1 . Three-quarters of a million tourists flock to the primitive, white beaches every year—but this booming industry has come at a price. When foreigners left the government struggling to cope with a stream of rubbish, their answer was to turn one of these islands into a dumping ground. Clouds of sharp, poisonous smoke rising from open fires, piles of rubbish made up of plastic bottles, crisp packets and consumer junk. It’s a far cry from the white sands, crystal-clear waters and gently swaying palm trees that we associate with the Maldives (马尔代夫), the beautiful paradise island holiday destination set in the Indian Ocean.
Of its 200 inhabited islands, which are spread across an area of 35,000 square miles, 99 are dedicated resorts. Three-quarters of a million tourists visit every year — more than double the domestic population. of these, over 100,000 travel from the UK. The capital, Malé, is four times more densely populated than London. Given these facts, it’s hardly surprising that the Maldives on which has a waste disposal problem.
What you are seeing here is a view of the Maldives on which no honeymooners will ever fix eyes. Four miles west of Malé is the country’s dumping ground, Thilafushi — or Rubbish Island as it has simply become known.
The country dumps upwards of 330 tons of rubbish on the island every day. A figure attributed largely to the tourist industry on which the chain of islands relies. Each visitor generates 3.5 kg of waste per day.
Now, the government of the Maldives has banned the dumping of waste on the island, which is too late, due largely to an increase in the number of waste boats “fly-tipping”(非法倾倒) directly into the sea, fed up with waiting seven hours or more to offload their cargo.
1. The government of the Maldives is in troubled faced with ________.| A．how to develop the tourist industry |
| B．where to set up a dumping ground |
| C．how to deal with the rubbish left by tourists. |
| D．where to set up dedicated resorts |
| A．the Maldives are still paradise islands with clear waters. |
| B．the Maldives rely on tourist industry |
| C．the Maldives are called Rubbish Islands |
| D．the country dumps about 330 tons of rubbish on the island every month |
| A．positive | B．satisfied |
| C．forgiving | D．critical |
| A．inform people of the present situation of the Maldives |
| B．expose people’s bad behavior on the islands |
| C．introduce the Maldives to the whole word |
| D．persuade people out of going to the Maldives |
2 . Eating too much fatty food, exercising too little and smoking can raise your future risk of heart disease. But there is another factor that can cause your heart problems more immediately：the air you breathe.
Previous studies have linked high exposure (暴露) to environmental pollution to an increased risk of heart problems，but two analyses now show that poor air quality can lead to heart attack or stroke (中风) within as little as a few hours after exposure. In one review of the research, scientists found that people exposed to high levels of pollutants (污染物) were up to 5% more likely to suffer a heart attack within days of exposure than those with lower exposure. A separate study of stroke patients showed that even air that the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)considers to be of “moderate” (良好) quality and relatively safe for our health can raise the risk of stroke as much as 34% within 12 to 14 hours of exposure.
The authors of both studies stress that these risks are relatively small for healthy people and certainly modest compared with other risk factors such as smoking and high blood pressure. However, it is important to be aware of these dangers because everyone is exposed to air pollution regardless of lifestyle choices. So stricter regulation by the EPA of pollutants may not only improve environmental air quality but could also become necessary to protect public health.
1. The text mainly discusses the relationship between ________.| A．heart problems and air quality |
| B．heart problems and exercising |
| C．heart problems and smoking |
| D．heart problems and fatty food |
| A．relatively high | B．extremely low |
| C．relatively low | D．extremely high |
| A．Eating fatty food has immediate effects on your heart. |
| B．The EPA conducted many studies on air quality. |
| C．Moderate air quality is more harmful than smoking. |
| D．Stricter regulations on pollutants should be made. |
| A．inform | B．persuade |
| C．describe | D．entertain |
