1 . Wondering what you can do to celebrate Earth Day on April 22? You’ve come to the right place. We’ve gathered a comprehensive list of Earth Day activities, both fun and environmentally-conscious, to help raise awareness and make a difference. If you’re ready to learn more about joining the global celebration, initiating real change, and doing your part to save our planet, read on!
·Walk or ride your bike.
·Use a refillable water bottle.
Consider going with a stainless-steel refillable bottle for a super long-lasting option.
·Plant a tree.
Pick a tree species that’s native to where you live. If you’re unsure, ask an employee at your local nursery or garden department. Choose the best planting spot to meet the tree’s needs, dig a properly sized hole, and water the tree well to give it a good start.
·Visit a local farmer’s market.
Eating locally grown food is much better for the environment. For example, locally-grown food doesn’t have to be transported long distances to end up on grocery store shelves.
·
See if your community is holding an environmental fair. If your community doesn’t have one planned, consider starting one yourself! It’s the perfect day to get together for a fun and educational celebration of the Earth. Any money raised can go towards a local environmental restoration project or group.
| A．Attend a local Earth Day event. |
| B．Educate your community on environmental awareness. |
| C．Going car-free for the day will reduce harmful carbon emissions. |
| D．That means your money won’t be wasted on unnecessary spending. |
| E．If physically doing this is unrealistic for you, there are other choices! |
| F．Normally, plastic water bottles end up in garbage cans after a single use. |
| G．You’ll also be giving back to your community by supporting local farmers. |
2 . Natasha Tucker’s passion for fighting plastic pollution began with a shocking moment.
While working at the Vancouver Aquarium, Tucker met a rescued dolphin whose fins were partially cut off due to fishing equipment entanglement (缠绕). This heartbreaking experience made Tucker immediately search for a way to take action against the plastic pollution that caused these injuries.
“I saw immediately that this was because of us,” she says. “I knew I had to do something. Then, I found Mind Your Plastic.”
That aquarium encounter was not the only experience that inspired Tucker to action. Other experiences like working in retail management came with witnessing tons of plastic waste. “I saw how much got thrown out, and it didn’t sit well with me,” she says.
Plastic waste in business is among what Mind Your Plastic is seeking to end via its three key programs: the Circular Economy Ambassador Program(CEAP) for educators and youth, the Plastic-Free Events Policy Program for municipalities (市政当局) and the Plastic Awareness and Reduction Tool-kit s (PART) Program for businesses.
When people donate to Mind Your Plastic, their dollars directly support these programs and help them effect change. Through direct partnerships with local educators, municipalities and businesses, these programs connect Canadians with direct ways to take action. The CEAP program, for example, helps teachers educate youth about the circular economy, lead local cleanups, and track collected waste.
The blame game is another area in need of transition, according to Tucker, who says that big companies, not customers, should carry the responsibility to solve Canada’s plastic pollution problem.
“It’s felt for a long time like the responsibility is placed on the customers,” says Tucker. “That needs to stop.”
Tucker says this perspective (观点) can be shifted by individuals creating public pressures—for example, pushing for policy—and using their dollars to support more sustainable, circular alternatives until these policy changes happen.
“This makes policy a valuable tool. And big business may say there’s no interest, but we know there is,” she says. “Let’s use our dollars to prove that, and challenge policymakers to help make change happen.”
1. What first inspired Natasha Tucker’s passion for fighting plastic pollution?| A．Working in retail management. | B．Witnessing tons of plastic waste. |
| C．Meeting an injured dolphin. | D．Finding Mind Your Plastic. |
| A．Tucker felt uneasy about the large quantity of the plastic. |
| B．Tucker was unconcerned about the amount of plastic waste she saw. |
| C．Tucker enjoyed managing so much plastic waste. |
| D．Tucker thought the amount of plastic waste was acceptable. |
| A．By blaming consumers for plastic waste. | B．By providing education and partnership. |
| C．By quarreling with big businesses. | D．By stop ping using plastic products. |
| A．The harmful effects of plastic pollution on life in the ocean. |
| B．Natasha Tucker’s personal experiences and her fight against plastic pollution. |
| C．The programs of Mind Your Plastic to reduce plastic waste. |
| D．The responsibility of big companies in solving Canada’s plastic pollution problem. |
3 . Clothes were once used until they fell apart. Not today. In high-income countries in particular, clothing and footwear are increasingly frequently bought, thrown away and replaced with new fashions, which are themselves soon thrown away and replaced.
The so-called “fast fashion” is having a surprising environmental impact. Take water. The fashion industry, one of the world’s largest users of water, consumes anywhere from 20 trillion to 200 trillion litres every year. Then there are microplastics. Plastic fibres are released when we wash polyester (聚酯纤维) and other polymer-based textiles (纺织品), and make up between 20% and 35% of the microplastics choking the oceans. Added to this are specific chemicals, such as those used to make fabrics stain resistant and the pesticides required to protect crops such as cotton.
Change is badly needed, but will require the fashion industry to work harder to embrace more of what is known as the circular economy. That will involve at least two things: refocusing on making things that last, and so encouraging reuse; and more rapidly expanding the technologies for sustainable manufacturing processes, especially recycling. There’s a big role for research—both academic and industrial—in achieving these and other ambitions.
Researchers could begin by helping to provide more accurate estimates of water use. There is also work to be done on improving and expanding textiles recycling. Undoubtedly, used textiles go to landfill in part because there are relatively few systems that collect, recycle and reuse materials. Such recycling requires the manual separation of fibres, as well as buttons and zips. Different fibres are not easy to identify by eye, and overall such manual processes are time-consuming. Machinery is being developed that can help. Technologies also exist to recycle used fibres chemically and to create high-quality fibres that can be reused in clothing. But these are nowhere near the scale needed.
1. Why does the author mention “water”, “microplastics” and “chemicals” in Paragraph 2?| A．To list examples. | B．To prove a point. |
| C．To provide an idea. | D．To give a definition. |
| A．Efforts are made to lengthen the lifespan of textiles. |
| B．Worn-out clothes are used as dishcloths and oil rags. |
| C．High-quality fibres are created to be reused in clothing. |
| D．Fashion industry is encouraged to release new lines more often. |
| A．To make sure that all of the used textiles go to landfill. |
| B．To separate fibres, as well as buttons and zips manually. |
| C．To improve and expand textile recycling to a larger extent. |
| D．To encourage consumers to satisfy their desires for fashion. |
| A．Say No to the So-Called Fast Fashion |
| B．Address the Challenges for Researchers |
| C．Embrace More of the Circular Economy |
| D．Cut Fast Fashion’s Environmental Impact |
4 . If you look at the dynamic “Global Temperatures” map on NASA’s website, you can see the historic temperature change over time across the planet as the timeline goes from 1880 to the modern day. By 2019, the entire planet is in red, orange, and yellow colors, indicating temperatures much higher than the historical average in every country and human inhabitance.
If the timeline went to 2023, the map would look even worse. That’s because the summer of 2023 was the hottest ever, according to ocean monitors. July was the hottest month in recorded history. Next July could be worse. Unless we do something quickly, we face dealing with more and more dangerous and expensive natural disasters in the future.
Forest fires sent smoke from Canada across the North American continent, causing New York City to have the worst air quality in its recorded history. Heavy rainstorms fell on Vermont and the Northeastern United States in just a couple of days in the middle of July, which exceeded the amount that area would usually receive in two months and caused extreme damage to homes and businesses. Around the same time, flash flooding in Bucks County, Pennsylvania — north of Philadelphia — killed nearly a dozen people.
Erich Fischer, a researcher specializing in climate studies at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, is concerned that natural disasters could get much worse in the future—and in ways we cannot predict. He called for a “strike for climate justice,” which actually took place on Sept. 15, 2023. “The strategy needs to be twofold (双重的) . We need to decrease carbon emissions as much as realistically possible. That is already happening with people using electric cars and other green technologies. At the same time, we also need to find ways to predict the risk of natural disasters ahead of time,” said Erich Fischer.
1. Why does the writer mention the data on NASA’s website in paragraph 1?| A．To explain a concept. | B．To introduce a topic. |
| C．To provide a solution. | D．To make a prediction. |
| A．The severity of natural disasters. | B．The worst air quality in New York City. |
| C．The extreme damage by flash flooding. | D．The cause of the forests fires in Canada. |
| A．He advocated a twofold strategy. |
| B．He suggested forbidding carbon emissions. |
| C．He required people to use more electric cars. |
| D．He emphasized the awareness of climate changes. |
| A．The Hottest Month in History | B．Natural Disasters in the World |
| C．Extreme Weather Could Get Worse | D．Green Technology Would be Needed |
5 . Heat waves are becoming more common in parts of the United States — and that means more people running their air conditioners for longer. But those air conditioners can make the problem worse, giving off greenhouse gases as they work that contribute heavily to climate change.
SkyCool Systems is trying to break that cycle, using technology that promises to offer buildings an alternative means to cool down in a similar way to how the planet cools itself. “Our planet naturally cools itself by sending heat out in the form of infrared light (红外线) or radiation,” said Eli Goldstein, SkyCool’s cofounder and CEO. “We do this through rooftop panels, which look like solar panels but actually do the opposite, reflecting 97% of the sunlight that hits them and cooling the surface below,” said Goldstein.
SkyCool’s model involves fixing a network of pipes below those panels. These pipes are filled with water, which is kept cool by the panels and then flows into an air conditioning system. This process is designed to take pressure off the system’s cooling mechanism. And because the panels cool naturally and don’t need external power to function, it helps the entire system use less electricity.
A Grocery Outlet store in California, which has been using SkyCool’s system since last year, says it saw a marked drop in its electrical bills. Jesus Valenzuela, the store manager, estimates that the panels have saved his store roughly $3,000 a month.
But perhaps the biggest barrier to making the technology ubiquitous (无处不在的) is its relatively high cost. Increasing production could help bring the cost down, Goldstein said, particularly for developing countries in Asia and Africa where SkyCool hopes to eventually expand. For now, the company is focused on commercial applications of the technology, though it hopes to start setting up panels on the roofs of individual homes. “We’re just excited to be able to use this new technology for good,” Goldstein said.
1. How did Goldstein explain the way their rooftop panels work?| A．By citing an expert’s words. | B．By making comparisons. |
| C．By analyzing cause and effect. | D．By describing the process in detail. |
| A．To store cold water to help cool the panels. |
| B．To help ease the water pressure of the air conditioning. |
| C．To power the panels by making use of flowing water. |
| D．To feed cold water into the air conditioning system. |
| A．It’s pretty effective. | B．It has increased sales for his store. |
| C．It will go out of style quickly. | D．It will cost too much to set up. |
| A．It’ll bring in a good profit for the company. | B．It’ll gain popularity in developed countries. |
| C．It’ll take the place of air conditioners. | D．It’ll be accessible to common households. |
6 . They say once you learn to ride a bike, you never forget. Most of us learned to ride when we were kids, and many still wear our helmets, put our feet on the pedals, and shoot off for a ride on the streets. In recent times, cycling has seen an increase in popularity, so many people raise a question:
First, let’s look at the health benefits. Cycling can improve your cardiovascular (心血管的) health and burn extra body fat. Strengthening your muscles in your legs helps increase your potential torque (扭矩) and cadence (节奏).
Cycling can be a great way to go to work or get about town.
So, whether people want to cycle for their health, their wallet, the environment, or a combination of all of them —the popularity of cycling is on the rise.
| A．What makes cycling so convenient? |
| B．But cyclists face neither of these issues. |
| C．And people will choose to go to work by cycling. |
| D．This can save you a lot of money on fuel or public transportation. |
| E．Finally, cycling can also be good for the environment. |
| F．And the benefits from cycling aren’t just physical, but mental as well. |
| G．What makes it so attractive for people to take their bikes once again? |
1. What is the relationship between the speakers?
| A．Colleagues. | B．A couple. | C．Classmates. |
| A．Plastic bottles. | B．Paper. | C．Cans. |
| A．Stop using paper cups. |
| B．Prepare boxes for different wastes. |
| C．Reduce the use of paper and plastics. |
8 . This summer, daytime temperatures topped 100 degrees for a full month in northwest China. Southern Europe experienced waves of 100-plus degree days. Heat waves show a serious reality: human-driven climate change is making extreme heat worse worldwide. But health-threatening heat isn’t the only result of record-breaking weather: air pollution happens when the temperatures rise according to a new report from the World Meteorological Organization.
The new report, which focuses on 2022, shows the growing risk of air pollution connected to wildfires. Hotter temperatures increase the risk of large the risk of large, hot-burning fires, which can pump enormous plumes of smoke into the air. That smoke causes health problems near the fire but also for people thousands of miles downwind.
Extreme heat, also drives up the likelihood of drought, which in turn makes big dust storms more likely. Great clouds of fine dust blew off major deserts last year, particularly affecting the Arabian Peninsula region. Southern Europe also got hit by a major dust storm after a heat wave baked the deserts of northern Africa in the summer.
“That’s a very bad combination of conditions,” says Julie Nicely, an atmospheric chemist at the University of Maryland, who worked on the report. That mix is particularly dangerous for elderly people, or people with breathing sensitivities. “That is very bad for the lungs and the cardiovascular (心血管),” she says.
Air pollution levels have dropped in the past few decades in response to environmental regulations like the Clean Air Act in the United States. Ozone pollution (臭氧污染), however, remains a problem. The report authors point out that the extra heat in the atmosphere driven by climate change overpowers even the gains made by strict environmental protections. The authors suggested focusing on the importance of slowing or changing human-caused climate change as quickly as possible.
“Climate change and air quality cannot be treated separately. They go hand in hand and must be solved together to break this cycle,” WMO Secretary General Petteri Taalas said in a press release.
1. Why is the extreme weather in northwest China and southern Europe mentioned in Para l?| A．To introduce the topic. |
| B．To show the serious situation. |
| C．To warn people of the bad weather. |
| D．To compare two countries’ weather. |
| A．Air pollution is likely to be solved in the future. |
| B．Climate change and air quality are closely connected. |
| C．It’s no use slowing or changing human-caused climate change. |
| D．People’s efforts to protect the environment make no difference. |
| A．It deals with the air pollution completely. |
| B．It makes a big difference to the air problem. |
| C．It has made the problem of air pollution worse. |
| D．It is partly effective in dealing with air pollution. |
| A．A science magazine. |
| B．A travel brochure. |
| C．A research paper. |
| D．An encyclopedia. |
9 . A wildfire in New Mexico, a state in the southwestern US, has burned for nearly two months, consuming more than 315,000 acres of land — an area about the size of the city of Los Angeles.
“With climate change, it seems like the monsters are beginning to fall,” NASA hydrologist JT Reager told the BBC. “We get warmer temperatures, we get less rain and snow. The reservoirs (水库) start drying up, then in a place like the West [of the US], we get wildfires.”
In recent years, wildfires have wreaked havoc across countries including the US and Australia. These fires destroy homes and businesses, claim lives and also negatively impact the environment.
As climate change worsens, global temperatures increase and so does the risk of wildfires. A recent report from the United Nations Environment Program and GRID-Arendal, a partner organization in Norway, reveals that wildfires are becoming more frequent and severe.
This is harmful to people around the globe. According to the joint UN report, it is estimated that the yearly “economic burden from wildfire for the United States is between $7.1 billion (about 48 billion yuan) and $347.8 billion”.
Another article published in Nature journal on April 19 found that wildfires have created seasonal pollution patterns in the northwestern US. Between 2002 and 2018, carbon monoxide (一氧化碳) levels increased every year for the month of August in the area.
Forest fires are common in China too. In the recent decade, the total number of forest fires in the country every year has increased to more than 2,000 cases, according to The Paper. Greater Hinggan Mountains (大兴安岭) is one of the important forestry bases in China. The National Forestry and Grassland Administration adopted mountain watchtowers, forest cameras and aerial drones (无人机) to prevent forest fires in the summer.
1. The author quotes Reager’s words in the second paragraph to ______.| A．show the seriousness of the recent wildfire in the US |
| B．list some environmental problems caused by wildfires |
| C．explain how climate change contributes to wildfires |
| D．provide possible solutions to wildfires around the globe |
| A．Created pollution. | B．Been out of control. |
| C．Caused great damage. | D．Drawn much attention. |
| A．Millions of people have been displaced. |
| B．It has caused seasonal patterns of pollution. |
| C．It has led to around $7.1 billion economic loss annually. |
| D．Carbon monoxide levels have increased year on year. |
| A．There has been over 2,000 cases in the last decade. |
| B．The Greater Hinggan Mountains experienced the largest one. |
| C．They were not very common several decades ago. |
| D．Measures have been taken to prevent them from happening. |
| 不值得的理由 | 值得的理由 | 你的看法 |
| 1.带来污染； 2.破坏海洋动物栖息地。 | 1.有助于解决因人口增长而带来的资源短缺问题； 2.有利于气候变化等科学研究。 | …… |
参考词汇：exploration(探索)
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