Text 4. How can we help the planet?

Take a realistic approach to protecting the earth and first consider what you can do in your own home. This is much more manageable than taking on the world. It is in these simple everyday steps that one can make an impact. By setting a good example for your children, you are fostering a sense of stewardship that will last generations to come.

Make your own non-toxic cleaning products. Doing this will reduce the use of plastics because you are reusing plastic containers to hold the cleaning products. The ingredients are also biodegradable which means it is gentler on the environment.

Use cloth bags at the grocery store and for all your grocery needs. Store them in the trunk of your car so you always have them on hand. You don't have to limit their use to the grocery store. If you don't have a cloth bag with you when you are shopping, ask yourself if you need a bag at all.

Explore the idea of purchasing energy-efficient appliances. They may cost more upfront but in the end you will save money because they use less energy. Replace regular light bulbs with their energy efficient counterparts. You pay a little more, but the life of the bulb is significantly longer

Set up a compost bin. Add a few less things to the landfill by composting your kitchen scraps. All plant-derived foods, coffee grounds and tea leaves can be composted. Have a small container in your home to place items in. When the storage container gets full, transfer the waste to an outdoor bin. Use the resulting rich fertile soil in the garden.

Grow an organic garden. Being able to rely on yourself for fresh produce is very rewarding. Share your harvest with neighbors, can and preserve the excess for years to come. If you don't have the space or time to grow a garden, shop locally and support local farmers.

Reduce the use of car travel. Consider using public transportation, walking, car pooling and bike riding to get to where you want to go. If you must travel by car, shop for a fuel efficient/hybrid vehicle and keep up-to-date with emissions checks.

Reuse clothing. When possible, look for hand-me-downs for your children's clothing. Shop resale shops, garage sales and pass clothing items on to friends and family. Consider doing this with toys too. When you do buy toys, choose ones that are built to last. So many of the plastic toys available fall apart quickly and end up in the trash.

 

Exercise 1. Read and translate the text

Exercise 2. Find the following words and expressions in the text. Write them out with the sentence

защита земли, вклад, нетоксичные чистящие средства, тряпичные сумки, эркгосберегающие электроприборы, компост, удобрять, пользоваться общественным транспортом

Exercise 3. Answer the questions

1. Why is it advisable to replace regular light bulbs with more efficient ones?
2. Give examples of items that can be composted.
3. What should we do with the composted product?
4. Why should we should resistant toys?
5. What should we carry with us when we go shopping?
6.  (Personal Answer) Which instruction / advice do you consider the most important? Justify.

4. Read the text again and make up advice how to save the planet. Use the following construction: To + verb……we should……..

Retell the text

 

 Text 5. Saving the planet

Years ago there wasn't a problem with rubbish because things like plastic and disposable nappies hadn't been invented. There wasn't so much packaging on items you bought either. But now with everything so over packaged wrapped and disposable we are suffering the consequences of far too much waste. The trouble is not everything can be recycled or will rot away. You used to be able to get a refund on glass bottles when you took them back to the shop. Now they are either collected from your house by the council or you can take them to a bottle bank.

The fact that paper can be recycled and is easy to dispose is great, but remember paper is made from trees, which are important to the environment. The rainforests have been slowly disappearing for a while now. We need them not just because it helps with the climate. They are important as like all plants they give us oxygen. They are also a home to many animals who rely on them for their survival.

 The best waste is organic, dead leaves; carrot tops, onion skins and so on all rot down and make fertile soil. This in turn will help the plants and vegetables giving them much needed food. So if you are able to have a compost heap in your garden you'll be helping the environment and your garden will love you for it.

       Acid rain is another serious problem it is damaging to plants and is caused by pollutants such as sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxides. These come from the burning of coal, oil and gas.

Dropping litter is not just a lazy thing to do it makes work for other people, is bad for the environment and looks ugly. So think before you drop litter either bin it or keep it and then bin it.

When rivers and seas are polluted by waste we are not only stealing their beauty but were spoiling it for ourselves too. Our health can also suffer. Sadly accidents do occur; oil slicks sometimes happen and wreck the environment. Animals tend to suffer the most from these incidents. We should really have in place something that will prevent so much destruction, rather than just waiting for it to happen, then trying to clean up the damage.

Nuclear waste has been the cause of controversy over the years. Radioactive material leaking out would be very serious indeed, it can cause real harm. This is why it is the most worrying.

Although we are trying to stop the hole in the ozone layer getting any bigger, nuclear waste is still a serious problem. The ozone layerprotects us from harmful ultra - violet rays. Its hole has been caused by chlorofluorocarbons (cfc's) a chemical that was found in some products. Refrigerators used to contain them. So do we care enough about the earth we have inherited and our passing onto future generations? Or is it now all too late to do anything? Each one of us can make a difference and each and every one of us is responsible to the environment. It takes care of us; we should take care of it.