1 . Washing machines and fridges will be labelled with their carbon footprint as part of efforts to promote greener products and bring down carbon emissions (排放).
UK government want to introduce a system in which products would be labelled to show how much greenhouse gases had been given off while making the product. Officials favour a system in which labels describe the product’s emission figure along with a ranking, such as from A to G. A rating of A would represent a “zero emission” product.
In consultation papers published earlier, the government said: “The combination of the emissions figure and ranking system could give a simple way to find out the best products, as well as the raw data needed to make more detailed comparisons.” Officials hope the labelling would encourage people to buy greener products, helping to bring down carbon emissions.
The government has not set out which products the emission figures would apply to, but it is likely to eventually apply to products whose production process involves significant emissions, such as heavy goods involving steel or plastic.
The proposal is among several steps by the government to encourage UK companies to cut their emissions, alongside wider measures to boost clean energy supplies.
Officials are also considering introducing new import taxes to protect UK factories from being affected by cheap imports from competitors. Under the proposals, imported goods without costs for going green would face extra taxes. The potential so-called carbon border taxes are aimed at protecting areas such as steel and chemicals.
Matthew Germain, an expert in British Environmental Law, said the measures would mean the UK was “at least keeping step with the European Union (EU)”. The EU reached a deal in December of 2022 to charge carbon taxes on imports of iron and steel, and electricity. Countries will not be affected if they have same climate change policies to the EU.
1. What new information will be added to labels of products?| A．Their raw materials. | B．Consumers’ ratings. |
| C．Amount of carbon emission. | D．Advantages and disadvantages. |
| A．Help consumers save money. | B．Promote eco-friendly choices. |
| C．Improve production efficiency. | D．Develop the country’s industry. |
| A．They bring the country a step ahead of the EU. |
| B．They have no influence on countries of the EU. |
| C．They make British companies more competitive. |
| D．They increase the costs of imported green goods. |
2 . A New Fashion Trend
Fashion designers are always looking for new materials to work with. Lately, it’s all about sustainable materials — recycled tires, mushrooms, even pineapple fibers! What if you want a sustainable pair of shoes? Thaely is here to help.
This sneaker brand out of Dubai wants to fight the growing problem of plastic pollution. Led by 28-year-old Indian businessman Ashay Bhave, they may have found a winning strategy: making shoes out of plastic grocery bags. “Thaely” means “plastic bag” in the Hindi language.
“I was looking to create footwear that is cost-effective and safe for the environment,” Bhave said in an interview with the Khaleej Times newspaper. “I needed to come up with something that uses recycled plastic without creating any more plastic waste.”
Plastic bags were the perfect solution. Bhave’s home country, India, banned single-use plastics. However, in an interview with Elle magazine, Bhave said it’s poorly enforced. He said five trillion (万亿) plastic bags are used around the world each year. “I was motivated to find a solution to this problem,” Bhave said.
That solution was the fabric called ThaelyTex. Made entirely from plastic bags, the material looks and feels like leather, Bhave claimed. That sounds promising. Better yet, the production process requires no additional chemicals and releases no toxic by-products. The end result is a smart-looking pair of white low-top sneakers.
Thaely wouldn’t reveal the full process for making Thaely Tex, but he said that each pair of shoes is made from up to 15 plastic bags and up to 22 plastic bottles. Where do they get so much material? Bhave told Elle that was the hardest part. “The biggest challenge we faced was right at the first step of acquiring the plastic bags.”
Finally, they got help from Trio Tap Technologies, a waste management plant. Bhave said they offered to collect the bags and also to process them into ThaelyTex. So far, it seems like things are falling into place. There are already hundreds of pre-orders in place. It sounds like they have some plans for the future. “We have a few more colours coming up,” said Bhave. They also plan to put out a high-top model and introduce a line of clothing. Let’s hope their growth is also sustainable.
1. The underlined word “winning” in Paragraph 2 means “________”.| A．absolutely perfect | B．highly profitable |
| C．legally responsible | D．mutually favourable |
| A．Plastic bags are a threat to the shoe making industry. |
| B．Making shoes with plastic bags is pollution free. |
| C．The ban on plastic bags doesn’t work well in India. |
| D．Making money is the top priority for shoe designers. |
| A．pollution-free and colourful | B．eco-friendly and leatherlike |
| C．readily available and popular | D．good-looking and durable |
| A．fashion doesn’t necessarily have to pollute | B．changing fashion is a creation of waste |
| C．traditional fashion style is new again | D．recycled fashion meets customers’ needs |
Chinese rescue teams helped save at least six people, among whom
The Zhejiang Rescue Team of Ramunion said that its members worked with Turkish soldiers and local rescuers
In Antakya in the country’s south, the Chinese official rescue team, together with local rescuers, carried a pregnant woman out of the
Chinese rescuers and experts participated in the entire rescue,
Seven rescuers from the Zhejiang Rescue Team of Ramunion, a non-governmental organization (NGO) from Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, arrived in Turkiye on Feb. 8, 2023.
They immediately headed to Iskenderun after teaming up with a nine-member local logistics (后勤) support team. The Ramunion workers threw
Plastic pollution at sea is reaching worrying levels. According to a review of hundreds of academic
As plastic breaks down into smaller pieces, it also enters the marine food chain and
While consumers can help reduce plastic pollution by
5 . How to Prepare for and Survive a Flood
Flooding is a common natural disaster around the world.
Pay close attention to the radio, television, community announcements or your cellphone for official flooding updates.
If you have time before you leave, secure your home. Bring in outdoor furniture. Move necessary items to the highest part of the upper floor of your home. Turn off all the appliances (家电) like TV, refrigerator, washing machine, air-conditioner.
Do not walk through moving water. Six inches of moving water can sweep you off your feet. If you have to walk in water, walk where the water is not moving.
| A．Have an emergency survival kit on hand. |
| B．Are you in a frequently flood-stricken area? |
| C．How to ensure your safety in a serious flood? |
| D．Take as many useful furniture as possible when you leave. |
| E．Know the difference between a flood “watch” and “warning”. |
| F．Use a stick to check the firmness of the ground in front of you. |
| G．Do not touch electrical equipment if you are wet or standing in water. |
6 . To be clear, plastic bags are rightly thought of as a threat that’s harmful to human health. According to the Natural Resources Defense Council, a decade ago, the average American family took home almost 1,500 plastic shopping bags a year, filling our cabinets, kitchen drawers, and landfills (垃圾填埋场). Today the numbers are slightly better: According to National Geographic, as of 2018, shoppers in the United States used almost one plastic bag per resident per day.
This is not a story about the evil of plastics, but about whether the reusable bag can justify its existence. Although more environmentally friendly than traditional single-use plastic bags, reusable bags, depending on what they are made of, are more energy-intensive (耗能的) to recycle.
According to a report by the United Nations Environment Programme, depending on what they are made of, reusable bags might have to be deconstructed in a costly recycling process to separate the different materials. As a result, in many cases, reusable bags are not recycled. That means despite the best intentions, millions of reusable bags designed to replace the need for traditional plastic shopping bags, will also end up in landfills.
Another point to consider, not all reusable bags are equal in terms of their recyclability. There are a wide range of reusable bag options on the market, and reusable bags tend to be made of more than one material to give the bag added reinforcement and added street fashion. On a life cycle basis, stronger, heavier bags—no matter what material they are made of—will have a more severe environmental effect. That’s because heavier bags use more resources to produce as well as distribute.
Just like plastic bags did, reusable bags multiply rapidly. Used for promotional (促销的) purposes and marketing of all kinds, reusable bags’ growing popularity means bags that have been used very little (or not at all) can be found piled in streets, in garbage cans, in city parks, and basically everywhere. Therefore, consumers have come to see them as disposable, defeating their very purpose.
In the end, the best practice of dealing with reusable bags is to have no half measures: Either use them all the time or don’t use them at all. Using a reusable bag once or twice and then throwing it away doesn’t do the environment any favors.
1. What can we learn from the passage?| A．Plastic bags are refused by environmentalists. |
| B．Shops in America have limited the use of plastic bags. |
| C．The need of strong and fashionable reusable bags is more than the supply. |
| D．Reusable bags demand more resources to produce and recycle than expected. |
| A．being left in landfills |
| B．being used as much as possible |
| C．replacing plastic bags |
| D．promoting goods on the market |
| A．How to Recycle Reusable Bags |
| B．Disadvantages of Plastic Bags |
| C．Reusable Bags? Think Twice! |
| D．Plastic Bags, Less Popular? |
7 . The Great Barrier Reef in Queensland has suffered several mass bleaching events due to the impacts of climate change. The Australian government turned down a proposal for a new open-cut coal mine near the Great Barrier Reef, considering environmental laws and the risk of “irreversible damage”. It was the first time the government had used its powers under environmental laws to reject a mine.
In turning down the project, Tanya Plibersek, the minister for the environment and water, cited significant potential environmental dangers to the reef, which is already heavily threatened by climate change.” The risk of pollution is real and the damage to the reef, once done, will never be repaired. “The project would have had unacceptable impacts on freshwater in the area and potentially on fragile seagrass meadows,” Plibersek said in a video posted on social media. She said that during the public consultation period, her department had received 9,000 public comments about the mine in just 10 business days.
The government has been under pressure from UNESCO to better protect the reef and in 2022, it pledged one billion Australian dollars for efforts to protect the fragile ecosystem, including climate adaptation measures and water quality programs. Last year, the Great Barrier Reef, which stretches for more than 2,300 kilometers, experienced its sixth mass bleaching event, due to warming waters caused by climate change.
The government, elected in 2022, came to power promising stronger action on the climate in a country still heavily depending on fossil fuels. But its climate policies are rated “insufficient” by Climate Action Tracker, which found Australia is not on course to meet targets to limit warming to 1. 5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. The government has rejected calls from the country’s Green Party to turn down all new fossil fuel projects.
1. Which of the following can replace “irreversible” in paragraph 1?| A．Permanent. | B．Gradual. | C．Severe. | D．Significant. |
| A．The reef is in good condition now. |
| B．9,000 people made good comments on the mining project. |
| C．The mining project has drawn the attention of the public. |
| D．The mining project has had bad effects on freshwater in the area. |
| A．Fossil fuels are not in demand in Australia. |
| B．The government has made effective climate policies. |
| C．The government failed to carry out its previous promises. |
| D．The Green Party reached an agreement with the government. |
| A．The Great Barrier Reef is faced with mass bleaching events. |
| B．Australia is on the way to protecting the Great Barrier Reef. |
| C．The Great Barrier Reef calls for help due to climate change. |
| D．Australia says “No” to a mine near the Great Barrier Reef. |
“The goal is that every 300 metres if you open a window, you
With its mild weather, teahouses, quiet leafy streets and
To deal with that
Paris, known as the City of Love, shines bright all day long. The lights of the city attract
However, these lights are not environmentally friendly because they are always on. One group of Parkour athletes,
More than ten years ago, Paris City Hall passed a law,
On top of this, recently the government
10 . Green architecture is designed in an environmentally-friendly way. Many people think interest in green architecture has only begun in recent years.
To make it, much of green architecture focuses on building intelligently. For example, plumbing systems (管道系统) may be designed to use less water while still functioning normally.
Many architects build environmentally to show people that it’s possible. And they want to show the fact that being environmentally-friendly does not have to make a building bad-looking.
The green design can be kept in mind when we build various future buildings, ranging from a private home to a tall office building. Green designs can also be applied to remodeling (改造) and repairing existing buildings.
| A．The goal is to make a building prettier. |
| B．Not many buildings have great green designs. |
| C．A green building’s design need solve many problems. |
| D．In fact, humans have tried green architecture for thousands of years. |
| E．After all, pulling down a building can quite damage the environment. |
| F．Actually, many of the green designs can make a building more beautiful. |
| G．And smart lighting would turn off when people are not around to save energy. |
