1 . Nowadays, with the popularity of modern traffic and modern communication means, our world is becoming much smaller. Thus our life today is much easier than it was hundreds of years ago, but meanwhile it has brought new problems, the biggest one of which is pollution. For a long time ever since, man has been polluting the earth. The more people, the more pollution.
To pollute means to make things dirty. Pollution comes in many ways. We see it, smell it, drink it and even hear it. Many years ago, the problem was not so serious because there were not so many people. When the land was used up or the river was dirty in one place, man moved to another place. But this is no longer true. Man is now slowly polluting the whole world.
Air pollution is still the most serious. It’s bad for all living things in the world, but it is not the only one kind of pollution. Water pollution kills our fish and pollutes our drinking water. Noise pollution makes us angry more easily.
Many countries are making rules to fight pollution. They stop people from burning coal in houses and factories in the city, and from putting dirty smoke into the air. Pollution by SO2 is now the most dangerous kind of air pollution. It is caused by heavy traffic. We are sure that if there are fewer people driving, there will be less air pollution.
The earth is our home. We must take care of it. That means keeping the land, water and air clean. And we must take care of the rise in pollution at the same time.
1. What is the reason for the world to become much smaller?| A．The rise in pollution. | B．Science and technology development. |
| C．The earth is being polluted day and night. | D．The earth is blown away by the wind every year. |
| A．Air pollution. | B．Rubbish pollution. |
| C．Noise pollution. | D．Water pollution. |
| A．It makes much noise. | B．It makes us angry more easily. |
| C．It makes our rivers and lakes dirty. | D．It’s bad for all living things in the world. |
| A．Supportive. | B．Critical. | C．Doubtful. | D．Indifferent. |
2 . New Zealand’s government recently announced it will help pay for poorer families to replace their old cars with cleaner hybrid(混合动力的)or electric vehicles. The government said it plans to spend $357 million on the test program.
The move is part of a wider plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Greenhouse gases are believed to cause warming temperatures in the Earth’s atmosphere. New Zealand plans to provide aid for businesses to reduce emissions and have buses that run on environmentally safe fuel by 2035. The government also plans to provide food-waste collection for most homes by 2030.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardem said in a statement, “We’ve all seen the recent reports on sea level rise and its influence right here in New Zealand. We cannot leave the issue of climate change until it’s too late to fix.” The plan is a step toward New Zealand’s stated goal of reaching net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.
Reaching net-zero emissions means not creating more carbon in the atmosphere than oceans and forests can remove. Ardern said that reducing dependence on traditional fuels would help protect families from extreme price increases. The plan also sets a goal of reducing total car travel by 20 percent over the next 13 years. The programs will be paid for from a $2.8 billion climate emergency response fund.
Officials said that over time, money collected from polluters would pay for the programs rather than taxes from families. Some critics of the plan say it continued to be less restrictive on New Zealand’s huge agriculture industry. Agriculture creates more than half of the nation’s total greenhouse gas emissions. But the industry is also important to the economy as the nation’s biggest export earner.
David Seymour is the leader of New Zealand’s ACT political party. He said that some of the announced programs are proven to be ineffective and have been tried and failed overseas. Seymour added that people should be able to choose how they reduce emissions through the market-basedd emissions trading plan.
1. Which of the following is NOT New Zealand planning to do?| A．Buy cars for poor families. | B．Offer assistance to business. |
| C．Use environmentally safe fuels. | D．Spend money on the test program. |
| A．Setting aside the problem. | B．Realizing the stated goal. |
| C．Addressing the issue early. | D．Decreasing dependence on traditional fuels. |
| A．New Zealand aims to control carbon emissions. |
| B．The move has a goal of reducing the use of buses. |
| C．Achieving net-zero emissions means creating no carbon. |
| D．Agriculture makes less importance in the nation’s economy. |
| A．Negative. | B．Objective. | C．Favorable | D．Unconcerned. |
3 . It is late autumn—millions of gardeners across the northern hemisphere, pulled on their thickest sweaters, spent hours clearing large piles of leaves and packed them into plastic bags at the end of driveways.
In the US alone, nearly 10 million tonnes of garden waste go to landfill every year. That is a large amount of effort, not just from an environmental viewpoint but from that of our aching backs, too. So where does this advice come from? Well, it largely comes from the belief that thick fallen leaves can make plants under them unable to breathe, especially shorter grass. They shut down important photosynthesis (光合作用) and get in the way of the growth of the shorter grass. However, this received wisdom has recently been questioned by researchers at Wisconsin University.
The key finding of their new research was that although clearing fallen leaves is one of the most common gardening practices, it makes very little sense. In natural ecosystems, fallen leaves help return nutrients necessary for healthy plant growth to the soil, which greatly improves soil condition. Removing leaves year after year breaks this ecological (生态的) balance. Letting some leaves stick around to cover your garden is a great way to help your grass and the local ecosystem.
They further explained that if up to 50percent of your grass lawn (草坪) is covered by fallen leaves, you might as well go back indoors and put your feet up. The advantages of this light leaf coverage far outweigh the disadvantages—the leaves will quickly break down and help next year’s lawn grow far better than if you had cleared them. Only at over 50 percent coverage do the Wisconsin researchers recommend clearing.
So why not consider leaving the leaves? Save time, carbon and effort, and in exchange get a healthier lawn from this garden waste—that seems like a pretty good deal. And how many plastic bags could be saved by simply not binning fallen leaves every year? In the US alone, about 700 million.
1. What does the author describe in paragraph 1?| A．An amazing autumn game. | B．A common sight in gardens. |
| C．A hot attraction in the north. | D．An extreme weather event. |
| A．Fallen leaves need not be cleared. |
| B．Fallen leaves protect shorter grass. |
| C．Fallen leaves block photosynthesis. |
| D．Fallen leaves are hard to break down. |
| A．it ruins city image | B．it breaks gardening rules |
| C．it affects local economy | D．it causes ecological damage |
| A．Doubtful. | B．Positive. | C．Unclear. | D．Worried. |
4 . Having been born along the shores of Lake Victoria, the largest lake in Africa, Rahmina Paulette said she has witnessed firsthand the effects of climate change leading to great difficulties like drought and floods.
The 15-year-old Kenyan teenager said East Africa is highly dependent on Lake Victoria, but high pollution has led to poisoning of the water, soil erosion and health problems in people living around the lake.
As Paulette grew older, she realized she was slowly turning from being a witness to a victim of lake degradation. So, she decided to take action and save the lake in her own little way.
“Being an Indigenous person from Lake Victoria, I would like to help restore the ecosystem for my community that has an ancestral connection to the lake and also for the future generations to enjoy the cool breeze, good smells and see the biodiversity within Lake Victoria,” Paulette said.
In her efforts to end pollution in the lake, Paulette started an environmental organization called Kisumu Environmental Champions.
The young environmental champions carry out their activities during the weekends, and the group focuses on environmental conservation, climate change awareness and wildlife conservation.
The group, with about 200 members so far, has taken up the removal of the invasive plant hyacinth from the lake to make eco-friendly products. This project has earned Paulette international recognition. The group has made furniture, paper, cards, folders, document holders, bags and carton boxes from the water hyacinth.
With help from her mother, Paulette is trying to increase activities as she urges all Kenyans to incorporate eco-friendly ways in their day-to-day lives.
Apart from activists like Paulette, other organizations are casting the net wider in their attempt to save the lake. One such group is nonprofit Osienala in western Kenya. The organization has been cooperating with international partners such as those from China to save Lake Victoria.
1. What causes the problems of Lake Victoria?| A．Soil erosion. | B．Drought and flood. |
| C．Poisoning water. | D．Climate change and pollution. |
| A．Disappearance. | B．Expansion. | C．Damage. | D．Restoration. |
| A．By planting more hyacinths. | B．By removing the hyacinths with her mother. |
| C．By building a factory to make products. | D．By setting up an organization. |
| A．It casts some nets over the lake. | B．It makes money while protecting the lake. |
| C．It seeks foreign cooperation to save the lake. | D．It’s another organization founded by Paulette. |
5 . The government's top Great Barrier Reef scientist says a third mass coral bleaching (珊瑚白化) event in five years is a clear signal that the marine wonder is “calling for urgent help on climate change. Corals can recover from mild bleaching, but severe bleaching can kill corals.
Prof Terry Hughes, director of the Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies at James Cook University, surveyed 1,036 reefs from a plane over nine days in late March.
The marine park authority also had an observer on the flights. The survey has released maps showing that serious levels of bleaching occurred in 2020 in all three sections of the reef northern, central and southern. Some 25% of the reefs were seriously bleached-meaning that more than 60% of the corals on each reef had bleached.
The Great Barrier Reel has experienced five mass bleaching events-1998. 2002,2016, 2017 and 2020 -all caused by rising ocean temperatures driven by global heating. Hughes said there probably would not be the same level of coral death in the north and central regions in 2020 as in previous years, but this was partly because previous bleaching outbreaks had kill off the less heat -tolerant species The 2020 bleaching was second only to 2016 for severity(严重性), Hughes said.
Dr. David Wachenfeld，chief scientist at the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, told Guardian Australia "My greatest fear is that people will lose hope for the reef. Without hope there's no action. People need to see these bleaching events, They are clear signals that the Great Barrier Reef is alling for urgent help and for us to do everything we can”.
Measures to improve the ability of recovery of the reef include improving water quality, controlling outbreaks of coral-eating starfish, and research and development to improve the heat tolerance of corals. " However, climate change brings a new scale of impact unlike anything we have seen before. Thus, dealing with the climate problem is the basis for everything else to work, ” Wachenfeld said.
1. What does the underlined word “mild” in Paragraph 1 probably mean?| A．Serious |
| B．Strong. |
| C．Steady. |
| D．Slight. |
| A．The majority of the corals on each reef were bleached. |
| B．The survey was carried out on a plane by Hughes alone. |
| C．The 2020 bleaching killed off the less heat tolerant species. |
| D．The 2020 bleaching was worse than those of all the previous years. |
| A．have done everything they can for the reef |
| B．are sure to lose hope for the reef |
| C．will care more about the reef |
| D．will have no action at all |
| A．Improving water quality. |
| B．Making efforts to prevent global warming. |
| C．controlling outbreaks of coral-eating starfish., |
| D．Doing research on the heat tolerance of corals. |
6 . Men’s consumption habits are worse for the planet than women’s, according to a new study. For the study, consumption-based greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions were measured for the average individual, the average single male, and the average single woman. These were 6, 9, 10, and 8.5 tonnes per capita per year respectively, and more than half of those amounts were due to food, holidays, and furnishings.
What’s interesting is that single men and women spend similar amounts of money on consumer goods, but men’s choices lead to 16% more GHG emissions than women’s. That is because they choose to spend money on things like cars and driving, rather than taking public transportation or trains, as women are more willing to do. More of men’s money goes toward alcohol, tobacco, and eating out, while women often spend money on clothes, home furnishings, and health-based purchases.
Curiously, there were no differences in the carbon footprints of men’s and women’s diets. While men tend to eat more meat, women make up for that in dairy products, which are also carbon-intensive foods.
Lead study author Mannikin Okayama says she wasn’t surprised by the findings because previous research had showed similar differences between single men and women regarding energy use. Instead, she expressed surprise at the fact that more studies haven’t been done on gender differences in environmental impact. “There are quite clear differences and they are not likely to go away in the near future.”
The purpose of the study was to examine where individuals could make changes to their consumption habits in order to shrink their carbon footprints. The researchers looked for ways that would require minimal additional spending, so as to be more accessible to a greater number of people. They found that only switching to plant-based diets and train-based holidays can reduce emissions by 40%.
Policy-makers would do well to pay attention to this if they want to get serious in the fight against global warming.
1. What do single men and single women have in common?| A．They take public transportation. | B．They choose carbon-intensive foods. |
| C．They spend money on the same things. | D．They are concerned about climate change. |
| A．Men seldom show interest in dairy products. |
| B．Single men and women are different in energy use. |
| C．The gender differences had existed for such a long time. |
| D．Lack of findings in gender differences in climate change. |
| A．Gender differences have long existed. | B．Global warming is getting much worse. |
| C．Reducing carbon emission is not so difficult. | D．Consumption habits vary from person to person. |
| A．The measures to reduce carbon emissions. |
| B．The new data about greenhouse gas emissions. |
| C．The consuming differences between single men and women. |
| D．The link between consumption habits and carbon footprints. |
7 . More than one million single-use straws (吸管), most of them plastic, are used in the United States each day. They end up in waterways, harm sea animals, and break down into micro-plastics. Quantities of places have passed plastic-straw bans as a way to start handling the global plastic waste problem.
Straw materials: advantages and disadvantages
1. Metal
Made of stainless steel, aluminum, or even titanium, metal straws have become popular. They draw some criticism for having a metallic taste and conducting heat from a hot drink, but they’re strong and can be reused.
2. Paper
Paper drinking straws, which date from the late 1800s, often absorb liquid over time and can leave a taste or fibers in drinks. They’re the most popular throwaway choice in places with plastic-straw bans.
3. Glass
Though glass straws may be more breakable and thus less portable than reusable straws of other materials, they hold up well to washing and reuse. Some straws are made to look artistic, with colors and blown-glass designs.
4. Bamboo
This natural material can be sustainably produced and is a plant-based replacement of plastic straws. Bamboo straws are easily disposed of and turned into fertilizer. They are reusable but can be hard to clean completely and may absorb flavors.
1. What is the major problem with plastic straws?| A．Function. | B．Flavor. |
| C．Weight. | D．Pollution. |
| A．Metal straw. | B．Paper straw. |
| C．Glass straw. | D．Bamboo straw. |
| A．It can become fertilizer. | B．It is easy to clean. |
| C．It is portable and bendable. | D．It has different designs. |
8 . Have you always wanted to make your lifestyle more sustainable? Here are a few tips that community activists, zero-waste experts and eco-friendly shop owners recommend specifically for the pandemic (疫情) .
Start with your own mask
Still using disposable (一次性的) masks or N95s? Hoiyin Ip, an environmental activist in Orange County, suggests you transition to a cloth mask that you can wash along with the rest of your laundry. They are reusable, sustainable and generally more comfortable too.
Eat smart
You may be tired of your own cooking and eating at home. When ordering takeout, Ip suggests asking the restaurant to keep its plastic cutlery (餐具).“Before you walk away with your to-go bag, check, look into your bag to see if you have this stuff, and give it back to the restaurant,”Ip said.
Electronic waste
Once your electronic device has worn out, recycle it. Battery collections in California are down a third compared to last year, he said, because many collection spots have closed or reduced hours. He advises collecting old batteries in a bag and recycling them at a drop-off location near you.
Buy in bulk
Environmental advocate Monica Campagna is creatively adapting by purchasing large quantities of her essentials — like rice, pasta and cereal — and refilling a reusable container at home. While she doesn’t get rid of disposables altogether, buying in bulk avoids lots of small plastic bags, and the bigger bags can be reused.
1. Why does Hoiyin Ip suggest using cloth masks?| A．Generally, there is no need to wash. |
| B．You can spend little money on them. |
| C．They are sustainable and more comfortable. |
| D．They’re strong enough to reuse for a long time. |
| A．Walk away with your to-go bag. |
| B．Don’t take away the restaurant’s cutlery. |
| C．Do your best to cook and eat at home. |
| D．Order takeout to avoid waste. |
| A．still use disposable masks or N95s |
| B．usually go to the restaurant to eat |
| C．throw old batteries into dustbins |
| D．purchase large quantities of your essentials |
We as individuals can also reduce our “carbon footprint” by
10 . Bees are essential for the pollination of flowers, fruits and vegetables. Sadly, over the past 15 years, the global population of the hardworking insects has been dropping worldwide at alarming rates due to loss of food and habitat. Now, Dutch cities are coming up with creative ideas to help stem the population decrease of these all-important insects.
In Amsterdam, bees can live for free in specially built “hotels” — tall wooden structures — across the city. While they may not look like much to the untrained eye, they provide perfect homes for members of the over 200 known species of solitary bees. As the name indicates, the insects spend their lives alone. The smart insects nest inside holes like the ones provided by the insect hotels, marking their occupancy by covering the entrance with a mud “door”. Though unable to produce honey, solitary bees are excellent pollinators and perform an essential role in many ecosystems.
Additionally, city officials are also educating people on the use of harmful chemicals and are providing prize money to encourage developers to build green roofs and populate them with local plants. In 2015, they set a goal to change some plants in public green spaces to native plants. Geert, one of eight ecologists working for the city, says, “Our idea is when we design a park, we use native species but also the species that give a lot of flowering and fruit for bees.” Many people, with help from the government, are replacing the sidewalks outside their homes with small gardens featuring flowers.
In Utrecht, bus stop roofs are gradually being turned into beautiful, living gardens designed to attract varieties of bee species. The green roofs, which naturally collect both rainwater and dust, are also beneficial for the environment.
These cities’ collective efforts seem to be working. A recent study found that the variety of bee species there has increased by an astonishing 45 percent since 2000.
1. What does the underlined word “stem” in Paragraph 1 probably mean?| A．Review . | B．Stop. | C．Monitor. | D．Improve. |
| A．They’re not social insects. |
| B．They make high-quality honey. |
| C．They like to nest together in woods. |
| D．They’re scared of other species of bees. |
| A．Collect rainwater for future use. |
| B．Plant flowers for enjoyment. |
| C．Draw bees to them. |
| D．Clear dust away. |
| A．Protecting the environment. |
| B．Importance of bees in ecosystems. |
| C．Design ideas of insect hotels and bee stops. |
| D．Dutch cities’ attempts to restore bee population. |
