I. Suggest your own heading to the text and give your reasons.
II. Answer these questions.
1. Do the two ways of disposing of waste cause environmental damage?
2. What does burning garbage give off?
3. Are the soil and water supply contaminated when garbage is buried?
4. What are the dangers of landfill sites?
5. How is domestic waste disposed of?
6. How much domestic waste can be recycled?
7. Do people need to take the trouble to sort their trash?
III. Choose the best answer.
1.The volume of industrial and domestic waste has increased over the past
A 40 years.
B 50 years.
C 30 years.
2. What chemical combination do fossil fuels produce?
A sulphur dioxide
B nitrogen dioxide
C carbon dioxide
3. What is meant by ‘unintentional water pollution’ ?
A leakage of toxic waste into the water supply caused by accidents
B discharge of industrial waste into the water supply directly
C discharge of solid waste
4. Why is oil a harmful pollutant?
A it coats the feathers of birds and the scales of fish and reduces the level of oxygen dissolved.
B it comes from accidents.
C it comes from deliberate washing of tanks at sea.
5. What does thermal pollution cause?
A growth of micro-organisms and disruption of the aquatic ecosystem
B overgrowth of micro-organisms and disruption of the aquatic ecosystem
C kills bacteria and algae
6. How is soil pollution brought about?
A it occurs only when industrial waste is dumped on the land.
B it occurs when waste is buried or dumped on the land, and via polluted air and water.
C it occurs only when waste is buried in landfill sites.
IV. Work in pairs or groups. Tell each other your answers. Read out the parts of the text which helped you to decide.
V. Role play
The local authorities have decided to make a landfill site not far from the place where you live. You know that it will cause environmental damage and are going to protest against it. The administration of a chemical plant takes interest in making a landfill site as it will economize on expensive equipment to purify water and air.
Act out the situation as:
common people not far from the place where the landfill site will be made
ecoactivists
mayor of the town
administration of a chemical plant.
Make use of the following expressions: it’s obvious that; you must agree that; why don’t you?; how about?; be reasonable about it, please; but first, shouldn’t we?; even so, …; I’m not sure I agree with you. I mean…; I’m not sure you are right. You see…; I see what you mean, but…; Look at it this way. That’s all right for you, but…; Yes, but have you considered that…?; Yes, but on the other hand; I can’t be certain, but I think..; I could be wrong, but I think…; If you want to know what I think,…; I’m not at all sure that…; Not everybody will agree with me, but…
Vocabulary and grammar
I. Match the verbs in column A with their opposites in column B.
A B
create damage
save neglect
care for pollute
improve destroy
purify waste
II. Complete the following table with nouns and adjectives related to the verbs listed.
Verb |
Noun |
Adjective |
Waste Damage Improve Neglect Destroy Pollute Create Purify Congest
|
waste |
xxxxxxxxx
xxxxxxxx |
III. Match words from column A with words from column B to make phrases related to the environment.
A B
ozone effect
global pollution
rain layer
food explosion
air rain
greenhouse shortages
acid forests
population warming
IV. Complete the sentences below by beginning with one of the phrases from ex. III, and using appropriate forms of verbs from the box.
cause play protect make affect result |
a... life in our cities unhealthy.
b... people in several countries in Sub-Saharan Africa.
c... many fish in the lakes of Northern Europe to die.
d... from the accumulation of carbon dioxide and other manmade gases in the atmosphere, which absorb and reflect more of the sun’s heat than is normal.
e... an important role in the climate patterns of the whole world.
f... us from the adverse effects of ultra-violet radiation.
V. The words in the box all have similar meanings.
-
spoil ruin harm damage destroy mar
Use a dictionary if necessary to arrange them in order on the line below.
W
eakest
Strongest
Which would you be most likely to use to talk about the following?
i a car after a slight accident
ii a day of your holiday when things went badly
iii a building after a bad storm
iv a building after heavy bombing
v people’s lungs in a polluted city
vi a meal after too much cooking
vii a vie from the top of a hill after the building of a road
viii a businessman or woman who is bankrupt.
VI. These nouns all refer to different kinds of waste. Match them with their definitions.
-
garbage refuse scrap litter trash junk debris sewage
a something worthless or of low quality
b waste material to be thrown away
c the remains of smth broken into pieces or destroyed
d old useless things
e small things, usually paper, that have been thrown away
f waste material of any kind
g liquid waste from people’s houses and buildings
h rubbish collected or thrown away from people’s houses
i waste metal
Which two words are mainly used by Americans instead of rubbish?
Which of these nouns can also be used as verbs? What meanings would the verbs have?
VII. Translate the following sentences from Ukrainian into English.
Багато домашнього сміття може бути переробленою
Електрогенеруюча промисловість спричиняє забруднення повітря, бо все тверде паливо виділяє двоокис вуглецю.
Коли заводи скидають стічні води у водойми, це завдає шкоди навколишньому середовищу.
Нафта – велике джерело забруднення води, яке знижує рівень розчиненого кисню і тоді море зовсім не може підтримувати життя.
Наскільки мені відомо, домашнє сміття або скидають на звалищах, або спалюють у сміттєспалювальних печах.
Ґрунт треба очистити від всіх бактерій.
Німецька компанія розробила процес, який спалює майже будь-яке сміття.
Місце мало жахливий вигляд – повсюди було сміття та розбите скло.
WRITING
Your school or college has decided to organize a service in your area to collect waste paper and glass for recycling. Write a letter to your local radio station, giving details of the planned service and asking them to pass on this information for the benefit of local residents.
Hints. A letter giving information is a formal piece of writing related to a particular situation. Its main purpose is to give information, usually when this has been requested by smb else. It may also provide suggestions, request help, give an opinion, etc. Each point should be presented in a separate paragraph containing a clear topic sentence supported by examples and / or justification.
Useful Language:
I am writing to inform you that/ advise you of/ let you know that/ on behalf of smb/ in the hope that you could inform.
It is hoped that by doing this
We would be extremely grateful
As you are doubtless aware
This would ensure that
It would be greatly appreciated
This service will undoubtedly
I would like to express my thanks
Please do not hesitate to contact me should you require any further information.
UNIT 5
SOIL POLLUTION AND AGRICULTURE
Functions practised: asking for/stating and justifying opinion.
Vocabulary Area: fungus, fertilizer, pesticide, drainage, smelter, fertility, to spoil, to dump, to discard, to seep into smth, hazardous, to pose (a problem), crop rotation, to combat, to prey upon smb, pest, to be resistant to smb/smth, genetically engineered plants, deposit, crop, irrigation.
LISTENING AND SPEAKING
You are going to listen to an extract from an interview with Tony Cripps. He talks about his experiences during the campaign against the second runway at Manchester airport. Listen and mark the following statements (T) true or (F) false, according to what he says.
Many wild animals and trees were destroyed when the second runway at Manchester was built.
The protesters wanted to close Manchester airport.
They built tunnels underground and locked themselves to trees.
Their aim was to stay there as long as possible.
Their actions cost the building company a lot of money.
Do you think it is acceptable to do illegal and dangerous things to draw attention to a cause you believe in?