1 . You are welcome to our channel. An interest in the way ocean currents move led Dr. Erik van Sebille to track garbage. This Dutch scientist hopes that by making us aware of how much we litter our oceans, we’ll be motivated to better stash (存放) our garbage.
Question: Where does the garbage in our oceans come from ?Answer: It can come from litter people leave behind on beaches. Or from things falling off ships. Almost every river’s garbage will end up in the ocean too. Plastic garbage is the biggest problem, though. That’s because it doesn’t easily break down. It can stay in the ocean for thousands of years. Eventually, it arrives at the garbage patches (垃圾带).
Question: Does this mean that ocean garbage is worse than garbage on land ?
Answer: Litter in the ocean is probably just as bad as litter in a forest or a park. The main problem in either place is that, if animals eat plastic pieces, they can become very ill. But we know how to solve the problem: Just stop polluting!
Question: Many persons love tossing a message in a bottle into the ocean. Is that a bad idea ?
Answer: Finding a bottle with a message in it is awesome, very special! But most bottles will never end up on a beach. They’ll turn up in the garbage patches, where it’s unlikely that someone will find them. If you want to play with ocean currents, go to the website and release virtual bottles. That way, you’re not littering our oceans.
1. Animals can become very ill if they _______________.
A.turn up in the garbage patches. | B.arrive at the garbage patches. |
C.eat plastic pieces. | D.play with bottles. |
A.educative. | B.useful. | C.interesting. | D.meaningless. |
A.story. | B.poem. | C.scientific article. | D.television interview. |
Many people don’t think twice about dropping litter, believing it
3 . Water companies have pumped waste water into Britain’s seas and rivers for more than nine million hours since 2016, new data suggests. The figure is an increase of 2,553% over five years, according to Environment Agency (EA) data, so the EA warned holidaymakers to avoid dozens of beaches across England and Wales this week.
Untreated waste water was spotted pouring into the sea near Bexhill, East Sussex on Wednesday. On Saturday, the red flags were removed, meaning the water was officially considered safe to bathe in. The beach, however, was nearly deserted.
Rachel Streeter moved to Bexhill in 2007 to enjoy wild swimming and the beach. “Flies actually flew above the surface of the water as well as the waste water. It’s quite horrible,” she said. Rachel says her friends and family have all become sick after swimming. Her 79-year-old mother went for a swim last week and fell ill with “a severe bacterial infection (感染)”.
Businesses say they are being affected by it too. Cliff Meadon, who runs business in the sea, says he has lost “thousands” pounds over the last two years due to water pollution. “We’ve been on the water with groups when we’ve had to come in as the waste comes out,” he said.
In Hastings people were advised not to swim due to a pollution risk this week. Beaches in Normans Bay as well as Bexhill were closed but have now reopened.
Southern Water argued that the water company had not been deliberately (故意的) pouring untreated water into the sea. A spokesperson for the company said, “This week’s heavy rain has fallen onto dry ground that can’t absorb surface run-off, meaning that more rain than usual has entered our waterway networks. This led to some overflows, spilling some untreated water into the sea.”
Southern Water was fined £90 million last year for widespread pollution after sending out more than 6,000 untreated waste water.
1. What warning has the EA given?A.Holidaymakers not going to certain beaches. |
B.A severe bacterial infection breaking out in the UK. |
C.Southern Water stopping pouring waste water into the sea. |
D.Cliff Meadon stopping running business in the sea. |
A.Heavy rainfalls. | B.Too many holidaymakers. |
C.Damaged waterway networks. | D.Poor management of water companies. |
A.Holidaymakers facing pollution risk |
B.Dozens of Britain’s beaches closed to holidaymakers |
C.Lots of families pouring untreated waste water into seas |
D.Huge increase in untreated waste water entering Britain’s seas |
A.Health. | B.Business. | C.Environment. | D.Sports. |
A recent research shows that 86% of the world’s rivers have been damaged by human activities. The research
Unsurprisingly, the worst-hit rivers are in western Europe and North America. This is because these regions have large and rich
5 . While masks and gloves have been shown to reduce the risk of transmitting the coronavirus, the widespread increase in single-use personal protective equipment, or PPE, is worsening the problem of plastic pollution, conservationists said.
Julie Hellec, 41, a volunteer from Operation Mer Propre, a French nonprofit ocean conservation organization, said the plastic pollution stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic has become “a huge problem”.
以上材料来自China daily 网站上一篇文章的片段,请认真解读并用英语完成以下写作要求:
①找出材料中所反映的问题;
②分析问题并给出解决问题的建议;
③个人感言和号召。
注意:①字数在80左右;
② 可以适当增加细节,以使文章连贯。
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6 . The problem of food borne metal contamination (污染) has taken on new urgency, thanks in part to a 2021 US Congressional Report detailing high levels of metals found in baby food pulled off grocery shelves. More recently, high levels of lead (铅) were discovered in children’s fruit puree pouches. Now, two new studies provide information on the correlation between exposure to heavy metals in food and the risk of cancers and other serious health risks.
Food crops can absorb heavy metals from contaminated soil, air, and water. As a result, traces of dangerous heavy metals — lead, arsenic (砷) and cadmium (镉) — are found in common foods from rice and cereals to nuts and vegetables. Felicia Wu, Michigan State University food scientist, is leading several investigations to gain a better understanding of the health risks of heavy metal exposure.
In the studies, Wu and her colleague, gathered data on the dietary intake of each metal from various sources such as food and water samples and existing studies and reports. There searchers analysand the data to determine the strength of the association between dietary exposure and bad health effects. Both cancer and non-cancer health effects were considered.
Lead is a poisonous metal commonly found in old paint, water pipes, and contaminated soil. Food sources of lead include root vegetables like beets. In the study, lead showed moderate (中度的) to high risk scores for causing lung, kidney, bladder, stomach, and brain cancers. It also showed moderate to high scores for non-cancer risks.
Their initial estimates suggest that every year, more than 6, 000 additional cases of bladder and lung cancers and over 7, 000 cases of skin cancers can be attributed (归因于) to the consumption of inorganic arsenic in the United States. The researchers also found that certain food products can be associated with higher cancer risk than others. These include rice, wheat, and leafy green vegetables.
1. What do the new studies focus on?A.Food safety and children’s health. |
B.Food crops and metal contamination. |
C.Heavy metals and its danger extent. |
D.Metal contamination in food and health risks. |
A.Food crops need metal to grow well. |
B.Heavy metals are added by producers. |
C.They can help with scientific research. |
D.Food crops grow up in polluted conditions. |
A.By doing surveys online. |
B.By analyzing data. |
C.By performing experiments. |
D.By referring to previous textbooks. |
A.Dramatic. | B.Alarming. |
C.Confusing. | D.Awesome. |
7 . REDUCING WATER POLLUTION IN THE LI RIVER
The beautiful Li River and its amazing surrounding scenery is one of the most well-known tourist destinations in Chinas Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. It attracts millions of domestic and foreign visitors each year. However, its reputation as a top destination has had negative effects on the river’s water quality. This report looks at the problem of water pollution and some actions that have been taken to deal with it.
Previously, water quality in the Li River had suffered greatly from an increasing volume of tourists, many of whom frequently threw garbage into the river. Many tour boats contributed to the problem too. Kitchens on board were using lots of oil. which was often thrown into the water. The growth in tourism also meant the local population rose rapidly, as well as the number of commercial and industrial enterprises. Water pollution levels increased, with more household and commercial waste ending up in the river. In order to feed more people, more chemicals were used to increase crop production. These chemicals led to severe water quality issues, causing a decrease in the number of fish species. Local officials were concerned that the pollution was damaging the natural environment and felt that urgent steps should be taken to restore the rivers original beauty
A comprehensive initiative was started, with a number of measures that addressed the issues. The construction of waste water treatment facilities improved the water quality and water conservation. The collection and transport of household waste was also improved. Dozens of polluting enterprises were closed or moved. The local government set up strict regulations regarding further industrial development. New rules were also introduced regarding tour boat routes and garbage disposal methods. Furthermore, the local authorities began to use the media to spread environmental awareness and encourage greater use of clean energy. At the same time, they started to carry out inspections regularly and fine tourist organisations for abuses. With these measures, it is believed that the beauty of the Li River will be preserved for generations to come.
In addition, the ambitious “Water Ten Plan” is also now tackling water pollution across the country. Other initiatives, such as the “River Chief System”, hold senior officials responsible for reducing water pollution. With such campaigns in effect, Chinas waterways are heading towards a clean and sustainable future.
1. Read Para. 2 and find all the factors that caused the pollution.2. Read Para. 3&4 and find all the solutions mentioned to solve the Li River water pollution.
8 . There are a lot of chemicals that can cause indoor air pollution. A recent project conducted has found over 900 different substances in our home are related to it. Many researchers have already examined the causes of indoor air pollution.
It has been proved that different kinds of chemicals can be released by building materials and new furniture. Everything from painting and decorating products, bathroom cleaners and beauty products can contain these chemicals.
As a research from Denmark has highlighted, cooking, particularly roasting can damage our body. Roast dinners contain many potentially harmful pollutants.
As far as cooking emissions are concerned, no one is suggesting switching to takeaways.
A.In the long run, these changes lead to cancer. |
B.They might also arise from cooking at home. |
C.A wide range of sources are under investigation. |
D.Therefore, what results from indoor air pollution? |
E.However, most of us have ignored their bad effects. |
F.So, what are the main contributors to poor air quality? |
G.But we can change how we cook to deal with the emissions. |
Every year a huge amount of waste ends up in the world’s oceans and causes problems for the animals living there.
About 80% of all marine waste is plastic from bottles and packaging, most of
One organization that does this is Ocean Conservancy,
Cleaning up the oceans seems like an
10 . Human and their inventions, such as cars or plastic, have caused most environmental pollution on Earth. Today car emissions (排放物) are a major source of air pollution leading to climate change. In the meanwhile, plastics fill our ocean, creating a significant health issue to marine (海洋的) animals.
And what about the electric light, which is thought to be one of the greatest human inventions of all time? Electric light can be a beautiful thing, guiding us home when the sun goes down, keeping us safe and making our homes bright. However, like CO2 emissions and plastic, too much of a good thing has started to influence the environment. Light pollution, the wrong use of outdoor light, is affecting human health, wildlife behavior and our ability to observe stars.
Light pollution is a global issue. This became obvious when the World Atlas of Artificial Night Sky Brightness, a computer-created map based on thousands of satellite photos, was published in 2016, which can be viewed online. The map shows how and where our globe is lit up at night. Vast areas of North America, Europe, the Middle East and Asia are glowing (发光) with light, while only the most distant regions on Earth (Greenland, Central African Republic and Niue) are in total darkness. Some of the most light-polluted countries in the world are Singapore, Qatar, and Kuwait.
Sky glow is the brightening of the night sky, mostly over cities, due to the electric lights of cars, streetlamps, offices, factories, outdoor advertising, and buildings, turning night into day for people who work and play long after sunset.
People living in cities with high levels of sky glow have a hard time seeing more than a handful of stars at night. Astronomers (宇航员) are particularly concerned with sky glow pollution as it reduces their ability to view stars.
Mostly over 80 percent of the world's population, and 99 percent of Americans and Europeans live under sky glow.
1. What can we learn from paragraph 2?A.Electric light should be not be used outdoors. | B.Electric light is the main factor to keep us safe. |
C.Electric light has both advantages and disadvantages. | D.Electric light is the greatest human invention. |
A.Niue. | B.Singapore. | C.Kuwait. | D.Qatar. |
A.Keeping the streetlamps on. | B.Littering plastics about. |
C.Driving cars around. | D.Overfishing marine animals. |
A.Uncaring. | B.Unclear. | C.Worried. | D.Satisfied. |