1 . It can be hard for one person to protect the environment by himself. If you teenagers want to do something, like stopping pollution or protecting wildlife, you can gather likeminded people in an environmental club.
Choose a cause. Some good ideas might be something like, “Save the whales!” But nothing says you can’t do more than one cause.
Find a clubhouse. Now that you have your club, you must find a place where all the members can get together to discuss your projects.
Decide on jobs. You can work as an activity organizer, a project manager or the president who decides all the meeting times, new members, meeting places, activities and projects. Each person can have a different job.
| A．Name your club. |
| B．Great minds think alike. |
| C．After all, saving the world is a big job. |
| D．Choose members to hold all the meetings. |
| E．Your club could do a different cause every month. |
| F．It could be in the woods, in the park or in the classroom. |
| G．But encourage all members to support each other’s work. |
2 . Campaigners have been promoting the idea of purchasing local food recently, with the argument that it can reduce “food miles,” referring to the distance food travels from the producer to the shop owner. The greater the food miles, the higher the carbon emissions. Therefore, buying local food results in a lower carbon footprint and is considered more environmentally friendly.
Nonetheless, the actual situation is more complex than it appears. Importantly, imported food often possesses a lower carbon footprint compared to locally grown alternatives. Consider apples, for instance. Local apples in Britain, bought during winter or spring, have usually been stored in refrigeration for months, consuming substantial energy. In contrast, importing apples from New Zealand during their natural season, in spring, is more energy-efficient. Similarly, producing tomatoes in heated greenhouses in the UK has a greater environmental impact than importing them from Spain, where the climate favors their growth.
Additionally, the mode of transportation plays a significant role. Food transported by air tends to generate higher emissions. However, only a limited selection of items are flown to consumer countries, usually high-value and perishable goods that cannot be locally produced. Even in these cases, the carbon footprint of these foods may not surpass that of locally grown alternatives. For example, beans flown in from Kenya are cultivated in sunny fields using natural fertilizers, in contrast to Britain’s reliance on oil-based fertilizers and machinery.
It is crucial to acknowledge that a product’s journey extends beyond the supermarket. Driving long distances to shop for food can offset any environmental benefits gained from buying locally grown produce. Moreover, opting for local over imported food can negatively impact people in developing countries who rely on selling their produce overseas for their livelihoods.
Some supermarkets have recently attempted to raise awareness about food miles by labeling products to indicate air transportation. However, this message oversimplifies a food’s carbon footprint, which is influenced by various factors. Even if we exclusively purchase locally grown, in-season food, ethical concerns remain, potentially limiting dietary choices and affecting us all.
1. Why might choosing imported apples in the UK during spring be a favorable option?| A．It supports local farmers. |
| B．It minimizes energy consumption. |
| C．It offers cost-efficiency and convenience. |
| D．It significantly reduces carbon emissions. |
| A．Purchasing tomatoes imported from Spain. |
| B．Providing assistance to farmers in impoverished nations. |
| C．Buying beans transported by air from Kenya. |
| D．Undertaking long journeys to buy locally sourced food. |
| A．It facilitates ethical shopping decisions. |
| B．It fails to provide a comprehensive and accurate portrayal. |
| C．It elevates awareness of environmental concerns. |
| D．It offers precise product information. |
| A．To resolve a particular issue. |
| B．To make a forward-looking projection. |
| C．To challenge a prevalent belief. |
| D．To interpret an observed phenomenon. |
3 . People have different ways of dealing with waste paper, specifically used newspapers. Some put them in the recycling area, while others keep them as wrappers (包装纸). While these are both good measures, a Japanese publishing company had a better idea for their end use.
The Mainichi Newspapers Co., Ltd. invented the “Green Newspaper”, which allows people to grow plants with it. This unique newspaper was published on Greenery Day, which is focused on environmental news and made of green paper with seeds placed into it. What makes it even more special is the ink (油墨) used to print words and photos, which is made from plants. The publisher advises readers to tear the used newspaper into small pieces and plant them in a container with soil. They should water them, like they would do for any plant. Within a few weeks, the seeds will grow into plants.
This brilliant concept was invented by Dentsu Inc., one of Japan’s most famous advertising agencies, which works with the publishing company on the initiative (倡议). The publisher’s belief is environmental sustainability (持续性). As its mission statement says, “The Mainichi doesn’t take action only through information, but also by solving global issues.” With joint efforts, this initiative has reached the corners of Japan and sold around millions of copies daily. Other such initiatives producing plantable paper are also seen in India and the US.
About 95 million trees are lost for producing newspapers every year. The Internet, the number of whose users stands for 62.5 percent of the population worldwide, has influenced how people read news and the print readership has dropped greatly. However, the reinvention and reimagination of this newspaper will bring about a change in the publishing industry as well as having an environmental influence.
1. What do we know about the “Green Newspaper”?| A．It uses high-tech materials. |
| B．It provides energy for seeds. |
| C．It’s printed with plant-based ink. |
| D．It’s published to celebrate Greenery Day. |
| A．It’s easier said than done. |
| B．Everything comes to him who waits. |
| C．Many hands make light work. |
| D．Actions speak louder than words. |
| A．Doubtful. | B．Supportive. |
| C．Indifferent. | D．Negative. |
| A．About 59 million trees are lost for producing newspapers. |
| B．The Internet has changed the way people read news totally. |
| C．The popularity of the Internet leads to the fall of the print readership. |
| D．The “Green Newspaper” will encourage more people to protect the environment. |
Years ago, the authors conducted human-wildlife conflict surveys in the Tibet Autonomous Region’s counties,
This effort greatly expanded knowledge of the snow leopard’s distribution in this region,
Importantly, in the past few years, a number of major transportation infrastructure (基础设施) projects
5 . The Twenty-three-year-old Mumbai girl Vidhi Bubna is offering India’s first and only diving grant to explore the marine ecosystem.
Vidhi’s first diving experience turned out to be a heartbreaking one. While she expected a lot of colors underwater as she had seen on TV, Vidhi came across all white corals (珊瑚), which means they are almost dead from being bleached (褪色).
“It was very sad and I just started crying after coming out of the water,” she says.
Vidhi, an economics graduate from Ashoka University, did not enjoy working with numbers and turned to writing about social issues, including women’s rights and minority issues.
As an adventure lover, Vidhi went diving to explore the underwater beauty last year. Her disappointment at seeing dying corals led to the start of Coral Warriors, anon-profit organization that aims to raise awareness of marine protection and climate change.
“Nobody knows about climate change till they see it,” Vidhi says. The Mumbai-based organisation offers India’s first and only diving grant. The grant sponsors level-one scuba diving education in any location of their choice in India. While there is no specific standard, Vidhi says the selection process is strict, choosing candidates who are passionate about climate change and seeing that they do something of their choice. Four candidates have been awarded the grant so far and the organisation hopes to find at least five people every year.
“After the candidates return, we expect them to work on a climate change project of their choice, create communities, and work to create awareness and drive action-centric projects,” she explains.
Prior to starting coral warriors, Vidhi was hosting free online workshops to spread awareness of marine biodiversity and climate change, and has reached about 5, 000 people through them.
As a next step, Vidhi is planning to work on documentaries with high-quality underwater images and videos, considering not many can afford or have the courage to go diving to see what is happening underwater.
1. How did Vidhi feel on her first diving?| A．Excited. | B．Upset. | C．Awesome. | D．Awkward. |
| A．To focus more attention on social issues. |
| B．To further explore the underwater beauty. |
| C．To fuel people’s enthusiasm for adventure. |
| D．To make an appeal for marine conservation. |
| A．To help promote people’s sense of community. |
| B．To choose whatever they are passionate about. |
| C．To meet specific and strict selection standards. |
| D．To undertake activities relevant to climate change. |
| A．Ahoot documentaries. | B．Tackle climate change. |
| C．Encourage people to dive. | D．Host free online workshops. |
6 . One of the talks from the TED stage in Long Beach, California, came from Richard Ture re, an inventor. He is a Maasai from Kenya. And he is very young.
Lions are the top tourist attraction to Kenya, especially in the Nairobi National Park, which is near where Richard lives. Lions are also considered critically endangered in Kenya. One of the main causes of their demise, “is that people kill them in retaliation (报复) for lions attacking their livestock (牲畜)”, says Paula Kahumbu, executive director of Wildlife Direct, a wildlife conservation organization in Africa. She has been studying the conflict between humans and lions, and her work led her to Richard. In one week, she monitored over 50 cases where lions attacked livestock.
One night Richard was walking around with a flashlight and discovered the lions were scared of a moving light. A light went on inside him and an idea was born. Three weeks later, Richard had invented a system of lights that flash around the cowshed (棚), which seemed like a human walking around with a flashlight. His system is made from broken flashlight parts and an indicator box from a motorcycle. “The only thing I bought was a solar board, which charges a battery that supplies power to the lights at night,” Richard says. He calls the system Lion Lights. “There have been a lot of efforts to try to protect the lions,” Kahumbu says. “It’s a crisis and everyone is looking for a solution. One idea was land leases (租赁), another was lion pro-offences (防护栅栏). And basically no one even knew that Richard had already come up with something that worked.”
His simple solution was so successful. He equipped the lights for his neighbors and for six other homes in his community. From there, the lights spread and are now being used all around Kenya.
To get to the TED stage, Richard traveled on an airplane for the first time in his life. He says he has a lot to tell his friends about when he goes back home, and what impressed him the most on his trip was something he saw at the Aquarium of the Pacific: “It was my first time seeing a shark. I’ve never seen a shark.”
1. Why is Richard able to get to the TED stage?| A．He has saved fifty lions. | B．He is a successful speaker. |
| C．He helped his neighborhood. | D．He invented a light to protect the lions. |
| A．Death. | B．Injury. | C．Discovery. | D．Attraction. |
| A．Richard’s. | B．Wildlife Direct’s. | C．The government’s. | D．The TED’s. |
| A．People in Kenya live in harmony with the lions. |
| B．Richard is a caring, thoughtful and inventive American boy. |
| C．There were three methods to protect the lions before Richard’s solution. |
| D．With kindness and consideration, people can achieve peace with natural world. |
7 . My husband and I always wanted to go to the Caribbean but didn’t know much about the islands or how we were going to afford it. By chance, a friend of ours in Australia mentioned “pet sitting” and that it is something you can do all over the world.
We quickly created an account on a pet sitting website and began searching for options. There were only a couple of sits available in that part of the world, but we tried our luck, sent a request, and to our surprise, landed a three-month job in Grenada, so our year was going to be taken up with Caribbean pet sits.
Inspired by a Canadian couple, we decided to start our own travel blog. We began by writing about The British Virgin Islands, highlighting the beautiful beaches. However, for every photo album of a beautiful beach, there were 10 photos of trash (垃圾). It was hard to ignore the plastic pollution issue, especially on such primitive and remote beaches. So, we began to share photos of the trash we saw and how much we could pick upon our daily dog walks.
The more we looked into plastic pollution, the more we realized the severity of the global plastic pollution. From that point, we used our platform to create awareness and highlight ways to say no to plastic and travel plastic-free. We changed our daily routines, our way of living, and even our diets to accommodate more organic foods and little to no plastic packaging.
It’s been over three years now and we continue to do what we can. This journey has led us to some amazing places, working with great brands and even organizing a country-wide beach clean-up campaign in Grenada.
Our aim now is to keep on going. We love connecting with like-minded people. It’s been amazing few years that was sparked by a conversation about pet sitting. Who would have guessed?
1. Why did the author do pet sitting?| A．To cover travel expenses. | B．To raise fund. |
| C．To conserve the environment. | D．To shoot beautiful beaches. |
| A．Pet sitting is a new sort of occupation. |
| B．The Caribbean is a perfect travel destination. |
| C．Travel blog is a superb way to gain popularity. |
| D．Actions should be taken to fight plastic pollution. |
| A．Challenging. | B．Significant. | C．Adventurous. | D．Unbearable. |
| A．Shifting Lifestyles by Pet Sitting | B．Address Global Environment Pollution |
| C．Unexpected Gains from Pet Sitting Travel | D．The availability of Pet Sitting in the Caribbean |
8 . U.S. forests could worsen global warming instead of easing it because they are being destroyed by natural disasters and are losing their ability to absorb planet-warming gases as they get older, a new Agriculture Department report says.
U.S. forests currently absorb 11 percent of U.S carbon emissions, or 150 million metric tons of carbon a year, equal to the combined emissions from 40 coal power plants, the report says. It predicts that the ability of forests to absorb carbon will start falling quickly after 2025 and that forests could emit up to 100 million metric tons of carbon a year as their emissions from rotting trees exceed their carbon absorption. Forests could become a “substantial carbon source” by 2070, the USDA report says.
The prediction suggests that the loss of forests as a natural carbon absorber will require the U.S. to cut emissions more rapidly to reach net zero, said Lynn Riley, a senior manager of climate science at the American Forest Foundation.
“Ten percent of our domestic emissions. That is a really significant portion,” Riley said. “As we work to decarbonize...forests are one of the greatest tools at our disposal. If we were to lose that, it means the U.S. will contribute that much more in emissions.”
The loss of cab on absorption is driven in part by natural disasters such as wildfires, tornadoes and hurricanes, which are increasing in frequency and strength as global temperatures rise. The disasters destroy forestland, disrupting their ecosystem and decreasing their ability to absorb carbon, Riley said.
Exploitation of forested areas, which the report projects will continue to increase, is having the same effect as people increasingly move to the so-called wild and urban interface.
The trees’ ability to absorb carbon weakens overtime. Older, mature trees absorb less carbon than younger trees of the same species, and the U.S. forests are rapidly aging, the report found.
More aggressive forest management can help by cutting down a small portion of aging forests to make ways for younger trees that absorb more carbon, Riley said. A thorough study of each forest should be done before removing older trees, Riley said, comparing forest management to prescribing the proper dugs to a patient.
1. Which of the following statements is true according to the passage?| A．Coal power plants emit 150 million metric tons of carbon every year |
| B．Cutting down all older trees is an effective way to solve the problem. |
| C．A new study of forest should be conducted after removing older trees. |
| D．Forests are likely to shift from a carbon absorber to an emission source. |
| A．Forests play a crucial role in holding carbon. |
| B．Forests are no longer a natural carbon absorber. |
| C．The U.S makes contributions to decarbonization. |
| D．Achieving net zero emissions is within easy reach. |
| A．aging forests | B．natural disasters |
| C．global warming | D．development of forests |
| A．Cutting Carbon Helps Slow Global Warming. |
| B．Global Warming Is Becoming Worse Gradually. |
| C．Forests Are Losing Their Ability to Hold Carbon. |
| D．Planting More Trees Is at The Top of The Agenda. |
9 . Earth Day falls on April 22 each year to inform people about environmental problems and inspire them to act. It first came into being in 1970, followed in 1972 by World Environment Day. It has been celebrated ever since, slowly but surely picking up steam. Interestingly, it remained a grassroots affair for 20 years before spreading out to 140 countries in 1990. Now, it is celebrated around the world. Humans still face many challenges, such as climate change and plastic pollution. But we can all make a difference.
When Claire was in the seventh grade, she learned about plans to expand and modernize her middle school. As a follower of Earth Day, she wanted to help. Claire asked the school board to add solar panels to the project because, she explained, clean energy would contribute to a truly modern school, and help her school pursue sustainable development.
The board liked the idea but said it could contribute just $25,000, one-fifth of the cost. So Clarie turned to the community, looking for a solution. Her friends and neighbors shared her enthusiasm. Soon Claire organized a group of kids and adults, who set to work raising the rest. They wrote grant (拨款) requests, put on a talent show and asked for donations, even going door-to-door for them at Halloween. And they appealed to charitable foundations too. One donated more than half the cost!
After two years of hard work, the group paid for the solar panels, which now supply one-fourth of the school’s electricity needs, saving the district thousands of dollars. “My favorite part about this project was that one person could start something small and then the project could grow and have a big impact on the community,” Claire said “There are always going to be barriers and hard parts. When there’s a challenge presented to you, use it as a learning moment and an opportunity to overcome it.”
You can be a hero for the environment, so find out what can be recycled where you live.
1. What can we learn about Earth Day from the first paragraph?| A．It was first celebrated on April 22, 1972. | B．It gained instant popularity worldwide. |
| C．It aims to raise environmental awareness. | D．It promotes solutions to human challenges. |
| A．To sell the solar panels. | B．To make her school greener. |
| C．To improve academic grades. | D．To beautify the school campus. |
| A．The vital role of charities. | B．Difficulties in raising money. |
| C．Constant efforts on the project. | D．Financial support from the public. |
| A．Responsible and determined. | B．Generous and creative. |
| C．Energetic and reliable. | D．Curious and adventurous. |
10 . PFAS are found in nonstick pans, water-proof fabrics and food packaging. They’re called forever chemicals because of their ability to stick around and not break down. Now, using a bit of heat and two relatively common compounds, researchers have degraded (降解) the chemical in the lab.
While some scientists have found relatively simple ways of breaking down select PFAS, most degradation methods require harsh processes using intense pressure — in some cases over 22 mega-pascals — or extremely high temperatures — sometimes upwards of 1,000℃ — to break the chemical bonds.
William Dichtel, from Northwestern University in Evanston, and his team experimented with two substances found in nearly every chemistry lab; sodium hydroxide (氢氧化钠), also known as lye, and a solvent (溶剂) called DMSO. The team worked specifically on a group of forever chemicals which contain a large percentage of PFAS.
When the team combined chemicals with the lye and DMSO at 120℃ and with no extra pressure needed, the carbolic acid (羧酸) fell off the chemicals and became carbon dioxide. “What happened next was unexpected, ” Dichtel said. The loss of the acid helped degrade the chemicals into fluoride ions (氟离子) and smaller carbon-containing products, leaving behind no harmful by-products.
“It’s a neat method; it’s different from others that have been tried,” says Chris Sales, an environmental engineer at Drexel University in Philadelphia who was not involved in the study. “The biggest question is how this could be adapted and scaled up. Understanding this mechanism is just one step in undoing forever chemicals,” Sales said.
This process wouldn’t work to deal with PFAS in the environment, because it requires a concentrated amount of the chemicals, but it could one day be used in wastewater treatment plants, where the pollutants could be filtered out of the water, concentrated and then broken down.
1. What can we learn about the previous ways to break down PFAS?| A．They’re eco-friendly. | B．They’ve been widely used. |
| C．They’re difficult to operate. | D．They’re regarded as useless. |
| A．They experimented with different solvents. |
| B．They tried two very common substances. |
| C．They tested every group of forever chemicals, |
| D．They exposed chemicals to extreme temperatures. |
| A．Environmentally-friendly reactions occurred. |
| B．The carboxylic acid became carbon dioxide. |
| C．No extra pressure was needed for the trial. |
| D．The lye and DMSO could work at 120℃, |
| A．It is difficult to deal with PFAS in the environment. |
| B．This mechanism will soon be used in the environment. |
| C．The method will be applied to different kinds of chemicals. |
| D．More research is needed before the method is widely used. |
