第五大类：  环境保护类

1. 企业和环境的关系

段落大意：企业应该承担一定的社会责任，来保护我们的环境。

Since the rise of environmental awareness, business and industry have always considered environmentalism (环保主义) a waste of time, only getting in the way of profits and production. From the perspective of business, environmentalists push for regulations and restrictions on businesses which cost them more money and frequently restrict some of their practices. What business and economy doesn’t know is that they can actually save money by being environmentally responsible, while protecting the very resources they depend on. The protection of the environment does not only have intrinsic (内在的) value, but also has economic value from which business and industry can benefit. These factors can lead to a new economy that protects what it needs instead of destroying it.

2. 人类增长和环境

段落大意：人类的快速增长会给环境带来更大压力。

The human population is expected to double in the next 50 years, and the ever-growing global population needs vast amounts of food, energy and raw materials. We cannot continue to get these supplies in the way we do now without damaging the earth’s environment beyond repair. Pollution, deforestation (森林砍伐), over-fishing, intensive farming and above all global warming are having great impact on the environment. We need to find ways to improve our food productivity, and to obtain our energy and raw materials in more sustainable ways.

3. 全球化和环境

段落大意：全球化的发展使环境问题已经不单纯是一个国家的问题，它变成了全球的问题。

Globalization can be defined as the trend away from distinct national economic units and toward one huge global market. This trend can be found on many aspects in the business world, be it political, economical, or social. Yet one factor that is of great importance in making globalization possible is the environment issue. The environmental crisis in one nation does not only involve that nation, but also involve the globe village. Developed nations such as the United States should have policies toward the world market that protect the standards and regulations designed to reserve the environment.

4. 环境问题

段落大意：树林的砍伐，动物的灭绝，酸雨的危害，都成为现在人类面对的严重环境问题。

When industrialization began, little thought was given to its ecological effects. Untreated sewage（污水）was poured into rivers and seas. Animals were killed for profit to the point of extinction. The loss of trees through uncontrolled deforestation caused erosion and unstable climate. Acid rain (酸雨) was caused by the poisonous gases released from industries and automobiles. Chemicals in pesticides (杀虫剂) killed animals of no harm but threatened people’s health. Herbicides (除草剂) harmed crops and degraded soil. The balance of nature was disturbed.

5. 天气变化

段落大意：天气变化在近些年来越来越明显。

Climate change is neither new nor unusual. Throughout the history of the earth, the average surface temperature, climate and greenhouse gas concentrations have changed, sometimes gradually other times quite sharply. During the past 10,000 years the earth has been in an interglacial（间冰期）period with fairly stable climate, surface temperature, and greenhouse gas concentrations. However, scientists have discovered that in the past 150 years, especially the last 50 ones, the greenhouse gas concentration has increased significantly, making the 20th century the hottest in the last 10,000 years.

6. 天气变暖的主要原因

段落大意：天气变暖的主要原因是大气中的气体阻碍热量向外层空间释放。
Although the earth has undergone periodic (周期性的) changes known as global cooling and global warming, today’s global warming is unique, due to human influences. The greenhouse effect is essentially caused by gasses in the atmosphere which keep heat from spreading into the exterior space. The major heat trapping gasses found in the atmosphere are CO2 and water vapor—which are found in large quantity, ozone (臭氧), CH4 (methane（甲烷）), and N2O (nitrous oxide（氧化亚氮）)—which are better heat trapper but found in smaller quantity, CFC (氟氯化碳)—which is very potent (有力的) to destroy ozone. The rapid increase of these gasses in the past fifty years has been the cause for what scientists call a global warming problem.

7. 燃料对环境的影响

段落大意：燃料的污染会对环境带来很大危害。

Fossil fuels include gasoline (汽油), oil, coal, or natural gases. Whenever we burn them, pollutant gases are emitted (排放) into the atmosphere. Fossil fuels, which are mainly burned to run cars and trucks, heat homes, provide energy for business and power factories, are responsible for about 98% of U.S carbon dioxide emissions, 24% of methane (甲烷) emissions and 18% of nitrous oxide (氧化亚氮) emissions. Because of the harmful effects of these pollutant gases, they pose a major threat to the environment.

8. 环境问题的严峻性

段落大意：环境问题日益严重。我们应该为了自己以及后代子孙的健康发展，重视环境问题。

The environment is a strongly arguable issue in today’s world of highly dense populations and forever growing technologies. People rely daily on the use of cars for example as means of transportation to and from their work. People travel far distances much more than they used to a century years ago due to the ease of traveling by plane, and the fact that they will reach their destinations in a matter of hours. The point is, for such great advantages that we take for granted, there’s an even greater disadvantage, the destruction of our environment. We are abusing our home. Something has to be done to help save the environment for the sake of our children and grandchildren, for their health and new development.

9. 全球变暖

段落大意：全球变暖将引发广泛问题。

Global warming is sometimes referred to as the greenhouse effect. The greenhouse effect is the absorption of energy radiated from the earth’s surface by carbon dioxide and other gases in the atmosphere, causing the atmosphere to become warmer. The greenhouse effect is what is causing the temperature on the earth to rise, and creating many problems that will begin to occur in the coming decades.

10．人类和环境

段落大意：人类的发展以环境的牺牲作为代价。
For the last 10,000 years, the earth’s climate has been extraordinarily beneficial to mankind. Humans have prospered tremendously (极大地) well under a benign（良性的） atmosphere. Today, however, major changes are taking place. People are conducting an inadvertent（因疏忽造成的） global experiment by changing the face of the entire planet. We are destroying the ozone layer（臭氧层）, which allows life to exist on the earth’s surface. All of these activities are unfavorably altering (改变) the composition of the biosphere（生物圈）and the earth’s heat balance.

11. 全球变暖的原理

段落大意：温室效应使全球变暖，这将给环境带来很大危害。

The greenhouse effect and global warming are issues that have been talked about by geologists all the time. The greenhouse effect is a natural process that keeps the earth at temperatures that are livable. Energy from the sun warms the earth when its heat rays (射线) are absorbed by greenhouse gasses and become trapped in the atmosphere. Some of the most common greenhouse gasses are water vapor, carbon dioxide, and methane. If there were no greenhouse gasses, very few rays would be absorbed and the earth would be extremely cold. When too many rays are absorbed, the earth’s atmosphere starts to warm, which leads to global warming. Global warming can lead to many problems that affect the environment in which we live.

12. 气温升高的危害

段落大意：气温的升高可能给人类和其他生物带来灭绝性的危害。

The effects of global warming touch everything on this planet, including human, animal, plant, ocean, landmass, and atmosphere level, etc. The numerous effects of global warming are mixes of  “good” and “bad” results, depending on how your definition of “good” results and “bad” results are. A “good” effect, a person could say, would be for regions with normally cold temperatures to have warmer temperatures. However, there are more “bad” effects that seem to outweigh the “good” ones. Some of the effects would include increases of flooding, severe storms, and rising sea-levels. One major consequence would be an increase of temperature globally. This would lead to a chain reaction that would change precipitation (降雨量) within many ecosystems, which could cause a possible alteration（改变）in migration routes of various animals or produce permanent damage to creatures and their habitats（栖息地）, or worse, result in extinction of animals that cannot stand the change.

13. 保护环境

段落大意：人类活动正在威胁着我们的地球，我们应该提高自己保护环境的意识。

In the recent years there has been a significant rise in people’s concern for the environment. We all affect the natural environment, but we are often unaware of how much we affect it. The earth is an integrated system and there is no part of the earth we can say is not affected by our actions. Our actions are now threatening the health of our planet, the land we live in and work on, the water supply, the ozone layer, the animal species as well as the health of our human beings. Some people may question, “The problem is too great and what can we do now?” Well, we can reflect on our behavior and believe that we can make a difference.

14. 人类活动对环境的危害

段落大意：人类对环境造成毁灭性的危害。

According to the National Academy of Sciences, global warming over the past century has caused a rise in earth’s surface temperature of about 1 degree Fahrenheit (华氏摄氏度). There is an evidence to substantiate（证实）attribution（归因）of the increased rate of this warming phenomenon over the past 50 years to human activities. Human activities have altered the chemical composition of earth’s atmosphere through the increase of greenhouse gases, chiefly carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide.

15. 水污染

段落大意：塑料、废弃物等对水的污染会带来很大的危害。

Water pollution has affected many people and animals. Water pollution is the disposal (处理) of garbage into streams, rivers and oceans. Some of the water pollution is from littering, some is done by chemical leaks, and others by ships. There are many causes for water pollution. The main one is plastics. The reason for that is that plastics take four hundred and fifty years to decompose (分解) in water. Many companies use plastic and people throw it in waterways（水路）. Since water can float and be driven by the wind, plastics can cause great harm to creatures hundreds of feet from where they were originally dumped. Such waste includes bags, bottles, cups, straws (吸管), cup lids（盖子）, utensils（器具）, fishing line, and floats（漂浮物）, etc.

16. 空气污染 Ⅰ

段落大意：空气污染关系到世界上每一个人，引起了广泛的关注。本段讲述了大气层的各组成部分。

Air pollution is a major problem affecting the entire world. In the United States some progress has been made in reducing air pollution through the Clean Air Acts passed by the Congress. Still there is a lot to be done. To prevent air pollution it is important to understand how the air is being polluted, how it impacts on the ecosystem and what we can do about it. Earth is surrounded by layers of gases known as atmosphere. The layer closest to the earth is called the troposphere (对流层). It extends up to ten miles above the surface of the earth. Over the troposphere is the stratosphere（同温层）which extends from ten to forty miles above the earth. Ozone is a part of the stratosphere that blocks the sun’s harmful ultraviolet rays (紫外线) from reaching the earth. Over the stratosphere is the ionosphere (电离层) which extends up to 400 miles. In the ionosphere, the gases are broken into individual electrically charged particles（粒子）called ions（离子）.

17. 空气污染Ⅱ

段落大意：人类社会的很多废弃物都会污染大气环境，如燃油等。

Air pollution occurs when wastes dirty the air. Natural pollutants（污染物）include dust, soil particles and naturally occurring gases. Most of the wastes that cause air pollution are created by human beings. These wastes are mainly in the form of gases or particles of solid or liquid substance, which result chiefly from burning fuel to power motor vehicles. Industrial processes and the burning of garbage also contribute to air pollution.

18.空气污染Ⅲ

段落大意：激增的人口、持续发展的工业以及机动车等交通工具都会对大气环境造成污染。
The rapid growth of population and industry and the increased use of automobiles and airplanes have made air pollution a serious problem. The air we breathe in has become so filled with pollutants that it can cause health problems. Polluted air also harms plants, animals, building materials and fabrics (织物). In addition, it causes damage by altering the earth’s atmosphere.

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19.环境污染的严重性

段落大意：环境日益恶化，危害了我们赖以生存的大气、水和其他资源。

Our environment is affected by our daily actions. The earth is plagued（受折磨）with land, air and water pollution. Some of the problems we face are deforestation, nuclear waste, acid rain, global warming, overpopulation and animal endangerment. Air pollution has many different causes. Power stations, oil refineries (精炼厂), chemical plants, and steel mills（制造厂）contribute to about 140 million tons of pollutants into the air every year. Automobiles account for at least 80 percent of air pollution, making it the heaviest polluter. Another type of air pollution is acid rain. Acid rain is formed when sulfur (硫) and nitrogen（氮）are released from factories, automobiles and power plants. The sulfur and nitrogen rise up into the clouds and come down as rain that is contaminated (污染的). It damages forests, crops and soil and kills fish and animals that live in water.

20. 人类生存离不开物种多样性

段落大意：人类的生存离不开物种多样性，但是各种动植物正在急速灭绝。

Human life cannot exist in the absence of millions of species in biological systems. However, as humans, we live in a period of the greatest loss of plant and animal species since the mega-extinctions（巨型灭绝）of the Jurassic (侏罗纪) Period 65 million years ago. Harvard University biologist E.O. Wilson estimates that “50,000 plant and animal species disappear each year due to tropical deforestation, expanding agriculture, and human settlement”. Human activities impact the environment, including clearing forests for agriculture, air, land and water pollution, and the introduction of invasive or non-native wildlife species. If land and wildlife are largely influenced by human activities, humans risk fragmenting (打破) habitats and pushing wildlife to extinction.

21. 保护环境的个人行为

段落大意：个人的良好行为，包括不随意扔垃圾、实行回收等，可以教育他人，并引导他人保护环境。

Through your lifestyle and manners, you can make others aware of the environment and its constant fragile (脆弱的) state. Many people don’t understand that their actions are actually doing harm. By not littering, others will see how easy it is to actually walk to the garbage can. When you pick up trash, your peers will notice how much nicer and cleaner your surroundings seem, and will in turn want that for themselves. When you recycle, they’ll see how simple and easy it is, and what a difference it makes. They will see that there are alternative ways to make their homes and personal environments a lot healthier to live in. Eventually they will see that there is a need to preserve the environment for ourselves and our future, and reap（收获）the benefits by doing so. Eventually they’ll understand that they hold the future in their hands, and that in the end it’s their choice.

22. 热带雨林的重要作用表现

段落大意：热带雨林是人类的宝贵财富，它不但在环境保护上有重要作用，在经济上也会为人类带来很大利益。

“In every sense, a standing rain forest supplies more economic wealth than if it were cleared. Yet deforestation continues at an alarming rate.” (Tropical Rain Forest Coalition, 1996). Rain forests have played a significant role in shaping modern biology. The destruction of the rain forests will influence the fate of all species including various kinds of plants and animals. Many people do not understand the long-term consequences of losing the earth’s rain forests. Rain forests have provided human beings with many natural resources and medicines. Traditionally, there are three major causes of the destruction of rain forests: logging, farming and ranching (牧场经营).

23. 土地资源的减少

段落大意：我们需要保护人类的资源，土地，以维持人类日后的生存和发展。

Though most of the world’s surface is covered by water, since the earth is so large, there doesn’t appear to be a shortage of land. However, when one begins to think of land in terms of human resources, that is, a producer of food, a provider of wood and other raw materials, one realizes that many parts of the earth are either too lacking in nutrients (营养物), too high in elevation（海拔）, too prone（倾向于）to flooding, or too cold for humans to live. Furthermore, habitable lands are becoming less abundant due to desertification (沙漠化) (the expansion of deserts due to the misuse of land), and rising sea levels. Since humans aren’t the only species that need land, it isn’t surprising that this resource is becoming limited for other forms of life too. In part as a result of this stress on living things, we have witnessed extinctions of animals at a rate of thousands of species per year. Since these losses are largely due to human actions, such as deforestation and non-native species introduction, many are beginning to pay attention to how we use and protect land. Recent ecological research has also rung alarm bells for the future well-being of life on this planet.

24. 二手烟对人体健康的威胁

段落大意：二手烟已经被证明会导致多种疾病，包括心脏病等。

Exposure to secondhand smoke is called involuntary smoking, or passive smoking. Passive smoking causes at least 3,000 known deaths a year according to the Environmental Protection Agency. Passive smoking has been consistently linked to an increased risk for coronary (冠状动脉的) heart disease and may be responsible for more than 30 cardiovascular (心脏血管的) deaths annually in the U.S. alone.