1. What is the main cause of climate change according to the article?
2. What are the effects of acid rains?
3. What are the main facts which prove that climate change and pollution have been getting worse over the last years?
4. What actions can be taken to help reduce pollution?
5. What can individuals do to improve air quality?
6. Complete the sentences using the information from the text.
1. According to the text, pollution …
A) is damaging the planet
B) is not a major problem
C) is caused by the ozone layer
2. Poisonous gases …
A) reduce global warming
B) affect the ozone layer
C) are a problem in all countries
3. The greenhouse effect results in …
A) killing more animals
B) planting more trees
C) global warming
4. What does acid rain do?
A) It kills animals
B) It destroys forests
C) It kills people
5. A lot of animals are threatened because …
A) hunters kill them
B) they are killed for food
C) their habitat is being destroyed
6. To help the environment we should …
А) consume less energy
B) use other sources of energy
C) use more energy
7. Which of the following items can we recycle?
A) petrol
B) plastic
C) glass
8. What do environmentalists do?
A) They form governments.
B) They recycle everyday items.
C) They make governments help nature.
9. What do you think the expression "Think globally, act locally!” mean?
A) We should do something to reduce pollution.
B) We should all stay at home.
C) We can't reduce pollution.
10. What is the key message of this text?
A) It is too late to save our planet from pollution.
B) The problem of pollution is not as bad as they say.
C) We still have time to do something to eliminate pollution.
7. TRUE/FALSE. Mark the following statements as true (T) or false (F) or not given (NG)?
1. Global warming is happening, and humans are the primary cause.
2. The majority of disasters are associated with weather.
3. The biggest threat to wildlife is climate change.
4. The number of climate related disasters will probably grow in the near future.
5. People should join their efforts to protect the environment.
6. Water pollution is the most dangerous form of pollution.
7. Pollution is global, and individuals cannot do anything to deal with it.
8. The author implies that the growing level of environmental concern in the society is certainly a plus.
8. SUMMARISING. Read about how to write a summary at the end of this Module. Try to write a summary of Text A in 6-8 sentences according to the instructions.
9. BEFORE READING. In pairs / groups, talk about these words from the article. Try to explain their meanings or translate them into Russian. Use a dictionary if necessary.
scientists / reduction / responsible / test scores / impact / exposure / performance /warning / the rest of the world / population / damage / equate / intelligence / shortcut.
10.TRUE / FALSE. Read the headline. Guess if a-f below are true (T) or false (F).
a. Scientists say air pollution leads to big reductions in intelligence. T/F
b. Scientists said pollution reduced language and arithmetic test scores. T/F
c. About 91% of people live in areas with very polluted air. T/F
d. Air pollution is the biggest cause of death worldwide. T/F
e. Scientists said air pollution caused a loss of 10 years of education. T/F
f. A researcher said there were plenty of shortcuts to solve this problem. T/F
11. READING. Now read the text and check if your answers were correct.
Text B