Our world in danger

You are going to read about pollution. Decide which of the following titles would be the best for each section (A-E). 1. Taking action 2. Water pollution 3. The problem of pollution 4. Finding supporters 5. Bicycles as a solution

READING

A _______________ Over the past few years people all over the world have become very concerned about environmental problems. The increase in pollution, which is caused by our modern way of life, is one particular worry. With more people living in towns and more industry, pollution is only going to get worse. The air we breathe is polluted and our health can be affected. Young children and the elderly suffer in particular.

B _________________

One problem which is a result of pollution is acid rain. This harms rivers, lakes, and forests, killing the fish and wildlife in them. It also damages buildings, bridges, and monuments. Most factories and vehicles use oil or gasoline for energy. When this burns, acids are produced which pollute rain or snow. Some chemicals are also dumped into rivers, seas and oceans by factories and these can affect species like whales and dolphins and the fish they eat. Often dead fish can be seen floating on the water as a result of this pollution.

C ________________ Pollution is also caused by traffic. You may think that this is a major problem in your country and that there are a lot of cars in the world. However, there are also two bicycles for every car. In Britain there are more bicycles than cars and in China, there are 540 for every car. Some people think that bicycles can solve the problem of pollution and that’s why they ride their bicycles to work. In many big cities, bicycle lanes have been built to prevent accidents which happen when cyclists use the same lanes as cars. This means riders feel safer and the number of people using bikes is growing every day.

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D __________________ Apart from the use of bicycles, steps are being taken to prevent pollution damaging our environment in many countries in the world. Through the efforts of scientists, business leaders, and individuals, the amount of pollution on the planet can be reduced. Greenpeace is a non-profit organisation which was started many years ago and acts in 40 countries across the world. Its aim is to reveal environmental problems to the world and to find solutions for a green future. Their activists campaign to: stop climate change, stop the nuclear threat, eliminate toxic chemicals, save the oceans and protect sea life, prevent experiments on laboratory animals, etc.

E___________________ Greenpeace relies on supporters worldwide and encourages more people to take action every day. Their motto is: ‘When the last tree has been cut, the last river poisoned, and the last fish killed, we will discover that we can’t eat money.’

Glossary

to dump – throw away environment – the air, water and land around us pollution – dirty water, air, land acid rain– rain that contains dangerous chemicals to cause – make something happen to affect – have an influence on somebody or something

COMPREHENSION

1 True or False?

Give reasons for your answer and mention details from the text to support the answer.

1. Pollution is the only environmental problem. 2. Pollution only has harmful effects on our health. 3. Acid rain is rain polluted by acid from factories and other industrial processes. 4. Many people use bicycles instead of cars in order to reduce the level of pollution. 5. No steps have been taken so far to reduce the amount of pollution. 6. Greenpeace members are trying to persuade more people to take part in their activities. 7. The aim of Greenpeace activists is only to point out the environmental problems.

SPEAKING 

Summarize each paragraph in one or two sentences.

VOCABULARY

a cb

Complete the sentences using the highlighted words in the text in their correct form. 1. The _______________ in salary would make me really happy. 2. He tried to ____________________ the accident, but didn’t succeed. 3. I’ll go out to ___________________some fresh air. 4. The teacher___________________ his pupils to take part in the play last week. 5. Greenpeace activists are trying to ____________ water pollution. 6. I am _________________about young children’s health. 7. Don’t start smoking; it may _____________ your health.

WORD FORMATION

Complete the sentences by using the correct form of the word in capital letters.

It is hard to ________ that the largest whale of all, the blue whale, has almost disappeared. In 1904, there were 150,000 blue whales swimming in their ______________ habitat, any ocean of the world. By1963, fewer than 2,000 remained. Modern hunting ________________ has caused the deaths of 99 percent of this _______________ species.

Many nations have agreed to bring in _______________ to protect blue whales because they have become an _________________ species. Human beings have benefitted greatly from these ___________, fast animals and they have become thoughtless and made blue whales almost extinct. BELIEF

NATURE EQUIP AMAZE

REGULATE ENDANGER MASS

We should support those groups whose main aim is the ____________ PREVENT of whale killing.

SPEAKING 

Keep the environment clean!

1 Class discussion

Prepare to talk about the main environmental problems in your area. a. Name the type of problem. b. Say what causes pollution. c. What could be done to reduce pollution? d. What could you yourself do about it?

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Here are some suggestions. Add a few more and give your comments. To reduce pollution • control emissions from factories and vehicles • move factories outside the city • stop using rivers as dumping sites • don’t throw chemicals into water • don’t destroy forests by cutting trees down.

GRAMMAR

THE PASSIVE The verbs in the following sentences are all used in the passive.

a. Which tenses of the verb to be are used in examples 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5? b. Which form do the main verbs take in each sentence? c. Which tense is used in the passive form in each example?

1. The air we breathe is polluted. 2. Steps are being taken to prevent damage from pollution. 3. Greenpeace was started many years ago. 4. In many big cities bicycle lanes have been built to prevent accidents. 5. The amount of pollution on the planet will be reduced. When is the passive used? a. Jane makes delicious cakes. b. Delicious cakes are made in this bakery. a. The verb is active when the focus is on the person doing the action. b. The verb is passive when the focus is on the action and not on the person doing it.

Note the word order in the passive sentence. Active – Traffic causes pollution. – Subject + verb + object Passive – Pollution is caused by traffic. – Object +be + past participle + by + subject

Note the change when a personal pronoun is the object of a sentence: He told me to be more careful in the future. I was told to be more careful in the future. For more information, see the Grammar summary.

PRACTICE

1 Look back at the text Our world in danger and underline all the examples of the passive that you can find.

2 Look at the verbs in each sentence and circle the active verb forms and underline the passive verb forms. 1. The increase in pollution was caused by smoke from this factory. 2. Chemicals are dumped into the sea every day. 3. A careless driver caused the traffic jam. 4. Many bicycle lanes have been built in this city. 5. Many factories use oil. 6. Young children suffer because of pollution.

3 Complete the sentences using the verbs in brackets in the correct tense. Before you start this exercise, look at the examples of passive forms in the Grammar summary. 1. Everybody agrees that modern cities __________________________. (pollute) 2. Something must _________________________ about pollution. (do) 3. My city _________ often ______________ in smog. (cover) 4. The factory _____________________ out of the town soon. (move) 5. An underground railway _________________ in 2000. (open) 6. A new warning sign ____________________up on the hill recently. (put)

4 Put the following sentences into the passive. 1. Do they control the pollution in this area? 5. He told them to be quiet. 2. Are they building a new bridge over there? 6. They have promised us more money. 3. Most factories used gasoline for energy. 7. We must warn them of the danger. 4. They will inform her about the test results. 8. They are keeping her in hospital.

LISTENING

Track 25 Famous sites in danger

1 Which of the following could be the answers to the question: ‘How can people damage the sites?’ By ... writing graffiti ... visiting the place in great numbers ... walking over the grass ... littering the place (leaving empty bottles, cans, etc.) ... touching things ... stealing valuable things ... burning trees.

2 Now listen to the text to find out which environmental problems are mentioned.

3 Listen to the text again and answer the following questions. 1. Can tourism change the environment? In what ways? 2. Which sites are especially in danger? 3. Which popular sites are mentioned? 4. What has had to be done to prevent people from damaging the historic sites?

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