1 . Wildfire season has begun in many places around the world. The dangerous smoke wildfires produce can spread far and wide. It blocks sunlight, poisons the air and damages the health of people and other living things.
Some of those living things could be the plants in gardens, says gardening expert Jessica Damiano, who writes gardening stories for the Associated Press. Damiano lives in New York City and recently experienced several days of very smoky air. Wildfires in eastern Canada were the source.
Damiano, like other people, limited the time she spent outdoors when the air quality was poor. She also wore a face covering when she had to go outside.
But the plants in her garden had no such escape. They had to breathe the poisoned air through the extremely small holes in their leaves.
Pollutants in smoke landing on plants can block sunlight, which is essential for photosynthesis (光合作用). Reduced photosynthesis results in reduced energy. That means slower growth. Additionally, smoke can also affect a plant’s ability to take in nutrients(营养物质).
Brooke Edmunds, a plant scientist and community horticulturalist with Oregon State University Extension, said plants that are affected by smoke for a short amount of time will usually recover quickly. “It depends on how close they are,” she said. “There could also be a localized effect, where one garden is covered in ash(灰烬), and a half-mile away, there’s nothing because that’s the way the wind was moving things around.”
The best thing home gardeners can do is keep an eye on plants. Edmunds suggests giving plants some extra love and care. “Wash the plants gently to remove pollutants left by smoke. Then give them a long, slow drink of water. Most will pull through,” Edmunds said. However, people should not use leaf blower machines to remove ashes from plants because they will risk breathing in what is blowing around.
1. What happened to Jessica Damiano?| A．She had her house burned in a fire. |
| B．She couldn’t afford face coverings. |
| C．She suffered from health problems. |
| D．She had to deal with poor air quality. |
| A．The bad effects of smoke on plants. |
| B．The benefits of growing plants. |
| C．The role of plants in the environment. |
| D．The importance of water to plants. |
| A．Wind has little effect on plants. |
| B．Plants can sometimes make a quick recovery. |
| C．Ashes can spread more than half a mile. |
| D．Plants close to smoke usually grow well. |
| A．By pulling them out of the ground. |
| B．By using leaf blower machines. |
| C．By washing them with great care. |
| D．By giving them a fast drink of water. |
2 . Parks are the beating hearts of cities, providing crucial environments for wildlife of many sizes as well as areas of rest and recreation for local citizens. Accessible via public transport, and located near a university, a stadium and the National Library, Warsaw’s Pole Mokotowskie Park provides green space for many people.
One of the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s five pathways to transformative change for water management is to restore species population, ecosystems and the benefits that nature provides to people by using each city’s advantage. As more urban centres seek new ways to unite greenery into the built environment, projects of all sizes and stages add to essential corridors and stopping points for a range of wildlife.
Tasked with improving Warsaw’s Pole Mokotowskie Park’s natural sustainability, architecture company WXCA looked at ways of enhancing the elements that were already in place to better support wildlife. One of the most visible means was the removal of thousands of square metres of concrete (混凝土). Removing concrete in and around ponds and other waterways allows the city’s features to shape themselves naturally, in reaction to both the surrounding environment and the weather. Doing so can support biodiversity by removing artificial constraints and flows. More than 13,000 square metres of concrete has already been removed, with more removal planned over the next year.
For the human users of the park, the designers created education, activity, and art spaces. The Grand Salon, a grassland surrounded by trees, is for large public gatherings, and a handful of pavilions (亭) spread throughout the space provide visible means of monitoring the quality of the air and water. They also contribute to the park’s ecosystem through rainwater harvesting. As the temperature consistently rises, city planners are using the leaves and branches of the plants and mixed use designs to reduce heat islands, improve air quality and prevent urban runoff.
1. What do we know about Warsaw’s Pole Mokotowskie Park?| A．It creates a new way to the city center. |
| B．It serves different community groups. |
| C．It reminds the public to protect the environment. |
| D．It shows the locals are living happily. |
| A．Providing stages to show off creativity. | B．Taking advantage of the city’s resources. |
| C．Encouraging people to get close to nature. | D．Supplying various wildlife with more room. |
| A．Limits. | B．Factors. | C．Methods. | D．Damages. |
| A．By offering some shelters. | B．By collecting rainwater. |
| C．By monitoring the air quality. | D．By reducing high temperature. |
3 . Gardeners who use pesticides are contributing to the decline of British songbirds, a study suggests. Scientists have urged people to stop “spraying their gardens with poisons” in order to halt bird decline and adopt instead wildlife-friendly practices. The results of the University of Sussex study, which researchers call the first of its kind, were published in the journal Science of the Total Environment.
The experiment, which surveyed 615 gardens in Britain, found 25% fewer house sparrows when glyphosate (草甘膦) was used regularly. This is an ingredient found in commonly used herbicide (除草剂) brands such as Roundup or Gallup. Slug pellets (鼻涕虫杀虫剂) also seemed to have an impact on bird sightings; in gardens where Slug pellets were used, house sparrow numbers were down by almost 40%.
Prof. Dave Goulson, of the school of life sciences at the University of Sussex, said, “The UK has 22 million gardens, which collectively could be a fantastic refuge for wildlife, but not if they are overly tidy and sprayed with poisons. We just don’t need pesticides in our gardens. Many towns around the world are now pesticide free. We should simply ban the use of these poisons in urban areas, following the example of France.” The Royal Horticultural Society, the UK’s leading gardening charity, said the use of pesticides and herbicides should be avoided if possible and they should only be used, if ever, in small and targeted applications.
The research also found that those who adopted wildlife-friendly practices such as planting native shrubs and flowers, or digging a wildlife pond, saw more birds than those who did not. Cannelle Tassin de Montaigu, a PhD researcher within the school of life sciences and an author of the study, said, “It’s encouraging to find that simple measures, such as planting native shrubs and trees and creating a pond, together with avoiding the use of pesticides, really make a measurable difference to the number of birds you will see in your garden.”
1. What does the underlined word “halt” in paragraph 1 most probably mean?| A．Stop. | B．Attract. | C．Note. | D．Witness. |
| A．To reveal the severe influence of pesticides on birds. |
| B．To compare the effects of two kinds of pesticides. |
| C．To convince readers of the importance of house sparrows. |
| D．To help gardeners choose the proper pesticides. |
| A．The ideal places for wildlife in the UK are extremely tidy gardens. |
| B．The gardens in the UK are so tidy that pesticides are not needed. |
| C．Pesticides should be prohibited from use throughout the UK. |
| D．Some countries like France have made urban areas pesticide free. |
| A．Alternative methods to keep gardens tidy. |
| B．Assistant ways to increase the number of birds. |
| C．Gardeners’ attitudes towards the experiment. |
| D．Other researchers’ interest in the experiment. |
4 . Flying someone one-way from London to New York City produces a lot of climate-warming greenhouse gas. But there is a new way to cut the climate influence of flying. Most planes crossing the Atlantic Ocean follow one of several fixed paths that are widely spaced. “Instead of having these fixed tracks which keep the planes apart, airlines can fly much more flexible routes (灵活的路线),” says Cathie Wells. She is a PhD student in mathematics.
The aviation industry knows it has a high carbon footprint (碳排放量). To reduce that footprint, some people share their ideas. For instance, experts could redesign planes. Or airlines could choose fuels (燃料)from renewable sources, such as plants. But it takes decades and many billions of dollars to design, test and fly new planes and try new fuels.
Taking more flexible routes, in contrast, can cut costs and energy right away. “Reducing fuel use is a win-win solution,” says Irene Dedoussi, who works at Delft University of Technology. It allows the aviation industry to save money on fuels while reducing carbon footprints. “Even savings of just one or two percent are generally considered important. Using something so simple to cut fuel use by one sixth is huge,” she said. Before that can happen, however, Wells needs to make a few changes. The researchers of her team will have to work out the best flight paths that consider scheduling issues.
National Air Traffic Services (NATS) provides air-traffic control for the United Kingdom. It invited Wells to describe her new findings. Just one week after her team’s new study was published, NATS said it would change its flight-paths system. For now, NATS will be working with airlines to allow them to choose routes that would best limit their fuel use.
1. What is Cathie Wells’ way to cut the climate influence of flying?| A．Making changes to flight paths. |
| B．Changing the design of planes. |
| C．Using environment-friendly fuels. |
| D．Improving the pilots’ driving skills. |
| A．They require dangerous experiments. |
| B．They are not supported by the public. |
| C．They take a lot of time and can be costly. |
| D．They are unable to reduce carbon footprints to the lowest. |
| A．It brings better service to passengers. |
| B．It is helpful in reducing traffic jams. |
| C．It has little influence on the aviation industry. |
| D．It has big advantages but needs careful consideration. |
| A．A solution to traffic problems. |
| B．The growing interest in the study of planes. |
| C．The influence of air travel on the environment. |
| D．A new way to make future air travel greener. |
5 . We eat plants and juice them, and now it seems we can mine them too!
After a successful experiment on the island of Borneo, the botany professor Alan Baker and a group of researchers want to introduce phytomining (harvesting minerals from plants) as a better and partial substitute (代替物) for traditional mining.
Phytomining means collecting metals from live plants. However, this can only be done with a group of plants known as “hyperaccumulators (超富集植物)”. There are around 700 identified types worldwide, and what makes these hyperaccumulators special is that they naturally attract and absorb minerals through their roots — metals poisonous to other plants — and then store huge and pure concentrations of these minerals in their bodies. The metals can then be extracted from the plants’ sap (汁), oil, or sometimes even live tissue.
Baker and his colleagues see a lot of potential in phytomining. Not only can it help meet the growing global demand for metals, but it is a way of reducing some of that damage to the environment caused by traditional mining.
One of the biggest problems with traditional mining is that it pollutes the surrounding area. Phytomining can extract metal waste, plus planting the hyperaccumulators would regrow the deforested areas caused by mining operations. Aside from this, if phytomining is able to replace part of traditional mining, then there will be fewer instances of bad mining practices like abandoned mines, which pollute the nearby waters. Also, since phytomining provides metals that are already naturally pure, there is no need to use huge amounts of energy to purify them.
Phytomining has its drawbacks. Harvesting plants on a large scale is expensive today, compared to traditional mining. Besides, plants can be wiped out by diseases or unexpected weather conditions.
However, there are many reasons to consider phytomining. After all, we need to make sure that our planet can exist persistently and sustainable practices like phytomining give us the hope that our advancement doesn’t mean sacrificing Mother Earth.
1. What makes hyperaccumulators different from other plants?| A．The sap poisonous to other plants. |
| B．The oil extracted from live plant tissue. |
| C．The ability to take in and store minerals. |
| D．The concentrations of minerals in their bodies. |
| A．It can stop deforestation. |
| B．It can’t be destroyed by diseases. |
| C．It may reduce the deserted mines. |
| D．It uses clean energy to purify metals. |
| A．Pessimistic. | B．Supportive. |
| C．Indifferent. | D．Skeptical. |
| A．Metals From Plants. |
| B．Benefits of Phytomining. |
| C．The Future of Phytomining. |
| D．What Are Hyperaccumulators? |
6 . The old man Antonio Vicente has spent over four decades of his life fighting against the trend. As Brazilian landowners cut down rainforest to make room for profitable plantations (种植园) and grasslands, he struggled to bring the jungles of his childhood back to life.
“When I was a child, the farmers cut down the trees to make grasslands, and the water dried up and did not come back,” he says, “I thought: Water is valuable; no one makes water and the population will not stop growing. What is going to happen? We are going to run out of water.”
With only some donkeys and a small team of hired workers, Antonio Vicente set about bringing back the forest. What started out as a weekend hobby soon became a permanent way of life, and Antonio recalls often spending whole days and nights in his young jungle, surrounded by rats and foxes, and eating banana sandwiches for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Over the last 40 years, he has planted an estimated 50,000 trees on his 31 hectare land, which now make up a small but unique area of rainforest, and a haven for wildlife.
As the forest grew, the water returned, and Antonio says that there are now over 20 water sources on his land that were no longer there when he bought it. Then the animals started making a home there. Today, the forest is alive with the sounds of birds and insects living there, and more species settle in every year. “There are all kinds of birds, squirrels, lizards, and even the boars are returning,” Antonio says. “If you ask me who my family are, I would say all this right here, each one of these that I planted from a seed.”
1. What do we learn about the Brazilian farmers?| A．They focused on short-term profit. |
| B．They wasted much water on farming. |
| C．They cared much about the environment. |
| D．They relied heavily on rainforest for a living. |
| A．Overpopulation. | B．Polluted water. |
| C．Loss of grasslands. | D．Water shortage. |
| A．Trap. | B．Disaster. |
| C．Shelter. | D．Balance. |
| A．His thanks for his family. |
| B．His affection for his forest. |
| C．His deep love for animals. |
| D．His pride as a successful peasant. |
THE BEST JOB IN THE WORLD
How would you like to spend six months living on an island and looking after the Great Barrier Reef? The working hours are flexible and accommodation is provided. Key duties include exploring the islands of the reef and finding out what the area has to offer. You’ll need to report back via weekly blogs, photo diaries and video updates. You’ll also be asked to promote the islands through newspapers, magazines and TV interviews.
It was actually a very clever means to highlight the importance of the Great Barrier Reef and the need to protect it.
About the size of Japan, it even can be seen from outer space. More than 25 million years old, the Great Barrier Reef is made up of living coral growing on dead coral. It is host to many species of birds and sea creatures. But this unique and delicate place is now under threat from pollution and climate change.
To get this job, the candidates had to make a short video showing how much they knew about the reef. They also needed to prove why they were the best person to do the job. Out of the thousands of applicants, eleven were selected, including a young woman from China. Eventually, the job was offered to Ben Southall from the UK.
In addition to blogging, taking photos and writing articles about the reef, he made a number of appearances on television to argue in favour of its defence. He also worked as a presenter for the National Geographic Channel, before going on to write a book about his experiences. Ben later joked that the job should have been advertised not as the “best”, but the “busiest job in the world”!
The most important thing was that people all over the world became aware of the beauty of the ocean in the area. What’s more, they came to understand the delicate balance that the environment exists in and what can, and must, be done to protect the reef. That way, it will remain a safe habitat for wildlife, as well as a dream destination for the millions of tourists who visit it each year.
1. What’s the purpose of the job advertisement?| A．To protect the Great Barrier Reef. | B．To build the Great Barrier Reef more beautifully. |
| C．To attract more candidates. | D．To attract more tourists to travel in Australia. |
| A．Lack of tourists. | B．Natural disasters. |
| C．Pollution and climate change. | D．Disappearing of the islands. |
| A．He took photos and wrote articles about the reef. | B．He appeared on television many times. |
| C．He worked as a host for one channel. | D．He told jokes on TV. |
8 . Rob Greenfield is an American. He describes himself as an adventurer and an activist. He really cares about the world and its environment and is always looking for ways to inspire people to keep the world healthy. One of his most recent activities was to help people become more aware of the amount of trash they produce. He called this activity “Trash Me”.
We usually place our trash in a large plastic bag. When the bag is full, we tie it up and place it somewhere with everyone else’s trash. Like magic, it disappears and we have no idea what happens to it. Maybe we never think about it. Rob learnt that most Americans create about two kilos of trash each day. If we could reduce this amount, there would be a huge benefit to our environment. But how do you make people aware of this? He had an unusual idea. He changed himself to wear every piece of trash he created over thirty days. Multiply two kilos of trash by 30 days in a month, and you have around 60 kilos of additional weight to carry around! He made a suit that would enable him to do this and began walking the streets of New York.
“I noticed that no one has any idea how much waste they are creating.” People would see Rob walking around and be curious about what he was doing. With every explanation, he hoped to get at least one more person to think about the waste they were creating.
Rob lives a near zero waste lifestyle outside of Trash Me. In the high-consumption world that we live in today, this may seem unreasonable but Rob believes that with the right mindset it is possible to create far less waste and live a healthier life. Reduce, reuse, recycle, and refuse on a regular basis. Your small efforts will go a long way.
1. What do we know about Rob Greenfield?| A．He works as a local cleaner. |
| B．He can perform magic with trash. |
| C．He is an environmental advocator. |
| D．He creates works of art with trash. |
| A．Americans make large amounts of trash. |
| B．Trash affects people’s normal daily life. |
| C．Trash can be recycled in a specific way. |
| D．Americans know little about trash. |
| A．Recycling trash for clothes. |
| B．Collecting waste across America. |
| C．Producing environment-friendly bags. |
| D．Walking in the street with a trash-made suit. |
| A．They were doubtful about it. | B．They were frightened by it. |
| C．They were interested in it. | D．They were moved by it. |
9 . Farmer Pak Sadiman has made it his task to raise awareness and do something about Central Java’s water shortage problem, little by little.
He has changed his dry village into a groundwater haven by planting trees on nearby land for the last 19 years, and he’s encouraging others to join in, too.
Sadiman realised that the land was in need of some water when the Gendol River—previously the source of water for villagers—was quickly drying up. Even rubber trees, the local people’s main source of income, were so dry that they could no longer produce rubber latex. It was then that Sadiman took action so that generations to come could benefit from the planted trees.
“Banyan trees, unlike rubber trees, can keep groundwater. The more banyan trees are planted, the more clean water villagers will get,” he thought. Although he would often find his seeds dug up by cattle, the farmer never became discouraged from achieving his goal—providing his village with a clean water source.
He’s planted at least 11,000 trees over the last 19 years, and his village seems to have escaped from the dry season. Villagers have joined in Sadiman’s efforts and given him free seeds or worked alongside him to plant the trees. “Pak Sadiman is our hero. This village used to fight with water shortage, but now we have enough water because of him,” the local chief said.
Sadiman said as long as he’s physically healthy and fit, he’ll continue to plant trees and finish his vision of avoiding drought and help provide clean water for his fellow villagers.
1. What problem did Pak Sadiman plan to solve?| A．Water shortage. |
| B．Villagers’ low income. |
| C．Villagers’ bad living conditions. |
| D．The shortage of natural resources. |
| A．It has provided water for the villagers till now. |
| B．It has enough water even in the dry season. |
| C．It was the main source of water for locals. |
| D．It has been polluted by human activities. |
| A．Friendly and outgoing. |
| B．Kind and determined. |
| C．Thankful and patient. |
| D．Honest and clever. |
| A．A Plan to Plant More Trees |
| B．A Farmer Preferring to Plant Trees |
| C．A Village Saved by the Government’s Efforts |
| D．A Farmer Saving His Village from Drought |
10 . The world has a plastic problem—and it is increasing.
1.Replace plastic bags. People use a lot of plastic bags worldwide every year.About 10 percent are used in the United States alone. That’s almost one bag per American per day.
2.Skip the straw(吸管)．Today, around 8.3 billion plastic straws pollute the world’s beaches.
3.Use limited plastic bottles. Buy a reusable bottle and fill it with any type of beverage(饮料)you like.
4.Avoid plastic packaging materials.Don’t buy fruit or vegetables in plastic packaging.In the United Kingdom, leaders are calling for supermarkets to have plasticfree areas.They also want to tax plastic takeout containers.
5.Recycle. We can’t recycle all plastic items, but it is possible to recycle most bottles and milk or juice cartons.Today, Norway recycles 97 percent of its plastic bottle.How?
| A．Likewise, the average Dane(丹麦人) uses four plastic bags per day. |
| B．In contrast, the average Dane uses four singleuse bags per year. |
| C．So when you order a drink, say no to the straw, or bring your own reusable one. |
| D．However, there are still loads of people ignoring the seriousness of it. |
| E．Scientists are working to find a longterm solution by making plastic more biodegradable (可降解的)． |
| F．Some cities, like Bundanoon in Australia and San Francisco in the U．S., have completely or partially banned bottled water. |
| G．Machines at most supermarkets take the bottles and give a refund (退款) of up to 2.5 kroner (32 cents) per bottle. |
