travel.
Going car free for a year could save about 2. 6 tons of carbon dioxide, according to a study from the University of British Columbia. How can you stop using a car? Try taking a train, bus or better yet, riding a bike.
But let’s be realistic. You will likely need to use a car this year. So, when you do, here are some tips to make your trip more climate-friendly. Driving efficiently can help to reduce emissions. Go easy on the gas and brakes and drive like you have an egg under your foot. Regularly service your car to keep it more efficient. Keeping your tires pumped correctly can re-duce emissions. Low tire pressure will hurt your fuel economy. Air conditioning and frequent city driving can make emissions go up. So cut down on these as often as possible. Use cruise control (定速巡航) on long drives-in most cases, this can help to save gas. Don’t weigh your car down with extra things that you don’t need on your trip.
Fly often? Taking one fewer long round-trip flight could reduce your personal carbon footprint significantly. If you use public transportation often and fly less, your carbon foot-print might still be relatively sustainable, but if you drive and fly a lot, your emissions will be sigher. If you can’t avoid flying, you can offset them by donating money to sustainable proacts, such as supplying efficient stoves to rural homes, or projects which help farmers deal with crop waste environmentally.
1. What does the author think of going car free?| A．Efficient. | B．Costly. | C．Impractical. | D．Reliable. |
| A．Maintaining your car properly. | B．Using cruise control in the city. |
| C．Stepping hard on the gas and brakes. | D．Geiting rid of all the necessary loads. |
| A．Make up for. | B．Team up with. | C．Set foot in. | D．Put up with. |
| A．How to save fuel when driving cars | B．How to reduce your carbon footprint |
| C．Reduce carbon footprint by all means | D．Lower carbon footprint in transportation |
6 . As a young girl growing up in France, Sarah Toumi dreamed of becoming a leader who could make the world a better place. Her passion to help others was awakened when, from the age of nine, she accompanied her Tunisian father to his birthplace in the east of the country during holidays. There she organized homework clubs and activities for children.
Toumi witnessed first-hand the destructive effect of desertification (沙漠化). “Within 10 years rich farmers became worse off, and in 10 years from now they will be poor. I wanted to stop the Sahara Desert in its tracks.” A decrease in average rainfall and an increase in the severity of droughts have led to an estimated 75 percent of Tunisia’s agricultural lands being threatened by desertification.
Toumi recognized that farming practices needed to change. She is confident that small land areas can bring large returns if farmers are able to adapt by planting sustainable crops, using new technologies for water treatment and focusing on natural products and fertilizers rather than chemicals.
In 2012, Toumi consolidated (巩固) her dream of fighting the desert. She moved to Tunisia, and set up a programme named Acacias for All to put her sustainable farming philosophy (理念) into action. “I want to show young people in rural areas that they can create opportunities where they are. Nobody is better able to understand the impact of desertification and climate change than somebody who is living with no access to water.”
By September 2016, more than 130, 000 acacia trees had been planted on 20 pilot farms, with farmers recording a 60 percent survival rate. Toumi estimates that some 3 million acacia trees are needed to protect Tunisia’s farmland. She expects to plant 1 million trees by 2018. In the next couple of years, Toumi hopes to extend the programme to Algeria and Morocco.
1. How did Toumi’s holiday trips to Tunisia influence her?| A．They made her decide to leave the country. |
| B．They helped her better understand her father. |
| C．They aroused her enthusiasm for helping others. |
| D．They destroyed her dream of being a teacher. |
| A．Low rainfall. | B．Soil pollution. | C．Cold weather. | D．Forest damage. |
| A．To create job opportunities for young people. |
| B．To help the children obtain a basic education. |
| C．To persuade the farmers not to use fertilizers. |
| D．To promote the protection of their farmland. |
| A．Saving Water in Tunisia | B．Holding back the Sahara |
| C．Planting Trees of Native Species | D．Fighting Poverty in North Africa |
7 . An environmental group in Colombia is leading a project to save wild areas in the San Lucas Mountains with the help of coffee growers.
Since 2016, San Lucas areas have been threatened by mining and coca (古柯) planting Gold miners and coca growers make more money than coffee farms. Now the group WebConserva helps link coffee farmers with coffee processors from around the country in order that they can earn more. At the same time coffee farms can serve as boarders around the forests to protect the biodiversity within.
To date, the project includes 10 families who farm 400 hectares of coffee plants. WebConserva said it hopes, in time, 200 families will be included. At that level. 20,000 hectares of untouched forest could be protected. The families promise not to cut down trees to expand their crops or to hunt wild animals. In return, they receive $300 for 125 kilograms of coffee.
Arcadio Barajas is among those taking part. His coffee farm sets up a barrier between cattle farms and forests where wild animals live, thus reducing the possibility of conflict between cattle farmers and wild animals. “Cutting down the forest to plant coca and killing wildlife were against my faith, and now I feel that growing coffee lets me be a good guard of the land,” he said.
Amnobis Romero is a former coca grower and miner. “Many families depended on illegal activities to support their children years ago. Now, we feel it a duty to look after this biodiversity and leave it for future generations,” he said. Activists want San Lucas to be protected as a national park, but the process has been slow. Carlos Valderrama, director of Webconserva, hopes the project can build production system that will last far into the future. “It protects forests, biodiversity and ecosystems at the same time as improving coffee growers’ quality of life,” he said.
1. What does the underlined word “they” in Paragraph 2 refer to?| A．Coffee farmers. |
| B．WebConserva members. |
| C．Gold miners. |
| D．Coca growers. |
| A．By increasing cattle farms. |
| B．By setting up a barrier. |
| C．Ry developing gold mining. |
| D．By encouraging coffee farming. |
| A．Families have enough money for their kids. |
| B．Coffee planting will last for several generations. |
| C．Coffee farming changed the former coca growers’ lives. |
| D．The project benefit the forests more than the local farmers. |
| A．Families protecting wildlife will get very rich. |
| B．WebConserva benefits ecosystems and local people’s life. |
| C．Gold mining and coca farming have been replaced rapidly. |
| D．San Lucas will develop into a national park in the near future. |
8 . On Feb. 23, an environmental advocacy group “Grassroots” led by students hosted its monthly clothing exchange. The clothing exchange is a free activity on campus where students can donate clothes in exchange for new ones.
“One of the key things about sustainability (可持续性) is to reuse,” Crystal Tynon, Co-president and Clothing Exchange Chair, said. “Instead of throwing away old clothes and buying new clothes, you can donate them and give them a new purpose. You might be done with those clothing items, but someone else might not be.”
According to Tynon, “Grassroots” is hoping to expand the activities to other schools. In order to do so, the team is brainstorming new ways to get the word out about donations, hours and events. Now, the clothing exchange is one of the club’s most well-known activities. “Throughout the semester when people realize we have these exchanges, they genuinely bring clothes and participate a lot more. So it does make a difference to clothing sustainability and it does create a community where everyone can share their clothes,” she added.
As “Grassroots” is an initiative dedicated to sustainability, paper advertisement is not an option. Instead, the center relies mostly on word-of-mouth and e-mail announcements. It is bringing speakers to campus to talk about sustainability and environmental advocacy. It also has partnerships with local organizations such as “the Sunrise Rochester”, working together to have volunteers become more involved in local sustainability.
Chloe Mendoza has been a volunteer since her freshman year. Not only does Mendoza appreciate the intended mission of promoting sustainability, but she also thinks the center has transformed into a safe and accepting community space for all students. Those who have come in looking for something practical often end up leaving with an armful of clothing and a heart full of warmth.
“My favorite part about working there is that we get to help people find things that they need for free. Just providing a place for students to go where there isn’t pressure to spend money is really important. A lot of students love saving, so it’s something that students can relate and engage with easily, so I think it’s a really easy way to get students more involved in sustainability,” says Mendoza.
1. Which of the following best describes Tynon’s feelings about their clothing exchange?| A．Impressive. | B．Innovative. |
| C．Demanding. | D．Rewarding. |
| A．It relies heavily on paper advertisements. |
| B．It cooperates with local institutions. |
| C．It invites speakers to be volunteers. |
| D．It earns instant fame in the community. |
| A．It brings spiritual comfort. | B．It widens the circle of friends. |
| C．It reduces academic pressure. | D．It gives a sense of achievement. |
| A．Saving Up Through Clothing Exchange |
| B．Engaging Students in “Grassroots” Events |
| C．Clothing Exchange Is the Only Way for Sustainability |
| D．Environmental Advocacy — “Grassroots” Catches On |
9 . Parks are the beating hearts of cities, providing crucial environments for wildlife of many sizes as well as areas of rest and recreation for local citizens. Accessible via public transport, and located near a university, a stadium and the National Library, Warsaw’s Pole Mokotowskie Park provides green space for many people.
One of the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s five pathways to transformative change for water management is to restore species population, ecosystems and the benefits that nature provides to people by using each city’s advantage. As more urban centres seek new ways to unite greenery into the built environment, projects of all sizes and stages add to essential corridors and stopping points for a range of wildlife.
Tasked with improving Warsaw’s Pole Mokotowskie Park’s natural sustainability, architecture company WXCA looked at ways of enhancing the elements that were already in place to better support wildlife. One of the most visible means was the removal of thousands of square metres of concrete (混凝土). Removing concrete in and around ponds and other waterways allows the city’s features to shape themselves naturally, in reaction to both the surrounding environment and the weather. Doing so can support biodiversity by removing artificial constraints and flows. More than 13,000 square metres of concrete has already been removed, with more removal planned over the next year.
For the human users of the park, the designers created education, activity, and art spaces. The Grand Salon, a grassland surrounded by trees, is for large public gatherings, and a handful of pavilions (亭) spread throughout the space provide visible means of monitoring the quality of the air and water. They also contribute to the park’s ecosystem through rainwater harvesting. As the temperature consistently rises, city planners are using the leaves and branches of the plants and mixed use designs to reduce heat islands, improve air quality and prevent urban runoff.
1. What do we know about Warsaw’s Pole Mokotowskie Park?| A．It creates a new way to the city center. |
| B．It serves different community groups. |
| C．It reminds the public to protect the environment. |
| D．It shows the locals are living happily. |
| A．Providing stages to show off creativity. | B．Taking advantage of the city’s resources. |
| C．Encouraging people to get close to nature. | D．Supplying various wildlife with more room. |
| A．Limits. | B．Factors. | C．Methods. | D．Damages. |
| A．By offering some shelters. | B．By collecting rainwater. |
| C．By monitoring the air quality. | D．By reducing high temperature. |
1．曾经的情景(景美、水清、鱼儿 鸭子嬉戏、游客多)；
2．后来的状况(湖水污染、游客乱扔垃圾)；
3．当地政府已经采取措施来拯救，净月潭又恢复了美丽。
注意：
1．词数80左右；
2．可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
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