While there is growing consumer     1     (realize) of the environmental impact of fast fashion, can the same be said about fast furniture? The chairs and tables that fill many of our homes and everyday spaces are manufactured on a mass scale, and the cheaper items often end up     2     landfills.

According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), in 2020 over 12 million tons of furniture     3     (throw) out in America and some into the forest illegally. Buying furniture can be     4     (incredible) expensive. Many of us switch over to cheaper, instant brands like IKEA,     5     manufacturers use materials harder to recycle, which is likely to damage the environment.

With growing calls for sustainability, many brands are announcing to change though it remains     6     (see) whether they will keep these promises. In     7     (it) current sustainability strategy, IKEA commits itself to using only recyclable materials in all its products in an effort to practice “circular” design and cut emissions to net-zero. The concept of circular design     8     (win) increasing concern up to now. In     9     circular system, furniture products would be designed to last longer and be fully recyclable, thus forming a     10    (close) loop (环).

A new book for children     1     (call) Climate Change is co-written by Charles Ⅲ, Tony Juniper and Emily Shuckburgh. Charles Ⅲ, well-known as the king of the United Kingdom,     2     (be) also an environmentalist and has spoken about the environment for many years. In     3     (he) new book, he hopes children will learn more about the problems our planet is facing. Juniper, who is the chairperson of an organization, told reporters that he hoped     4     (write) a book for children aged 7 to 11 and bring the facts to those children who will benefit a lot by finding better     5     (solution) to the environmental problems.

Last Friday, Juniper went to     6     event at Buckingham Palace in London, which     7     (host) by King Charles. Many business leaders were also invited to the event. At the palace get-together, Juniper said he was excited to see so many children willing to help Earth and that he would try his best to put something into their hands     8     is about basic ideas of protecting the environment. King Charles said, “Ever since I was a young teenager, I have been     9     (deep) worried about the way we have shaped our world. I hope that more children across the world can take part     10     the activities of protecting our Earth.”

Wetlands are the link between the land and the water. They are transition zones where the flow of water, the cycling of nutrients and the energy of the sun meet to produce     1     unique and special ecosystem     2     (characterize) by hydrology, soils and vegetation—making these areas very important features of a watershed. The water is often groundwater,     3     (spill) up from an aquifer or spring. A wetland’s water can also come from a nearby river or lake. Seawater can also create wetlands, especially in coastal areas that experience strong tides. Here is one in China.

The National Nature Reserve of Guangdong Nanpeng Islands in Guangdong Province was established in 2003. It     4     (cover) a total area of 35,679 hectares. It became the fifth national-level marine nature reserve in Guangdong, as well as the first one in the eastern region of Guangdong, in 2012. In 2015, it     5     (recognize) and included in the International Important Wetlands Directory.

The main focus of the reserve is to protect the unique underwater natural landscapes, the ecosystems of the nearby     6     (coast) waters, the rare and endangered marine animals, the various fish species and their habitats, as well as the marine biodiversity.

Researchers have discovered 1,308 marine species in the area, including 772     7     (economic) significant fish, shrimp, crab, mollusk, and algae species. The reserve is home     8     more than 21 identified rare and endangered wildlife species in water, among     9     nine species such as the Chinese white dolphin and the nautilus are classified as first-class protected animals at the national level, while     10     (variety) of other 27 species, such as the common bottlenose dolphin is classified as second-class protected animals.

It has been estimated that rapidly growing modernization is leading to ignorance towards the environment. Humans have created a situation in     1     ordinary events become increasingly raised to the level of natural disasters,     2     (cause) heavy losses in terms of human life as well as property.

Over the years, scientists researching on this topic     3     (find) that the main problem is global warming. But because     4     human greed, no one is really caring about the environmental risks and everyone is busy making money.

It is known that the rapid industrial growth has led to     5     large number of air and water pollution problems. Though there are environmental laws that these     6     (industry) need to follow to treat the waste but most of the time the industry owners ignore these laws for their personal gain. Rapid construction has led to large land areas being covered with cement(水泥), meaning the flow of water becomes so strong     7     water runoff can’t get absorbed by the soil, eventually leading to greater flooding.

    8     (fortunate), there are still a lot of people who really care about the environment and are     9     (will) to work on environmental issues. Many societies and groups are working day and night     10     (make) people aware of the harmful effects of the pollution and other practices that are harmful to our environment.

The year 1970 witnessed the establishment of the World Earth Day. Over 50 years later,     1     started as a grassroots movement has exploded into an international day of attention and campaigns     2     (commit) to preserving the environment. According to the Earth Day Network, one of the largest activist organizations holding Earth Day events, many a     3     (participate) across the globe celebrate Earth Day in a different way.

Rachel Carson’s book Silent Spring published in 1962 was among a series of critical environmental issues     4     (help) give birth to the environmental movement. The book brought     5     to light that the use of a pesticide called DDT was polluting rivers and destroying the eggs of birds like bald eagles. The number of the latter declined     6     (dramatic). Then, in 1969, a large oil leak near the Santa Barbara County coast     7     (drive) the then Senator Gaylord Nelson to put Earth Day on the national stage.

In the past years since the first Earth Day, there     8     (be) a large number of major environment wins. Protection has been put in place on everything     9     clean water to endangered species.

The theme of Earth Day 2023 is “Earth for All”, the concept of     10     emphasizes human beings must respect nature, follow its ways and protect it.

Spring is the season for new life. In China, the peak time for spring plowing and sowing is around the Qingming Festival, which falls     1     Wednesday this year, when people from all walks of life go out and plant trees    2     (make) the land greener.

From top leaders to ordinary citizens,     3     (plant) trees has been a widespread practice for the Chinese,     4     voluntarily take part in the country’s massive greening efforts     5     (year) to show just how much the world’s second-largest economy values greenness and ecological conservation.

Since     6     start of afforestation (植树造林) decades ago, China     7     (create) the world’s largest, planted forests. Thick forests have also become a substantial source of income for     8     (local). Last year, the output value of China’s forestry and grassland industry reached about 1. 22 trillion dollars, while the foreign trade volume of forest products     9     (be) 191 billion dollars. Green development with both ecological and economic benefits is a highlight and distinctive feature of Chinese modernization.

Under a long-term plan, China expects to increase its forest     10     (cover) rate to 26 percent by 2035. By then, China’s forest stock volume will rise to 21 billion cubic meters.

The Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in Japan was     1     (severe) damaged by a tsunami in 2011, leading to a major nuclear disaster. Since then, water has been continuously used     2    (cool) the damaged reactors (反应堆) and prevent further damage.

Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO), the     3    (operate) of the plant, said that the storage tanks took up too much space due to the wastewater. So Japan initially said that it     4    (begin) releasing the water into the ocean in the spring of 2023.

On March 17, part of the equipment     5    was related to the discharge of nuclear-contaminated water from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant started operation for     6    first time, according to Japanese media TV Asahi.

According to The Guardian, the Japanese government argued that the water     7    (treat) to remove most of the radioactive isotopes (同位素), so the water would be safe to be released into the ocean.

However, not everyone agrees with this decision. Environmental groups and local fishermen have expressed concern about the impact of the wastewater     8    marine life and the fishing industry, the BBC reported.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry on March14 once again denounced (谴责) Japan’s unilateral (单边的) decision to dump nuclear-contaminated wastewater into the sea,     9    (consider) the move an attempt to shift the risk of nuclear pollution to all of mankind.

The ministry also warned the country not to start the plan     10    full consultation (磋商) with its neighbors and relevant international institutions.

A photo shot at a salt lake in Shanxi Province has made dozens     1     people interested. Wild flamingos mainly live in temperate and tropical zones. Usually, they     2    ( find) in Africa, North and South America, and the Mediterranean region. No fixed habitat for the birds had been seen in China before 2014.

Zhang Weiping, one artist who takes photos of flamingos in Yuncheng, recalls that in the summer of 2014, he was told that several unrecognizable birds had arrived at the salt lake, and only after arriving at the lake did he recognize them as flamingos. However, some of them    3    (be) not in very good condition.

”There were enough Artemia(磷虾),     4    are favored by the flamingos, in the lake, and with the local’s    5    ( protect) , the birds gradually recovered,“ says Zhang. Now the salt lake has become one of the stopover    6    ( site) during the birds’ annual migration( 迁徙) .

Photos of the flamingos in the salt lake went popular online,     7    (attract) many enthusiastic photographers.

The reasons why the flamingos first landed in Yuncheng are still unknown, but the significant improvement in the ecology of the lake is     8    ( undoubted) an important one.

The salt lake has seen human activity since ancient times. After the 1950s,     9    development of local chemical factories damaged the environment.

To better protect this salt lake, industrial production activities around the lake were closed,    10     restoration( 修复) work on mountains, forests and lakes was also carried out. The photos help more people learn about the birds and encourage everyone to protect our environment.

The habitats of the gray nurse shark have been lost and extensive fishing has led to a huge decline in its numbers. The species     1     (list) as the critically endangered animals by the IUCN now.

Shalise Leesfield, a 16-year-old Australian, devotes     2     (she) to the protection of the gray nurse shark. She took     3     series of actions to protect those sharks, such as establishing the conservation area     4     promoting the legalization of shark protection. Her efforts have already seen the area nominated (提名) as a Hope Spot, a program to identify and protect places that are     5     (essence) to the ocean’s health. Leesfield has also started a petition (请愿书) to have the area declared a marine park,     6     (aim) to offer much greater protection for the sharks and their habitats.

Aged 11, having noticed that the marine environment was     7     (serious) damaged because of plastic pollution, Leesfield started a campaign that called for fishing line collection bins to be installed in her local area. She also     8     (found) “Shalise’s Ocean Support” later which aims to inspire people to take care of the environment.

“I know     9     most people feel about them — scary and fierce, but in fact far from their appearance, they are clever and really friendly to people, ”Leesfield says. She tells what she has done can help change people’s previous beliefs in these sharks, saying that the youth need to get out of the mindset that saving the environment     10     (be) something that should be “left up to the adults”.

Global warming is having a big impact on some of the world’s     1     (animal), Scientists have found that polar bears are becoming much     2     (small) because they do not get enough to eat.

A polar bear weighs only two-thirds of what it used to weigh 30 years ago. Now     3     is hard for them to hunt their main source of food—seals. In open water, polar bears cannot catch them. They wait on the ice     4     seals to come up for air, and then grab them. As the ice sheets in the Arctic are melting away bears cannot get their food so     5     (easy).

A polar bear needs about 12,000 calories a day to stay     6     (health) and even more to put on the body fat     7     it needs during the winter months. It is reported that polar bears are now hunting each other     8     (survive). Two years ago a study     9     (predict) that global warming would kill two-thirds of the world’s polar bears by 2050. But if the ice sheets keep     10     (disappear) at the current speed the Arctic Ocean could be completely ice-free in the next 20 years.