1 . Recently, environmentalists have encouraged us to buy local food. This reduces “food miles”, that is, the distance food travels to get from the producer to the seller. They reason that the higher the food miles, the more carbon emissions (碳排放). Buying local. food, therefore, has a lower carbon footprint and is more environmentally friendly.
However, the real story is not as simple as that. If our aim is to reduce carbon emissions, we must look at the whole farming process, not just transportation. According to a 2008 study, only 11% of carbon emissions in the food production process result from transportation, and only 4% came from the final delivery (运输) of the product from the producer to the seller.
In fact, imported food from other countries often has a lower carbon footprint than locally grown food. Take apples, for example. In autumn, when apples are harvested, the best thing for British people to do is to buy British apples. However, the apples we buy in winter or spring have been kept refrigerated for months, and this uses up a lot of energy. In spring, therefore, it is more energy-saving to import them from New Zealand, where they are in season. Heating also uses a lot of energy, which is why growing tomatoes in heated greenhouses in the UK is less environmentally friendly than importing them from Spain, where the tomatoes grow well in the local climate.
We must also take into consideration the type of transport. Transporting food by air creates about 50 times more emissions than shipping it. However, only a small number of goods are flown to foreign countries, and these are usually high value, perishable (易腐烂的) goods which we cannot produce locally, such as seafood and out-of-season berries. Even then, these foods may not have a higher carbon footprint than locally grown food. For example, beans flown in from Kenya are grown in sunny fields using human labour and natural fertilisers (肥料), unlike in Britain, where we use oil-based fertilisers and machinery. Therefore, the total carbon footprint is still lower.
It’s also worth remembering that a product’s journey does not end at the supermarket. The distance customers travel to buy their food, and the kind of transport they use will also add to its carbon footprint. So driving a long way to shop for food will wipe out any environmental benefits of buying locally grown produce.
Recently, some supermarkets have been trying to raise awareness of food miles by labelling (标记) foods with stickers that show it has been imported by air. But the message this gives is too simple. Lots of different factors contribute to a food’s carbon footprint besides the distance it has travelled.
1. What can we learn about “food miles”?| A．It influences how people deliver and transport food. |
| B．It will increase if people are encouraged to buy local food. |
| C．It is the key factor contributing to a food’s carbon emissions. |
| D．It shows how far the food goes from farmland to supermarkets. |
| A．transporting food by air is the most energy-saving type of shipping |
| B．storing local food creates more carbon emissions than importing food |
| C．human labour and natural fertilisers can increase the carbon footprint |
| D．growing out-of-season food takes less energy than importing food in season |
| A．Supportive. | B．Confused. | C．Negative. | D．Doubtful. |
2 . There is hot, and then there is hot! Extreme heat is a period of high heat and humidity with temperatures above 90 degrees Fahrenheit for at least two to three days. Extreme heat is responsible for the highest number of annual deaths among all weather-related hazards (危害).
It’s not your imagination. Summers have been getting hotter and hotter with extreme heatwaves occurring earlier and more frequently. But why is this happening and can we better predict heatwaves in advance to give people time to prepare?
“Climate change is here and it’s already been changing human behavior and causing significant influence in the society. As global temperatures rise, historically excessive (过高的) temperatures are more likely to occur.” says Craig Ramseyer, an assistant professor who studies climate modeling in the department of geography at Virginia Tech.
Ramseyer says heatwaves are the most concerning because of the lack of attention they normally receive. “Hurricanes, tornadoes, and flash floods drive more media attention because of the natural attraction with the visual impact of those types of hazards. However, heat does not tend to be as attractive and it becomes very difficult to communicate the danger to the public,” said Ramseyer. “Around the world, more deaths occur due to extreme heat than from hurricanes, flooding, and drought combined. It impacts the most helpless of our citizens who do not have enough access to air conditioning, water, and other important resources.”
Since the Earth is running warmer than it used to, Ramseyer says that when these heatwave-related weather patterns take place, it results in higher extreme temperatures than we used to experience 30 years ago.
“As a global community, we need to decrease carbon emissions as soon as possible. We have rapidly developing technologies that are going to help advance the process, but the faster the better, there is no time to waste.”
1. What can we learn from the article?| A．Extreme heat is a No.1 death cause. |
| B．People are suffering more extreme heat. |
| C．A 100-degree heat is an extreme heat. |
| D．Extreme heat is getting better over the years. |
| A．Climate change will soon affect human behaviors. |
| B．High temperatures happened frequently in history. |
| C．Air conditioning and water can stop the extreme heat. |
| D．Garbage sorting can less advance the climate change. |
| A．Extreme heat can be stopped by technology. |
| B．People have enough time to solve the climate problems. |
| C．The danger of extreme heat is not easily transferred to the public. |
| D．Heatwave-related weather patterns will decrease in the future. |
| A．Complaints about extreme heat. | B．Prevention of extreme heat. |
| C．Characters of extreme heat. | D．Technologies behind extreme heat. |
3 . The environmental practices of big businesses are shaped by a fundamental fact that offends our sense of justice. A business may maximize the amount of money it makes by damaging the environment and hurting people. When government regulation is effective, and the public is environmentally aware, environmentally clean big businesses may out-compete dirty ones, but the reverse is likely to be true if government regulation is ineffective and the public doesn’t care.
It is easy to blame a business for helping itself by hurting other people. But blaming alone is unlikely to produce change. It ignores the fact that businesses are not charities but profit-making companies, and they are under obligation to maximize profits for shareholders by legal means.
Our blaming of businesses also ignores the ultimate responsibility of the public for creating the conditions that let a business profit through destructive environmental policies. In the long run, it is the public, either directly or through its politicians, that has the power to make such destructive policies unprofitable and illegal, and to make sustainable environmental policies profitable.
The public can do that by accusing businesses of harming them. The public may also make their opinion felt by choosing to buy sustainably harvested products; by preferring their governments to award valuable contracts to businesses with a good environmental track record; and by pressing their governments to pass and enforce laws and regulations requiring good environmental practices.
In turn, big businesses can exert powerful pressure on any suppliers that might ignore public or government pressure. For instance, after the US public became concerned about the spread of a disease, transmitted to humans through infected meat, the US government introduced rules demanding that the meat industry abandon practices associated with the risk of the disease spreading. But the meat packers refused to follow these, claiming that they would be too expensive to obey. However, when a fast-food company made the same demands after customer purchases of its hamburgers dropped, the meat industry followed immediately. The public’s task is therefore to identify which links in the supply chain are sensitive to public pressure.
Some readers may be disappointed or outraged that I place the ultimate responsibility for business practices harming the public on the public itself. I also believe that the public must accept the necessity for higher prices for products to cover the added costs of sound environmental practices. My views may seem to ignore the belief that businesses should act in accordance with moral principles even if this leads to a reduction in their profits. But I think we have to recognize that, throughout human history, government regulation has arisen precisely because it was found that not only did moral principles need to be made explicit, they also needed to be enforced.
My conclusion is not a moralistic one about who is right or wrong, admirable or selfish. I believe that changes in public attitudes are essential for changes in businesses’ environmental practices.
1. The main idea of Paragraph 3 is that environmental damage__________.| A．is the result of ignorance of the public |
| B．requires political action if it is to be stopped |
| C．can be prevented by the action of ordinary people |
| D．can only be stopped by educating business leaders |
| A．reduce their own individual impact on the environment |
| B．learn more about the impact of business on the environment |
| C．raise awareness of the effects of specific environmental disasters |
| D．influence the environmental policies of businesses and governments |
| A．Meat packers stopped supplying hamburgers to fast-food chains. |
| B．Meat packers persuaded the government to reduce their expenses. |
| C．A fast-food company forced their meat suppliers to follow the law. |
| D．A fast-food company encouraged the government to introduce regulations. |
| A．Will the world survive the threat caused by big businesses? |
| B．How can big businesses be encouraged to be less driven by profit? |
| C．What environmental dangers are caused by the greed of businesses? |
| D．Are big businesses to blame for the damage they cause to the environment? |
4 . For more than 30 years, Mauro Morandi has been the only resident of a beautiful island in the Mediterranean sea. He hoped to make it his life-long home, but that is now under threat.
Morandi now faces eviction from the Isle of Budelli, off the coast of Sardinia, if he doesn’t voluntarily leave. Local authorities are speeding up plans to turn his hut into an environmental observatory.
Morandi arrived on the island by accident while attempting to sail from Italy to Polynesia 31 years ago. He fell in love with the pure water, coral sands and beautiful sunsets, and decided to stay. He took over from the previous caretaker shortly afterward and, at the age of 81, he’s still there and ready to fight for his home, whatever it takes.
“I wouldn’t know where else to go live-this is my home. All I ask is, if I must be sent away during the reconstruction work, that I can come back after and keep doing what I do each day: guard the pink coral beach, keep tourists at bay, and protect nature. I fear that if I’m gone, the pink coral beach will survive only on postcards from the past,” Morandi says. An online petition has been launched to this end, which in just a few days has gathered more than 2,600 supporters across the world.
The island has changed ownership several times over the last few years. Since 2015, Budelli has been owned by La Maddalena’s National Park, making Morandi’s role a thing of the past. The authorities say they are simply upholding the law. “Our priority is to intervene against all illegal construction inside the park, including Morandi’s hut. We need to set an example: protect our environment by first restoring this illegal structure, and then move on with a new project which will likely be a scientific center for the spreading of environmental awareness,” La Maddalena’s National Park president Fabbrizio Fonnesu says.
1. Why did Morandi choose to live on Budelli about three decades ago?| A．Because he wanted to save the island. | B．Because he got tired of the noisy city. |
| C．Because he was attracted by its beauty. | D．Because he was going to be its caretaker. |
| A．The reconstruction work of the natural park. | B．The possible damage to the environment. |
| C．The change of the island’s ownership. | D．The loss of his hut on the island. |
| A．It is against the law. | B．It is a witness of history. |
| C．It is dangerous to live in. | D．It is a landmark of Budelli. |
| A．A research paper. | B．A guidebook. |
| C．An autobiography. | D．A news report. |
5 . Plastic fishing nets, the so-called ghost nets, abandoned yearly in the sea—about 1 million tons—are more than just rubbish; they’re a killer. Fish, sea birds, and turtles get caught in the netting and die, with more species at risk.
Much shocked at this, Pranveer Singh Rathore, a materials-science engineer and materials R&D manager at Samsung, and his team set themselves the task of giving new life to the deadly nets. Last month, Samsung revealed a new line of Galaxy products made in part from recycled plastic fishing nets for the first time. The company estimates this year alone it can recycle over 50 tons of ocean-bound plastic into the key components that will go into its smartphones, tablets, and computers, thus taking a bite out of the global ghost nets problem.
It’s no small task to give waste fishing nets a second act. The nets are typically made of a substance called nylon which tends to dramatically degrade (降解) the longer it sits in the ocean and is exposed to the sun. “This makes it nearly impossible to use abandoned fishing nets directly,” Rathore explains. Besides, high-performance smartphone, tablet, or PC has to be waterproof and can survive severe weather. The nylon in the fishing nets falls far short of that level of durability (耐用).
To deal with that problem, Samsung last summer teamed up with two partners: one to collect and transform the nets into tiny nylon pellets (颗粒) while the other to strengthen their toughness and durability. The end result: The partners hit upon an eco-friendly and high-performance plastic material that’s being used to build the component parts for its latest line of products. For example, two parts of the Galaxy S22 mobile phone—the key bracket and the inner cover—are made of these fishing-net plastic materials. Samsung aims to use even more upcycled materials in future product lines.
“That’s the hope for the globe and our mission,” Rathore smiles.
1. What does the underlined word “this” in paragraph 2 refer to?| A．Rubbish in the sea. | B．Recycling the deadly nets. |
| C．Ocean species’ extinction. | D．Ghost nets’ threat to sea life. |
| A．The low level of durability of nylon. | B．The second act of waste fishing nets. |
| C．The great difficulty in reusing ghost nets. | D．The positive comment on Samsung’s products. |
| A．They are made from tiny nylon pellets. | B．They put an end to the problem of fishing nets. |
| C．They can stand up to water and severe weather. | D．They contain materials recycled from ghost nets. |
| A．It makes plastic easier to break down. | B．It marks the shift of Samsung’s mission. |
| C．It protects the planet from choking on plastic. | D．It raises public awareness of ocean exploration. |
6 . An Ontario teen is making waves by turning old fishing gear (用具) into new treasures. Since last year, Natalie, 15, has been taking lost or thrown — away fishing nets and rope and transforming them into bracelets, rope art, mats, baskets and necklaces.
Last year, Natalie was working on an assignment for her science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) class. As part of the assignment, she learned about “ghost nets”, which are fishing nets that have been left or lost in the ocean by people who fish.
“They have huge effects on our environment. They can kill coral reefs and many animals,” said Natalie. “46 percent of the Pacific garbage is ghost gear.” The Great Pacific Garbage is a huge collection of trash floating in the Pacific Ocean between Hawaii and California.
Natalie told her mom she wanted to do something to help. She got in touch with a handful of charities, including the Sea Protection Society and Coastal Action.
After getting some shipments of ghost nets and rope from those organizations, Natalie, with the help of her family, started turning the discarded gear into new artworks. “We’ve made bracelets, rope art, mats, baskets, and we’ve made necklaces, which also use beach glass in them,” she said. Natalie then started selling the artworks online, the crafty buying and selling website.
She donated all her profits — minus a small sum of change to cover supplies— to the charities that donated fishing supplies to her. She’s also been donating all the income from her non-profit business, called Nautical Waters, to charity. Natalie said she hoped to continue her passion for ocean life, with plans to study marine biology in university.
1. How did Natalie help with ghost nets?| A．By turning them into artworks. |
| B．By collecting money from charities. |
| C．By asking support from her mother. |
| D．By selling ghost nets at a good price. |
| A．To prepare for her study in university. |
| B．To collect supplies for the artworks. |
| C．To protect coral reefs and marine animals. |
| D．To complete an assignment for her STEM class. |
| A．Waste. | B．Virtual. | C．Polluted. | D．Discovered. |
| A．Charities Make a Big Difference | B．Ghost Nets Ready for Sale |
| C．Natalie’s Passion for Ocean Treasures | D．Teen Turns Old Fishing Nets into Artworks |
7 . Deadly floods hit China’s Henan province in July, 2021. Being caught in a flood is incredibly dangerous.
●Avoid bridges that cross rapidly-moving water.
●Listen to emergency broadcasts for further instructions.
●Stay inside a car trapped by fast-moving water. Only get out if the water begins to flood the car itself, then move to the roof of the vehicle.
●
●Avoid power lines. A downed power line can cause surrounding water to become charged, leading to electrocution.
●After the flood, don’t drink or use flood water first. Use only bottled, boiled, or treated water for drinking, cooking, bathing, etc.
| A．If told to evacuate, do so. |
| B．If trapped within a flooding building, move to the highest floor. |
| C．Firstly, as little as one foot of flood water can sweep cars away, |
| D．Safely cleaning your home if it has come in contact with flood water. |
| E．Apart from that, return to your home only after local authorities have said it is safe to do so. |
| F．Flash floods are known to rip trees out of the ground, destroy buildings and cause bridges to collapse. |
| G．The after effects of the flood can be just as deadly, as it may be impossible to deliver essential supplies to the area. |
8 . Insect numbers have plunged by half in some parts of the world due to climate change and intensive agriculture, a study has found. The combined pressures of global heating and farming are driving a “substantial decline” of insects across the globe, according to UK researchers. They say we must acknowledge the threats we pose to insects, before some species are lost forever. But preserving habitat for nature could help ensure vital insects thrive.
Lead researcher, Dr Charlie Outhwaite of UCL, said losing insect populations could be harmful not only to the natural environment, but to “human health and food security particularly with losses of pollinators”. “Our findings highlight the urgency of actions to preserve natural habitats, slow the expansion of high-intensity agriculture, and cut emissions to mitigate climate change.” she added.
Plummeting populations of insects around the world have caused widespread concern. However, scientific data gives a mixed picture, with some types of insects showing drastic declines, while others are staying steady, In the latest study, the researchers pulled together data on the range and number of nearly 20,000 insect species, including bees, ants, butterflies, grasshoppers and dragonflies, at about 6,000 different locations. In areas with high-intensity agriculture and substantial warming, insect numbers have plunged by 49% and the number of different species by 27%, compared with relatively untouched places that have so far avoided the most severe impacts of climate change, according to the research, published in Nature.
But the researchers said there was some cause for hope in that setting aside areas of land for nature created a refuge for insects, which need shade to survive in hot weather. “Careful management of agricultural areas, such as preserving natural habitats near farmland, may help to ensure that vital insects can still thrive,” said Dr Tim Newbold, also of UCL.
Study researcher, Peter McCann, added: “We need to acknowledge how important insects are for the environment as a whole, and for human health and wellbeing, in order to address the threats, we pose to them before many species are lost forever.”
1. Which of the following statements is TRUE?| A．Environment and human could be affected by losing insect populations. |
| B．The losses of insects result from temperature rise or agriculture. |
| C．Protecting habitat for nature could increase various insect numbers. |
| D．Many actions have been taken to control the losses of insects. |
| A．Almost all insects suffer catastrophe. |
| B．Areas with more impacts of climate change ensure insects’ survival. |
| C．Natural lands should be set aside and saved for the survival of insects. |
| D．Nearly 20,000 insects at about 6000 places participated in the research. |
| A．Insects are important for the environment and human. |
| B．Many insect species will die out soon. |
| C．Human should be to blame for the losses of insect species. |
| D．Something should be done to preserve some insects from extinction. |
| A．A research on insects |
| B．The influence of insects on humans |
| C．Protection of insects |
| D．Climate change and farming driving insect decline |
9 . A recon study suggests that small shopping shifts can make a difference on green house gas emissions while improving your health. After analyzing the grocery purchases of more than 57,000 households, researchers found 71 percent could reduce their food carbon footprint by following three tips:
Skip the unhealthy snacks
Avoiding foods with high calorie counts and low nutritional value can reduce the total carbon footprint of household food consumption by nearly 10 percent. Items like candy, soda, and packaged snacks take more ingredients and more processing, which translates to higher environmental impacts.
Watch bulk buys
Households of one or two people may end up with food waste when they try to save money with bulk buys. Before you buy supersize, consider whether a three-pound jar of peanut butter will go bad before it’s used up.
Trim ready-made foods
One average microwave meal may not have a very large carbon footprint. But buying them regularly can add up to significant emissions because ready-made foods’ large sales volume increases their carbon emissions, the study found.
By taking the above measures, we could cut more than a quarter of emissions from household food consumption, the researchers say. Collective action can make a huge impact.
1. What is the purpose of the passage?| A．To advertise a green product. | B．To promote green shopping changes. |
| C．To convince people to buy green food. | D．To persuade readers to eat healthy diets. |
| A．A piece of cake. | B．A mini packet of butter. |
| C．Five kilograms of apples. | D．Two cups of 50-gram potato chips. |
| A．They reduce calorie intake. | B．They lead to less food waste. |
| C．they can be more economical. | D．They can lower carbon footprint. |
10 . Some yogurt containers in your grocery store might be looking a little different soon. Pure Dairy yogurt will be sold in cups made mostly of paper. Pure Dairy is a food company which specializes in making yogurt which is often sold in plastic containers. But plastic, unlike paper, can take hundreds of years to break down, leading to long-lasting waste. Now, Pure Dairy’s first-ever paper cups will replace the plastic cups previously used to hold its yogurt products.
“People have been asking for a paper cup, and we welcome this challenge to start reducing our plastic use, and to spark a conversation about how we can drive change together. I think we all have a role to play in protecting our planet.” said Hamdi Ulukaya, Pure Dairy’s founder and chief executive officer.
Pure Dairy currently produces yogurt, creamers, coffee and plant-based drinks. Many of these products already come in paper-based, recyclable packaging. But its yogurt products had always been sold in plastic. That’s why the company has spent the past two years working to create a paper cup. They wanted it to hold yogurt just as well as the plastic cups do. The paper cup is expected to hit grocery shelves at the end of this year, which is 80 percent paperboard made from renewable materials.
The new paper cup still has a thin plastic lining to maintain the quality of the product and prevent the yogurt from seeping into the packaging. Although packaging with mixed materials is often not recyclable, Pure Dairy will continue working with partners to make it happen. This group works with businesses to make their products and packaging more sustainable, meaning they want to use resources so that they will continue to be available in the future. The yogurt company says it hopes to put more sustainable packaging on shelves all over the country which will use less plastic and more paper.
1. Why will the company sell yogurt in paper containers?| A．To reduce waste. | B．To create a new packaging. |
| C．To recycle the plastic containers. | D．To specialize in making paper cups. |
| A．Share. | B．Continue. | C．Dominate. | D．Activate. |
| A．It can be recyclable. | B．It is made of plastic and paper. |
| C．It doesn’t satisfy the public’s demands. | D．It is not the joint effort of the companies. |
| A．Paper cups may replace the plastic cups. | B．A lot of paper products will be available. |
| C．A renewable material will replace yogurt. | D．The company hopes to produce more packaging. |
