StepA.. Can уou answer the questions about the environment? 1. What is the highest mountain in Africa? 2. What is the longest river in Europe?

3. Where is the highest waterfall in the world?

4. Name countries which have geysers and hot springs.

5. What is a delta and which famous river has one?

6. Where are the Straits of Gibraltar and the Cape of Good Hope? Step B. Work in groups. Complete the paragraph below about Ukraine.

Ukraine is a __....................___ in ………… . The countryside is …………………

in the north and …………in the south. The

country's economy is based on ……………………. . The best-known river in

…………… is ……………. . The most famous chain of mountains is

……………….. and the highest mountain in that chain is

…………….. . ………… is a major environmental problem in

Ukraine today.

Step C. What disaster is being described in each of these sentence? Has Ukraine ever faced any of these disasters?

1. It lifted a car about ten feet off the ground, and then we saw it disappear down

the street.

2. It was about two metres deep and we watched as most-of our furniture just floated away.

3. The grass turned yellow and most of the crops died.

4. The walls began to move visibly, and large cracks opened up in the ground.

5. We could see the lava slowly advancing towards the town just ten miles away.

XI. Read the text and answer the questions after it.

THE TRUE STORY OF LAKE BAIKAL

It should be pointed out that the outcry about the threat of pollution faced by Baikal came from every section of our society. How to protect Baikal was the subject for widespread debate. There was some difference of opinion between those who one-sidedly emphasized industrial production and those who insisted that the basic balanced approach had to be adhered to.

Baikal first faced such problems almost 200 years ago when its shores were settled and crop farming and cattle-breeding developed, and timber was felled. The floating of loose timber, particularly, polluted its waters. The pollution problem grew, especially after the war because of the accelerated development of industry and the rise of cities in Siberia.

Was the answer in shutting down all existing enterprises and all production in Baikal's vicinity? Was it necessary that Baikal's vast treasures of forest, its power resources, mineral deposits and fertile soil lie untapped to protect its purity? Scientists reject the approach of the conservationist purists who contend that only by leaving nature untouched can environment be protected and pollution controlled. After considerable scientific study and debate the conclusion was Baikal s beauty and purity could be maintained at the same time that its rich

7. What are the main vegetables and fruits grown in England?

8. Compare the climate of England with that of Ukraine.

9. Characterize Ukrainian cattle-breeding, dairy-farming and agriculture. Then compare them with those of England.

VIII. Practise your translation skills. Translate the sentences from Russian into English.

1. Какая у вас погода? - Отвратительная, с утра льет дождь. - А у нас замечательная, всю ночь шел снег, а теперь стоит морозная солнечная погода.

2. Будем надеяться, что погода наладится. Что говорят синоптики? - Ничего утешительного: облачно, с периодическими дождями на юге, дождь со снегом в восточной части.

3. Какая чудесная погода сегодня! После грозы воздух удивительно свеж.

4. Какая духота! Это невыносимо!

5. Вчера был такой сильный мороз, что у меня руки окоченели от холода.

6. Надень варежки, а то отморозишь руки.

7. Температура все время падает. Судя по всему, нам предстоит холодная зима. - Только бы был снег!

8. Внезапно небо заволокло свинцовыми тучами. Вот-вот хлынет дождь.

9. Несмотря на то, что небо с утра было затянуто тучами, к обеду они разошлись и опять светит солнце.

10. Холодный ветер дул прямо в лицо.

11. Слабый ветерок едва шевелил молоденькие листочки на деревьях. 12. Гремит гром, сверкает молния. - Это надвигается гроза. 13. Небо озарила вспышка молнии, за которой последовал мощный удар грома.

14.Буря постепенно угасала.

15.В конце концов, буря улеглась.

IX. Complete the sentences.

1. The Atlantic is .

2. The Alps are .

3. Greece is .

4. The Sahara is .

5. The Amazon is .

6. The Mediterranean is .

7. The Bahamas is .

8. Africa is .

9. Crete and Corsica are .

10.Everest is the highest . in the world.

11 .Michigan and Eyrie are two of the great .

12.The 'Great Bear' is a group of _.

X. Discussion point.

resources were tapped. Baikal can provide both material wealth and beauty to the country.

The answer lies in the rational use of Baikal resources, in guaranteeing its protection from pollution and despoliation.

1. Why do you think the subject of Lake Baikal was very much in the news?

2. What posed a danger to the lake and its riches?

1. Do you agree with the conservationist purists that nature should be left untouched in 'its virgin loveliness'?

2. What is meant by the rational use of natural resources in general and in reference to Lake Baikal in particular?

3. Does Ukraine have the similar problem of water pollution?

4. Prepare a short report about the main environmental problems in your region.

XII. Choose the right answer.

1. The little boy climbed up the tree and sat on a .

a)branch b)root c)twig d)trunk

2. I think the birds must have eaten all the seeds I last month!

a)sawed b)sewed c)showed d)sowed

3. They spent the afternoon blackberries in the wood.

a)cutting b)gaining c)picking d)taking

4. It was spring, and the flowers were .

a)coming out b)going out c)growing up d)raising

5. It is difficult to grow good vegetables in the poor in this area.

a)crust b)dirt c)soil d)strand

6. You will have to those apple trees if you want a good crop of

apples next summer.

a)cut b)fell c)prune d)wash

7. If in March, they should give a host of splendid blooms a few

months later.

a)dug b)earthed c)installed d)planted

8. You will need a strong if you are going to dig that hard ground.

a)hoe b)ladle c)rake d)spade

9. You should plant in the autumn if you want the flowers to appear in

the spring.

a)bulbs b)roots c)stalks d)twigs

10.There is a of plant which is found only in this particular area.

a)breed b)class c)specimen d)species

11. Sugar is more expensive now because there was a very poor sugar-beet

last year.

a)collection b)crop c)gathering d)production

12.The flowers in this vase have .

a)dimmed b)dulled c)faded d)shaded

13.I want some roses with nice long please.

a)branches b)feet c)stems d)trunks

14.Why don't you______ some flower seeds in that patch of ground by the

garden gate?

- a)bed b)dig c)set d)sow

15. He stood up and leant against me of the tree.

a) body b)figure c)root - d)trunk • 16.You shouldn't hack the off trees. They might die.

a)bark b)crust c)peel d)rind

17 . grows only in a hot climate.

a)Cotton b)Linen c)Silk d)Wool

18.There are a lot of red _ on that holly bush.

a)acorns b)berries c)currants d)nuts

19. The corn was not ready for cutting as the ears were still ________ .

a)undeveloped b)unprepared c)unripe d)unsteady

20. Some trees their leaves in winter.

a)fell b)leave c)shed d)throw

XIII. Reading comprehension (2). Read the text and do the tasks after it. SUMMER IN ANTARCTICA

Antarctica is the highest, coldest, and most, desolate place on earth, a continent twice the size of Western Europe, capped by ice over two miles thick. In 1987 glaciologist Dr Liz Morris became the first British woman to undertake remote field work with the British Antarctic Survey. Here she describes daily life during her second five-month summer stint in the frozen wastes.

November. Summer starts in Antarctica, and then I fly to the Falklands. Then, weather permitting, I travel by ship and then by plane to the glaciology base at Rothera, 900 miles south of Cape Horn. Here I put together my equipment for going into the field - sledges, food and travel for our safety. There are at most 50 people here. Rothera is quite luxurious, with heating, a doctor and a cook. We sleep in tiny rooms with four bunks, like a ship's cabin. There's no privacy. There are separate stalls in the loos and I can wash separately, but it's a community life. I tell my problems to the dogs. Only twenty huskies, born and bred in Antarctica, are left at Rothera. These days Skidos - motorbikes with tank tracks - avoid the environmental problem of killing seals for dog food and are considered more practical. But the dogs are reliable, intelligent and loving. They are very important to me. It was tough being the first woman. All the men were very courteous, but some of them, particularly the new guys, felt strongly that to have women there was wrong. Perhaps they thought that if a middle-aged woman with no particular physical skill could do it, how could they be heroes?

December. I'm set down by plane on the Ronne Ice Shelf. It is awe-inspiring. There you are in a white expanse of nothingness, a thousand miles from base. There are just two of us and for the next few months we would be utterly dependent on ourselves and each other. This gives you an amazing commitment, but to each other and the job. In December it's daylight all the time, and the sun goes round in circles overhead. I wake up at about 6 a.m. Martin and I share a small two-man tent. I've been on so many expeditions that I'm used to the lack of