1 . In many ways, life has become far more comfortable and convenient in the past few decades.
Air Pollution
The main cause of air pollution is the burning of fossil fuels by vehicles and power plants. Other human activities, such as construction and the burning of waste, also contribute to air pollution. The effects on our health can be very serious.
You can easily contribute to reducing air pollution by only using a car to make journeys when it’s absolutely necessary.
Global Warming
Global warming is the increase in the temperature of the Earth’s near-surface air and oceans. It’s caused by the build-up of carbon dioxide and other pollutants in the atmosphere. These trap the Sun’s heat and warm up the planet.
Global warming has already caused a wide range of problems.
Overflowing Landfills
Landfills are used for waste disposal (处理) in many countries around the world. However, these landfills are now nearing their limit. When this happens, the chances of dangerous chemicals in the waste entering our water supply increase.
The amount of waste in landfills in China has risen sharply over the last ten years.
| A．If it isn’t, try using public transport instead. |
| B．Sea levels are rising due to the melting of polar ice sheets. |
| C．However, this has come at a huge cost to the environment. |
| D．This resulted in the flooding of the River Po near Turin in Italy. |
| E．For instance, that in Hong Kong is likely to reduce within a few years. |
| F．Thus, the government is now trying to find alternative waste disposal methods. |
| G．Apart from the three Rs, some experts have called for the fourth R—Responsibility. |
2 . People often recommend planting trees to make cities greener, cleaner and healthier. But during heat waves, city trees can actually increase air pollution. Indeed, a new study has found, up to 60 percent of the smoggy ozone in a city’s air on hot days may trace to chemicals emitted by trees. Galina Churkina, who works at Humboldt University of Berlin, and her team have confirmed it.
The findings might seem the opposite of what you would expect, notes Robert Young, an expert in city planting at the University of Texas at Austin. Indeed, he says, “Everything has multiple effects.” The new findings do not mean cities should discourage tree planting. Instead, cities may need stricter controls on other sources of pollution, such as tailpipeemissions from cars and trucks.
City trees soak up carbon dioxide, and at the same time they release oxygen into the air. But oxygen is far from the only gas that trees and certain other green plants release into the air. One of these chemicals is a hydrocarbon known as isoprene(异戊二烯). It can react with combustion(燃烧)pollutants, such as nitrogen oxides(氮氧化物)emitted by cars and trucks in cities. The result is the formation of ozone, a component of smog, which can irritate the lungs and cause airway diseases.
Churkina says her team is not surprised to see the seemingly contrary relationship between plants and pollution. She adds that its importance is quite amazing. “The results,” Churkina says, “suggest that city tree planting programs should not ignore the role this greenery may play in aggravating summer air pollution.” “Adding more trees will improve quality of life only if those cities also undertake plans to sharply cut vehicle pollution in summer and to increase their reliance on clean energy sources for electric power,” she says.
1. What does the new study find about city trees on hot days?| A．City trees can reduce the smoggy ozone. |
| B．City trees may easily absorb heat waves. |
| C．City trees may cause more air pollution. |
| D．More city trees can make a city far better. |
| A．The harm ozone does to people in cities. |
| B．The way trees help the formation of ozone. |
| C．The chemicals green plants release into the air. |
| D．The benefits trees bring to the city environment. |
| A．Worsening. | B．Decreasing. | C．Improving. | D．Releasing. |
| A．Planting more trees in cities. |
| B．Advocating using clean energy. |
| C．Improving people’s quality of life. |
| D．Banning vehicle pollution in summer. |
3 . In Plastic China, a documentary shot by Wang Jiuliang, Chen Feng (not his real name) makes his living by recycling plastic waste imported from developed countries. His family lives among the garbage and his young son often finds “toys” around him. Used plastic injectors (注射器) are his favorite.
China was once the world’s biggest recipient of overseas trash. Many people like Chen Feng work at centers recycling imported waste, also called foreign garbage.
From January 1, 2021, China made a sweeping ban on all imports of solid waste. The waste products from overseas on Chinese territory are also banned.
China began importing solid waste in 1980 when the country didn’t have enough raw materials (原材料). The recycling of imported waste helped to fill that gap. Recycling foreign trash, such as plastics, paper and metals, has supported the development of China’s manufacturing (制造业的) sector and furthered its economy. After being processed, garbage can be turned into materials that can be used to make products, such as chairs and bags.
However, waste that can’t be used is either burned or buried, while processing recyclables also leads to water, air and land pollution, as well as sickness. In Guiyu, Guangdong Province, once China’s largest disposal center for electronic trash, over 90 per cent of kids showed high levels of lead in their blood, according to a report that tracked the health of local children in the years from 2006 to 2013.
In addition, about 10 billion tons of solid waste are produced annually in China, which also has to be handled appropriately. According to China Daily, the ban taking effect in 2021 is the culmination (高潮) of policies introduced since 2017 to phase out the import of solid waste. Since 2017, the volume of imported waste has fallen by 68 per cent, from 42 million to 13 million tons in 2019.
“Realizing the goal of zero imports of solid waste is in sight,” said Qiu Qiwen, from the Ministry of Ecology and Environment.
1. The example of Chen Feng is intended to ________.| A．promote the documentary shot |
| B．highlight the importance of recycling |
| C．introduce the topic of the overseas trash |
| D．call for the attention to developing countries |
| A．Public interest. | B．Economic reform. |
| C．Lack of raw materials. | D．The gap of development. |
| A．Importing this waste has brought more risks than benefits. |
| B．There is a long way to go before electronic trash is removed. |
| C．Air pollution is the main contributor to kid’s health problems. |
| D．Recycling garbage has led kids in China to suffer blood problems. |
| A．Doubtful. | B．Hopeful. |
| C．Incomplete. | D．Unreasonable. |
4 . Clean-up devices that collect waste from the ocean surface won’t solve the plastic pollution problem, a new study shows.
Researchers estimate that the amount of plastic reaching the ocean will peak in 2029, and surface plastic will hit more than 860,000 metric tonnes—more than double the current estimated 399,000—by 2052.
“Even if we could collect all the plastic in the oceans—which we can’t—it’s really difficult to recycle, especially if plastic fragments(碎片) have floated for a long time and been degraded or bio-fouled,” said Dr Jesse F. Abrams, of the Global Systems Institute and the Institute for Data Science and Artificial Intelligence, both at the University of Exeter.
“The other major solutions are to bury or burn it—but burying could pollute the ground and burning lead to extra CO2 emissions to the atmosphere.”
Given the difficulty of recycling and the negative impacts of burying or burning plastic, the study says reducing disposal(处理) and increasing recycling rates are essential to tackle ocean pollution. “Plastic is an extremely versatile material with a wide range of consumer and industrial applications, but we need to look for more alternatives and rethink the way we produce, consume and dispose of plastic,” said Professor Agostino Merico, of Leibniz Center for Tropical Marine Research and Jacobs University.
Dr Roger Spranz, an author of the study, is a co-founder of non-profit organization Making Oceans Plastic Free. “We have developed technology in changing behavior to break plastic habits and stop plastic pollution at its source,” Dr Spranz said.
“Working with local partners, the implementation of our Tasini campaign in Indonesia has helped to prevent an estimated 20 million plastic bags and 50,000 plastic bottles from ending up in coastal areas and the ocean.”
1. The figures in Paragraph 2 are used to suggest that ________.| A．2029 and 2052 are more important years |
| B．the researcher’s estimation is based on facts |
| C．the plastic pollution will be reduced significantly |
| D．the plastic pollution problem is and will remain serious |
| A．Burning plastics. | B．Burying plastics. |
| C．Promoting applications | D．Increasing recycling. |
| A．plastic pollution is easy to stop at its source |
| B．People should throw away less plastic rubbish |
| C．Plastics should be broken before being thrown away |
| D．People should stop using plastic products in their daily life |
| A．Ocean plastic pollution—a hard nut to crack |
| B．Changing attitude to stop plastic pollution |
| C．Comprehensive solutions to ocean pollution |
| D．Applying clean-up devices—a long way to go |
Even the dirt on the ground is likely to make climate change worse. Researchers have shown that warmer temperatures are heating the soil,causing microbes
Scientists found a sharp increase in carbon released into the atmosphere by bacteria and fungi in soil from 1990 through 2014. Researchers explain that the carbon comes from
Surprisingly, soil lets
If something is not done, we are really in trouble, said Rattan Lal of Ohio State University. He held a
