Water pollution. The water crisis

Text C

1. Pay attention to the following words and word combinations:

access - доступ

shortage of smth. – нехватка чего-либо

sewage – сточные воды

demand for smth. – спрос на что-либо

supply - предложение

per capita – на душу населения

to plague – насылать бедствие

to curb - сдерживать

to endanger – подвергать опасности

2. Read the text and be ready to say if the following statements are true or false. Use the following phrases:

I think it’s right.

It seems to be wrong.

I can’t agree with it.

As far as I know …

To my mind

On the contrary

1. Nowadays water has become undrinkable.

2. Demand for water increases greatly.

3. Water-borne diseases account for 70 % of infections in the developing world.

4. There are no differences in per capita water consumption between different countries.

5. Some people die every year from unsafe water.

6. Industrial effluent is a great danger for Africa and Asia.

One of the most urgent problems in the world today is the shortage of the clean water. Access to clean water is the basic human right. But acid rains, industrial pollution and sewage dumping, oil spills have made water undrinkable.

Worldwide demand for water is doubling every 21 years, more in some regions. Supply can′t remotely keep pace with demand, because of growing population, especially in the third world countries. Water shortage plagues almost every country in North Africa and the Middle East. Water-borne diseases account for 80 % of infections in the developing world. More than 3 mln people die every year from unsafe water. The demand for water in many countries outruns the supply. Water is likely to become a growing source of tension and competition between nations. There are large differences in per capita water consumption between different countries. In some countries people are surviving on the daily ration equal to or less than a bucket of water, while average American uses 1000 litres of water a day. We are running out something no one can live without.

According to the UN Commission on Water for 21 st century more than half of the world′s major rivers are going dry or are polluted. They are posing a threat to the health of the people who depend on them for irrigation, drinking and industrial water.

Lake Baikal in Siberia with a depth more than a mile, contains one-fifth of the world′s fresh water resources. The local people call it the Holy sea. It contains a rich variety of animals and plants, including rare species that do not exist anywhere else in the world. Now the environment around Lake Baikal is endangered because of massive volumes of industrial effluent. The world′s natural underground reservoirs are diminishing rapidly.

Across Africa, Asia, and South America, ground levels are dropping up to 10 feet a year, largely due to irrigation. The UN called on government to curb the use of ground water and to ensure that countries relying on irrigation move away from water-hungry crops.

3. Make up the plan to the text.

4. Give a brief summary of the text.

Text D

1. Read the text and choose the most suitable title out of the given ones:

a) Genetically modified plants.

b) Genetic Pollution.

c) Diseases Treatment.

Scientists can use genetic engineering to grow crops and animals that are resistant to common diseases, and which provide more food for people to eat. Due to it genetic engineering may be of great help in the fighting with starvation in the developing countries. Genetic engineering can be used to treat some diseases in humans, for example the cells that cause cancer can be changed. Besides that it also0 makes possible to avoid passing on hereditary diseases.

But unfortunately there is a downside in the genetically engineered plants and animals that may strongly affect the balance of nature. Nowadays genetic pollution became a reality. A new kind of pollutants emerged that behave according the rules of biology. Such pollutant is assumed to have ability to cope itself over and over again, so that its impact on the environment will increase with time rather than diminish.

The genie of genetically modified (GM) plants is already out of bottle. More than two thirds of conventional crops in the US are now contaminated with genetically modified material. The nature of GM products and their long term action are not well understood as these products have not been properly tested before being released into the environment. The genetic modification of plants raises important problems for the science and the public about the potential benefits and risks of this technology.

2. Write out:

а) key words and terms;

b) the sentences expressing the main idea of each paragraph.

Unit 6

GRAMMAR: Subjunctive Mood.

1. a) Translate the following words and word combinations into Russian:

ice cap, to melt, flood, to happen, greenhouse gases, urgent, to meet standards, to improve, to evolve, pollutant, solid content, wastewater treatment plant, sewage, standard of living, recycle, chemicals.

b) Put the words in the correct order to form sentences.

1. are, operations, to purify, used, water, Many.

2. to, water, is, the, Access, basic, clean, rights, human.

3. The, receives, energy, Earth, the, from, the sun.

4. gas, Water, important, is, the most, natural, vapour, greenhouse.

5. of, atmospheric, The, are, gases, strong absorbers, infra-red energy.

2. Read the sentences and translate them into Russian paying attention to the Subjunctive Mood. Identify Conditionals I and II.

1. If there were no the gaseous atmosphere, all of heat the earth radiates would be lost into space.

2. If the temperature of the oceans increased due to global warming, it could lead to melting of the polar ice caps.

3. In case the ice caps melts, sea level would arise and as a result many coastal areas would be flooded.

4. If changes in climate and weather happened faster, natural vegetation and crops could not adapt to them.

5. If nuclear power stations were not important in supplying electricity, there would be much argument for their closing out.

6. It would be better, if policy of development were more sensitive to the environment.

7. If emissions of greenhouse gases were cut to 60-8- per cent, the Earth climate would stabilize.

8. If it had not been a series of accidents, public opinion would not have turned to urgent need to protect Nature.

3. Read the text and translate it using a dictionary.

Text A

Дата добавления: 2014-10-17