V Rendering.

1. Read the text and translate it using a dictionary: Ecological Problems

Since ancient times Nature has served Man, being the source of his life. For thousands of years people lived in harmony with environment and it seemed to them that natural riches were unlimited. But with the development of civilization man’s interference in nature began to increase.

Large cities with thousands of smoky industrial enterprises appear all over the world today. The by-products of their activity pollute the air we breathe, the water we drink, the land we grow grain and vegetables on.

Every year world industry pollutes the atmosphere with about 1 million tones of dust and other harmful substances. Many cities suffer from smog. Vast forests are cut and burnt in fire. Their disappearance upsets the oxygen balance. As a result some rare species of animals, birds, fish and plants disappear forever, a number of rivers and lakes dry up.

The pollution of air and the world’s ocean, destruction of the ozone layer is the result of man’s careless interaction with nature, a sign of the ecological crises.

Environment protection is of a universal concern. That is why serious measures to create a system of ecological security should be taken.

Some progress has been already made in this direction. As many as 159 countries – members of the UNO – have set up environmental protection agencies. Numerous conferences have been held by these agencies to discuss problems facing ecologically poor regions including the Aral Sea, the South Urals, Kuzbass, Donbas and Chernobyl. The international organisation Greenpeace is also doing much to preserve the environment.

But these are only the initial steps and they must be carried onward to protect nature, to save life on the planet not only for the sake of the present but also for the future generations.

If we continue to exploit the Earth in the way we have been doing, the planet will soon be destroyed. Do you agree?

2. Make up a plan of the text in the form of questions.

3. Give a summary of the text according to your plan in a written form.

VI Comprehensive skills.

1. Read and remember:

1. environmental protection – захист навколишнього середовища

2. acid rain – кислотний дощ

3. greenhouse effect – „тепличний ефект”

4. to damage the nature – завдавати шкоди природі

5. species – біол. вид

6. to threaten – загрожувати

7. to disappear – зникати

8. extinct – вимерлий, зниклий

9. to preserve – зберігати

10. unique properties – унікальні властивості

2. Listen to the text ‘Environmental Protection’ and try to understand it.

3. True or false statements:

1. People all over the world are worried about the nature.

2. Ecologists list only 50 species that disappeared from the planet.

3. In Hawaii almost all kinds of animals are unique.

4. We have to preserve plants because they are beautiful.

5. People themselves damage the nature a lot.

4. Listen to the text once more and answer the following questions:

1. Why is it dangerous to eat mushrooms from the woods or fish from the river?

2. How many extinct species do ecologists list?

3. On what islands are 95 per cent of the plants unique?

4. What are the reasons for protecting the nature?

‘Wish’ / ‘If only’ sentences

‘Wish’ або ‘If only’ виражає бажану дію або стан, що суперечить дійсності. ‘If only’ – є більш категоричним. Форма дієслова ‘to be’ у минулому часі має форму множини для всіх осіб (were).

I wish the air were clearer. Добре було б, якщо повітря було б

чистішим.

‘Wish’ / ‘If only’…would бажаємо, щоб щось сталося або, навпа-

ки, не відбулося у майбутньому

1. I wish the climate wouldn’t Мені хотілося б, щоб клімат не

cause natural disasters. спричиняв природні катастрофи.

2. If only we’d think more Якби тільки ми більше думали про

about our nature. природу.

‘Wish’ / ‘If only’…the past бажаємо, щоб змінився стан речей

1. I wish I lived in a village. Шкода, що я не живу у селі.

2. If only I were a scientist, Якби тільки я був вченим, я б

I might know more about більше знав про тропічні ліси.

the rainforest.

‘Wish’ / ‘If only’…the past perfect жалкуємо про минуле

1. I wish we hadn’t had the world Шкода, що у Чорнобилі сталася

biggest nuclear accident найбільша у світі ядерна катастрофа.

in Chornobyl.

2. If only people had been more Якби тільки люди були більш

careful, we had had a larger area дбайливими, Амазонські ліси займали

of the Amazon forest. більшу територію.

‘Wish’ / ‘If only’...could бажання стосовно теперішнього часу

1. If only we could solve Якби тільки ми могли вирішити

the problem of pollution. проблему забруднення.

2. I wish I could get more Мені хотілося б знати більше про

information about ecological екологічну ситуацію у нашій країні.

situation in our country.