1 . Research has found that using wood for construction instead of concrete and steel can reduce emissions. But Tim Searchinger at Princeton University says many of these studies are based on the false foundation that harvesting wood is carbon neutral (碳中和). “Only a small percentage of the wood gets into a timber (木料) product, and a part of that gets into a timber product that can replace concrete and steel in a building,” he says. Efficiencies vary in different countries, but large amounts of a harvested tree are left to be divided into parts, used in short-lived products like paper or burned for energy, all of which generate emissions.
In a report for the World Resources Institute, Searchinger and his colleagues have modelled how using more wood for construction would affect emissions between 2010 and 2050, accounting for the emissions from harvesting the wood. They considered various types of forests and parts of wood going towards construction. They also factored in the emissions savings from replacing concrete and steel.
Under some circumstances, the researchers found significant emissions reductions. But each case required what they considered an unrealistically high portion of the wood going towards construction, as well as rapid growth only seen in warmer places, like Brazil. In general, they found a large increase in global demand for wood would probably lead to rising emissions for decades. Accounting for emissions in this way, the researchers reported in a related paper that increasing forest harvests between 2010 and 2050 would add emissions equal to roughly 10 percent of total annual emissions.
Ali Amiri at Aalto University in Finland says the report’s conclusions about emissions from rising demand are probably correct, but the story is different for wood we already harvest. “Boosting the efficiency of current harvests and using more wood for longer-lived purposes than paper would cut emissions,” he says. “We cannot just say we should stop using wood.”
1. What is wrong with previous researches according to Searchinger?| A．They got wrong statistics. | B．They used an incorrect concept. |
| C．They included too many factors. | D．They were applied in limited countries. |
| A．The process of the new research. | B．The background of the new study. |
| C．The challenge of the new research. | D．The achievements of the new study. |
| A．When wood grows slowly. |
| B．When wood is largely used to make paper. |
| C．When wood is largely used in construction in countries like Brazil. |
| D．When wood is largely harvested in countries like Brazil. |
| A．Favorable. | B．Doubtful. | C．Critical. | D．Objective. |
2 . For Vishwanath Mallabadi from Bangalore, India, there is no such thing as a useless object or “waste”. Give him anything—abandoned metal or plastic items, old devices, dysfunctional printed circuit boards — and he’ll create art out of it.
Vishwanath’s passion is particularly relevant in the current age, where India generates more e-waste than it can recycle. From 2019 to 2020, the country generated a total of more than 1 million tonnes of e waste. Of this, only 22.7 percent was collected, taken apart and recycled. The eco-artist has upcycled and transformed nearly 200 kg of e-waste into usable products and proposes eco-art as a means to deal with waste management.
Vishwanath’s father, D M Shambhu, was a famous sculptor and painter, but he wanted his son to choose medicine and become a doctor. However, Vishwanath, who was interested in upcycling second-hand objects right from childhood, decided to pursue a BFA in Applied Art. He later went on to work in a company as a high-level administrator and retired two years ago. “In my free time and during the weekends. I used to conduct experiments in e-waste and try to develop something unique,” he recalled.
So far, the eco-artist has created more than 500 objects. These include a six-foot tall sculpture made from upcycled computer keyboard keys, and a painting inspired by Vincent Van Gogh’s The Starry Night, using upcycled resistors (电阻器) on wood. Among his other artworks are a 42×38 inch figure statue created from upcycled keyboard keys on a sun board finished with plastics, a deer made of colorful used wires, plants and flowers from computer parts, and eco jewellery from upcycled digital wrist watch parts.
“The work involves selecting the e-waste objects—the texture, shape, and colour etc, and visualising and conceptualising the final product. It might take weeks and months for sculptures. However, sustainable initiatives and upcycled art are nowadays in demand in multinational companies opting for a sustainable culture,” he said.
1. What does the author try to convey in paragraph 2?| A．The seriousness of e-waste in India. |
| B．Vishwanath’s passion for environment protection. |
| C．The achievements of waste management in India. |
| D．Vishwanath’s attitude towards dealing with e-waste. |
| A．A passionate eco-artist. | B．A private doctor. |
| C．A famous sculptor. | D．A senior manager. |
| A．The deer and the plants. | B．The sculpture and the figure statue. |
| C．The painting and the flowers. | D．The deer and the eco jewellery. |
| A．Exciting but unprofitable. | B．Creative but useless. |
| C．Demanding but worthwhile. | D．Efficient but costly. |
3 . Last summer, I was sent to take photos that could communicate the urgency of climate change in northern Canada. When I arrived at an abandoned village on Resolute Bay, I scanned the shore with my camera. Suddenly, I spotted a bear lying on the ground. It didn’t move for almost an hour. But when it finally stood up, I had to catch my breath. The bear’s once strong body was just skin and bones; every step that it took was painfully slow.
When I posted the photos on social media, I wrote, “This is what starvation may look like. I wonder whether the global population of 25, 000 polar bears would die the way this bear is dying.”
I did not say that this particular bear was killed by climate change. But news organizations around the world focused on it. The first line of the story published in National Geographic read, “This is what climate change looks like” — with “climate change” highlighted in yellow. Other news agencies even adopted more dramatic headlines.
It was estimated that my photos had been read by about 2.5 billion people around the world. But there was a problem: Most people and the news agencies didn’t recognize or misunderstood the real message I tried to send with them. Many people expressed gratitude that I’d provided shocking evidence on climate change, while others who are still trying to deny the existence of climate change charged me with spreading false information.
Perhaps I had made a mistake in not telling the full story — that I was looking for pictures that might foretell the future and that I didn’t know what had happened to this particular polar bear.
I can’t say that this bear was starving because of climate change, but I am happy that my photos have moved the conversation about climate change to the forefront, where it must remain until this problem is solved.
Until then, when I come across a scene like this one, I will again share with the world — and take pains to be sure that my intention is clear.
1. How did the author feel when the bear stood up?| A．Shocked. | B．Scared. | C．Excited. | D．Relieved. |
| A．The story. | B．The photo. | C．A starving bear. | D．Climate change. |
| A．Provide more direct evidence on climate change. |
| B．Show the link between the bear and climate change. |
| C．Warn the possible results of climate change. |
| D．Expose the false information about climate change. |
| A．To admit his mistake. | B．To clarify his true intention. |
| C．To please his readers. | D．To show off his amazing trip. |
4 . To create “Washed Up: Transforming a Trashed Landscape”. Alejandro Duran gathers plastic trash that is washed up on the beaches of Sian Karan, Mexico’s largest federally-protected reserve. The site is also a UNESCO World Heritage site.
Yet every day, plastic pollution from around the world is washed up onto its shores. These materials inspired Duran to create a series of environmental art pieces, which he re-cords with photos and videos.
Duran was born in Mexico City and is now based in Brooklyn. He said that he had been collecting materials and creating photographs for the past five years, and the work was ongoing. “The project will tell me when to stop.”
Each piece can convey a vastly different mood, from the calm greens of soda bottles to the playful rainbows of toothbrushes. “I’m making art,” said Duran. “It comes from the context and my moods. You can’t say only something dark.” The work reflects and plays with natural forms, exploring how humans influence the environment. The colorful and playful images can be much attention-grabbing. “Beauty is a hook (钩子) to attract people’s attention,” said Duran.
In addition to promoting awareness of the plastic pollution problem, Duran is also involved in educational programs and helps to organize beach clean-ups. He has also made a study of the types of products that are washed ashore in Sian Ka’an, and has identified objects from 50 different countries. Although there’s no way to know where or how these objects were dropped into the sea, their labels show the global nature of the problem.
1. What does Alejandro Duran do with the trash?| A．He moves it away. | B．He collects and burns it. |
| C．He turns it into a form of art. | D．He puts it together for people to see. |
| A．He will stop the project soon. | B．It’s hard to carry on the project. |
| C．He will go on with the project. | D．The project is important to him. |
| A．recycle the trash | B．change his career |
| C．clean up the beach | D．raise public awareness of pollution |
| A．Plastic pollution in the ocean. |
| B．An artist creating environmental art. |
| C．The global nature of the pollution problem. |
| D．Mexico’s largest federally-protected reserve. |
5 . Today, innovations (创新) to make our lives more eco-friendly can be found everywhere. There are energy-efficient automobiles, eco-friendly light bulbs, and clothes made by fashion designers using sustainable environmental practices. Industries around the world have also begun to take a serious look at how their operations affect the local and global environment.
The university of Colorado has been named one of the top green colleges and universities in the United States. This university was one of the first to start a student-led recycling program in the 1970s and today supplies students with reusable shopping bags to use both on and off campus. The entire University of Colorado also uses low flow water fixtures (设备) and has reduced water usage by 40 percent since 2002.
When it comes to going green, Warren Wilson College has been recognized in many places. The Sierra Club and The Princeton Review have named the college as one of America’s greenest colleges and universities, while the school has also received the Outstanding College Recycling Award from the Carolina Recycling Association, as well as awards from the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability (可持续性) in Higher Education(AASHE). For a small college, Warren Wilson has made enormous efforts to be an eco-friendly campus since its beginning, and today owns a campus farm, a seeding program, and an extensive recycling program. Warren Wilson was also the first college to have an LEED platinum-certified (白金认证的) residence hall, and its building services department is also 100 percent GreenSeal certified. According to College Statistics, Warren Wilson College is one of the first institutions in the United States to be almost completely self-sufficient (自给自足的) while also engaging students to incorporate sustainability into all academic programmes.
Going green efforts at Oberlin College have not gone unnoticed. Oberlin College spends 22 percent of its food budget buying food from local farmers, with most of the food raised or harvested with organic and sustainable practices. Oberlin has also stopped selling bottled water on campus and offers discounts to students who use their own storage containers when purchasing beverages and food items. Among Oberlin’s other eco-friendly accomplishments is a green graduation ceremony, which includes programmes printed on 100 percent recycled paper.
1. What do we know about the University of Colorado?| A．Its recycling program is followed by other universities. |
| B．It produces reusable shopping bags by itself. |
| C．It uses special systems to save water. |
| D．It is the most eco-friendly university. |
| A．The Princeton Review praised it for its teaching methods. |
| B．Its residence hall’s building material is platinum. |
| C．It owns a campus garden and a seeding programme. |
| D．It sustains itself almost without help from others. |
| A．grow their own food on campus | B．pay less with their own containers |
| C．help the college make its food budget | D．recycle paper at their graduation ceremony |
| A．Main idea-Comparison. | B．Opinion -Discussion-Description. |
| C．Introduction-Supporting examples. | D．Introduction-Explanation-Conclusion. |
6 . Pictures of the bird called the red siskin appear on Venezuela’s money, on products and in school books.
But the small song bird is disappearing from the wild. It has become the victim of reducing forests and hunters who want to sell their bright red feathers. That threat has brought together an international team. They hope to save the bird. The plan is to have farmers plant organic coffee plants which are covered with branches that make good nesting places for the birds.
Once found in the millions, as few as 300 red siskins remain in Venezuela. “They don’t have many years left, unless we do something right now,” said Miguel Arvelo.
Fanners who meet the project’s rules will win the right to sell their beans with “Bird Friendly” labels. They will be able to set prices for such “high quality” products that can be five times higher than legal prices set by the government.
The male siskin is valued for its red feathers and black head. Breeders cross them with yellow pet birds to create babies with colourful feathers. Protection under Venezuelan law has not prohibited hunters from catching the birds to sell on an illegal international market. Poor Venezuelan families often catch and sell the birds. The money they receive can feed their children for months, said biologist Jhonathan Miranda.
At the same time, a red siskin breeding centre is being built at a private zoo in Venezuela. There, 200 birds are expected to be born next year. Scientists keep the places where the birds live a secret to protect them from hunters. They permitted some reporters to photograph a small number of birds at one of those secret places. Twelve or more of the small, red birds flew into sight just as the sun appeared.
“It’s the first time I’ve seen so many birds together,” said Miranda. “It gives us hope.”
1. What do Miguel’s words in the third paragraph suggest?| A．The red siskins can’t live longer. | B．It is urgent to save the red siskins. |
| C．Organic coffee plants will die soon. | D．Coffee farmers do the right thing now. |
| A．To make them plant less coffee crops. | B．To increase their coffee production. |
| C．To provide red siskins with good habitats. | D．To allow some sunshine into the coffee fields. |
| A．They produce coffee beans of high quality. | B．They have a ban on their coffee planting. |
| C．They enjoy the right to feed birds with beans. | D．They can sell their coffee at a higher price. |
| A．Saving red siskins by planting coffee plants | B．Helping Venezuelans plant more coffee crops |
| C．Preserving the endangered species in Venezuela | D．Building a breeding centre for red siskins |
7 . In China, 2022 bid farewell to a series of fireworks and the scratching off of 200 million metric tons of plastic straws from the nation’s pollution stocks.
The ban comes into effect first with two items, plastic straws and single-use shopping bags, with other single-use plastics to follow. China is one of fewer than 10 nations to ban plastic straws completely. The ban aims to reduce plastic pollution while moving to biodegradable(可生物降解的) alternatives, starting with plastic straws.
But there is so mething unique that makes a plastic straw ban in China have more effect than in other countries. It isn’t the fact that it is the most populous nation. It’s that paper and polylactic acid(聚乳酸) compound straws will replace plastic ones used when people are having their favourite drink—tapioca pearl tea, also known as bubble tea.
Chinese consumers love bubble tea. These treats, often taking the place of the West’s morning coffee, are drunk through plastic straws larger and thicker than those we would recognise from McDonald’s as they must be able to adapt to the movement of the “bubbles” of tapioca pudding.
Many bubble tea chains have already been using paper straws for most of the year ahead of the first stage of the plastic ban scheduled to start in 2021. One Chinese news agency reports that while prices for biodegradable alternatives to straws and bags are more expensive, the ban has seen the market share for bio-plastics increase to an expected $7.3 billion in 2025, and a further doubling to $13.9 billion by 2030, suggesting the cost will rapidly decrease as more companies enter the market with new technologies.
1. What do we know about the ban?| A．It aims to improve plastic straws and single-use shopping bags. |
| B．It encourages paper and polylactic acid compound materials to replace all the plastics. |
| C．It begins with plastic straws and single-use shopping bags. |
| D．It will solve plastic pollution completely. |
| A．China has the largest population in the world. |
| B．Chinese people prefer plastic straws. |
| C．A large quantity of plastic straws are being used when Chinese people are having their favourite drink. |
| D．Milk tea will no longer be loved by Chinese consumers. |
| A．It will be worrying. | B．It will be promising. |
| C．It will be hopeless. | D．It will be uncertain. |
| A．Entertainment. | B．Health. |
| C．Education. | D．Environment. |
8 . You may not think it very much—a used ice cream tub on the beach, a cigarette butt in the sand. But these little pieces of litter amount to around 8.8 million tons of trash in the world’s oceans, poisoning and choking sealife, according to figures from the World Wildlife Foundation.
Now, in a set of images titled The Price Of Convenience by Waters has shown the destructive effects casual littering has on creatures. In one image called “Your convenience is their extinction”, a sea turtle’s shell is hollowed out and filled with banana skins, soda cans, and other debris.
“It is shocking the amount of trash in the oceans,” Waters, 23, said, describing his project in which he has begun a campaign to the WWF. “When you leave litter on the beach we are treating the ocean like a trash can. When you throw trash over the side of a boat, you’re treating the ocean like a trash can. And when you leave litter at a beach festival or party, it’s the same. Obviously it would be impossible to clean the oceans but I felt I had to try something.”
The turning point came as he visited Malaysia with his girlfriend last year. To his surprise, he reached the shore to find piles of trash. It was beautiful, the smell of the air, of the ocean. He had a strong feeling for it after he started researching trash in the ocean. A few months later, he came across the video of a sea turtle in obvious agony with a drinking straw stuck up its nostrils. That video inspired the first of Waters’ three images. “Sea turtles are such gentle creatures. I felt sick watching that video. Trash left on a beach by humans caused so much pain and suffering. These animals don’t have voices so we’ve got to speak up for them,” he added.
Waters has not yet received a response from WWF regarding his images. For now, he says, he is inspired to develop more and more campaigns that raise awareness of environmental concerns.
1. What does the author want to tell us with the figure from WWF?| A．How seriously the ocean has been polluted. | B．When people can take their actions. |
| C．What measures people should take. | D．Where people should throw the rubbish. |
| A．Seawater. | B．Creatures. | C．Rubbish. | D．Fruits. |
| A．Excited. | B．Anxious. | C．Shocked. | D．Disappointed. |
| A．The used ice cream tub. | B．The cigarette butt. |
| C．The banana skin. | D．The drinking straw. |
9 . In 1960, at just 26 years old. Jane Goodall was chosen to go to what is now Tanzania and study the little-known world of chimpanzees. Since then, She has received many awards and honorary degrees and become the model of some young girls.
But before Goodall was a world-renowned conservationist, she was just a kid who liked animals. She was born loving animals so people gave her diverse animal toys. Now, Goodall has received an unusual honor. She is becoming a toy — a Barbie doll with little girly clothes.
Goodall may not have expected to become a Barbie at 88 years old — but it’s not just any doll, it’s made out of recycled plastic. And the Barbie is partnering with the Jane Goodall Foundation and her Roots & Shoots program, which inspires young people to protect others, animals and the environment. The main message is “every day you live, you make an impact on the planet and you get to choose what sort of impact you make.”
Once Goodall had given a talk about protecting the world in Burundi school and a little boy of 7 came up to her and said, “If I pick out a piece of trash every day, it will make a difference, won’t it?” She said, “Yes, it will. And suppose you persuade 10 of your friends to pick up the rubbish every day.” He said, “Oh, that’s it. They could all get 10 of their friends!”
Goodall has been inspiring young people for decades, but now, newer generations will get to know Jane Goodall. “I sincerely hope that the Barbie will help kids to create more interest and fascination (吸引) in the natural world,” she said. “It doesn’t really matter if they have a career in conservation, as long as they live conservation in their daily lives.”
1. What gets young girls interested in Jane Goodall?| A．The Jane Goodall Barbie doll. |
| B．Jane Goodall’s childhood experience. |
| C．Her work with the chimpanzees. |
| D．Her research into environmental pollution. |
| A．Partnering with Jane’s Foundation. |
| B．Supporting young people in trouble. |
| C．Producing toys out of recycled plastic. |
| D．Encouraging kids to protect the planet. |
| A．People should make many friends. |
| B．Every effort can make a difference. |
| C．Everyone has a potential to succeed. |
| D．Rubbish should be dealt with regularly. |
| A．Jane Goodall is strange to new generations. |
| B．Barbie dolls will be popular in the toy market. |
| C．The spirit of Jane Goodall will inspire more people. |
| D．Conservation of nature will be the most popular career. |
10 . Erhai Lake is the second largest freshwater lake in Dali City, Yunnan Province. It’s a famous attraction, as well as Dali’s main source of drinking water.
The lake used to be seriously polluted due to the rapid development of tourism and the local economy. In 2019, the local authorities began to build environmental protection system for the lake — the Erhai Lake Ecological Corridor — to protect it from being polluted and to restore its natural ecosystem.
The project contains five parts: a 129-km road encircling the entire lake, a pipe system to stop wastewater flowing into the lake, the relocation of 1,806 households who lived within the protection area of the lake, the restoration of the lake’s wetlands and ecosystem, and the construction of experimental fields for wetland-restoration research.
By the end of 2020, the road encircling the lake had been basically completed. A 12-km section of the corridor has been open to the public for free since September 2020 for a test operation. The project, which is a public-private partnership, has a total investment of 9.8 billion yuan. Local authorities of Dali Bai Autonomous Prefecture and Dali City are the main source of public funds. The corridor is described as a “pearl necklace” surrounding the lake, with the villages located along the shore of Erhai Lake being the “pearls”. These villages will benefit from the project economically, as they will be linked and gain access to enhanced transportation and tourism around the lake.
According to staff members of the project, the lake’s water quality has already improved a lot during the construction of the corridor. More migratory birds (候鸟) fly to the lake and there is less algae (海藻) in the water. It also provides a good place to exercise and go sightseeing for both the city’s residents and tourists.
1. Why was the Erhai Lake Ecological Corridor built?| A．To treat wastewater. | B．To protect wildlife. |
| C．To attract more tourists. | D．To preserve local ecology. |
| A．Removing wastewater from Erhai Lake. |
| B．Conducting research into wetland restoration. |
| C．Encouraging residents to settle around Erhai. |
| D．Promoting construction in the protection area. |
| A．They focus on the pearl industry. | B．They provide tourism opportunities. |
| C．They bring benefits to the Erhai Lake. | D．They profit from the Erhai Lake Ecological Corridor. |
| A．It needs improving. | B．It works unexpectedly. |
| C．It turns out to be good. | D．It has advantages and disadvantages. |
