Snow-melting Agent
A heavy snow can kill pests and this means a good harvest next year.This will bring as well as trouble to urbanites.
On Nov.16,2003,a cold air current brought a heavy snow to Beijing.To prevent traffic jams,related government departments mobilized people to clear off snow on streets.
One of the most effective ways to clear off snow on roads is to scatter snow-melting agent on the roads.The major component of the snow-melting agent is salt.The snow-melting agent can make snow stop from freezing,make it easier to clear off the road,and allow traffic to flow smoothly.But it also brings about some hidden dangers.In the spring of 2003,over 300 000 trees in Beijing urban districts died.After analyzing soil around these trees,experts discovered that the salt content of these soils was 392 times higher than normal.Where did the excessive salt come from?After investigating,forestry experts found that when clearing snow in the winter,people usually heap snow containing snow-melting agent at trees’ roots,and that when the snow melts,this agent penetrates the soil and increases its salt content.The snow-melting agent indirectly killed the trees.
Statistics show that during a heavy snow in 2002,over 1000 tons of snow-melting agent was scatterred on streets in Beijing.Snow water containing a large amount of snow-melting agent got into the soil through sewers.
In addition,salt in the snow-melting agent can expedite the corrosion of steel bars in concrete buildings and cause the concrete to crack and peel,shortening the life of roads.
Scientists and government officials are required to solve traffic problems caused by heavy snows as soon as possible and at the same time try to reduce the negative effects of the snow-melting agent.This is a difficult problem placed before them.Related authorities have framed some local criteria to regulate the production and use of snow-melting agents.
Now,more harmless snow-melting agents are being developed.Now that even snow-melting agents that meet today’s criteria must still be used carefully,we have to rely more on our manpower and machines to clear off snow.
This year,in addition to using snow-melting agents,Beijing will use a large number of snow vehicles to clear snow on roads.In more places,citizens are mobilized to clear snow with their hands.This may be a test of a city’s civilization level.

1. 1.

   Salt is a snow-melting agent while _________ is a cleaning agent.

   1. A.
      water
   2. B.
      soap
   3. C.
      a washing-machine
   4. D.
      a housewife
2. 2.

   The third paragraph of the text is mainly about _______.

   1. A.
      the side effect of snow-melting agent
   2. B.
      a case of damage to trees caused by snow-melting agent
   3. C.
      the results of using snow-melting agent
   4. D.
      the uses of snow-melting agent
3. 3.

   According to the text,the most practical way to clear off snow is to _________.

   1. A.
      use snow-melting agent as much as possible
   2. B.
      only use more harmless snow-melting agent
   3. C.
      encourage people to clear snow with their hands
   4. D.
      use more snow vehicles
4. 4.

   This text most probably appears in_________.

   1. A.
      a newspaper
   2. B.
      a magazine on latest findings
   3. C.
      a book on salt
   4. D.
      a magazine on environmental protection

Snow-melting Agent

A heavy snow can kill pests and this means a good harvest next year.This will bring as well as trouble to urbanites.

On Nov.16,2003,a cold air current brought a heavy snow to Beijing.To prevent traffic jams,related government departments mobilized people to clear off snow on streets.

One of the most effective ways to clear off snow on roads is to scatter snow-melting agent on the roads.The major component of the snow-melting agent is salt.The snow-melting agent can make snow stop from freezing,make it easier to clear off the road,and allow traffic to flow smoothly.But it also brings about some hidden dangers.In the spring of 2003,over 300 000 trees in Beijing urban districts died.After analyzing soil around these trees,experts discovered that the salt content of these soils was 392 times higher than normal.Where did the excessive salt come from?After investigating,forestry experts found that when clearing snow in the winter,people usually heap snow containing snow-melting agent at trees’ roots,and that when the snow melts,this agent penetrates the soil and increases its salt content.The snow-melting agent indirectly killed the trees.

Statistics show that during a heavy snow in 2002,over 1000 tons of snow-melting agent was scatterred on streets in Beijing.Snow water containing a large amount of snow-melting agent got into the soil through sewers.

In addition,salt in the snow-melting agent can expedite the corrosion of steel bars in concrete buildings and cause the concrete to crack and peel,shortening the life of roads.

Scientists and government officials are required to solve traffic problems caused by heavy snows as soon as possible and at the same time try to reduce the negative effects of the snow-melting agent.This is a difficult problem placed before them.Related authorities have framed some local criteria to regulate the production and use of snow-melting agents.

Now,more harmless snow-melting agents are being developed.Now that even snow-melting agents that meet today’s criteria must still be used carefully,we have to rely more on our manpower and machines to clear off snow.

This year,in addition to using snow-melting agents,Beijing will use a large number of snow vehicles to clear snow on roads.In more places,citizens are mobilized to clear snow with their hands.This may be a test of a city’s civilization level.

Salt is a snow-melting agent while _________ is a cleaning agent.

A.water                 B.soap     C.a washing-machine     D.a housewife

The third paragraph of the text is mainly about _______.

A.the side effect of snow-melting agent

B.a case of damage to trees caused by snow-melting agent

C.the results of using snow-melting agent

D.the uses of snow-melting agent

According to the text,the most practical way to clear off snow is to _________.

A.use snow-melting agent as much as possible

B.only use more harmless snow-melting agent

C.encourage people to clear snow with their hands

D.use more snow vehicles

This text most probably appears in_________.

A.a newspaper                                                        B.a magazine on latest findings

C.a book on salt                                               D.a magazine on environmental protection

This winter, the air quality over the north China plain was so bad that it was actually off the standard scale. The air pollution reached levels that the World Health Organization describes as dangerous. On Thursday, heavy smog blanketed most of northern and eastern China again. 

It is reasonable to ask why the air pollution is so bad this winter. Weather conditions and topographic(地形学的) factors have been given as reasons, but, although contributing factors, these are not to blame. The worsening air pollution is linked to an energy mix that relies heavily on coal and to motor vehicle emissions(排放). But despite the astonishing growth of motor vehicles in our cities, it is the burning of coal that is the biggest cause of air pollution. More than half of the country's power plants are located in the eastern region and China's coal consumption has more than doubled in the past decade, reaching 3.8 billion tons last year, accounting for almost half the world's total coal consumption. And with coal occupying nearly 70 percent of the country's primary energy consumption, it has become critical to reduce the use of coal if we are to solve the nation's overall air pollution problem.

 In the face of the poisonous air recently, one citizen said, "we have nothing but hot air to purify the skies". In fact, the government plans to have 350 billion yuan ($55.67 billion) investment in improving coal-fired facilities and limiting the use of yellow-label cars that do not meet the Euro I emissions standard and so on.

 However, it would be far more effective to reduce emissions at the source, which means that the biggest challenge currently facing government departments is saying "no" to the country's air polluting offenders. According to the Joint Prevention and Control Plan on Air Pollution in Key Regions released recently by the State Council, the amount of coal the nation consumes is set to rise by 30 percent during the period of the 12th Five-Year Plan. This is not going to let anyone breathe easier. 

 This highlights a key problem when it comes to environmental issues in this country - economic development comes first. The fundamental cause of the worsening air pollution is the idea of economic growth at any cost, which has resulted in ever-worsening pollution. And the priority(优先权)given to economic growth presents another problem, namely the failure of existing environmental protection policies and regulations to control pollution. For instance, the current weak regulations covering emissions would suggest there has been a significant reduction in emissions when clearly this is not the case. Also those enterprises found breaking the regulations are still far lower than the cost of treating the pollution they produce. This means even if many large-scale enterprises with lagging production capacity(能力) fail to meet the requirements for environmental protection, the environmental protection department is incapable of shutting these enterprises down or forcing their relocation. 

Dealing with air pollution requires taking action at the local level to reduce vehicle emissions and at the regional level to reduce industrial emissions. But it also requires giving more priority to environmental issues in policymaking. Our hope is that the environmental protection department will be truly capable of saying "no" to pollution, and it will raise standards and effectively enforce them, and that governments at all levels will prioritize quality of life not just economic growth.

1.The writer mentions the heavy smog in parts of China in Paragraph1 in order to_____.

A. remind people to stay in doors because of the bad air quality

B. show people’s concern about the priority to economic growth

C. introduce the issue about the serious air pollution

D. highlight the importance of government’s policies and regulations

2.Why is it a big challenge for the government to say “no” to the air polluting offenders in China?

A. Because enterprises are encouraged to develop economy at the cost of the environment.

B. Because much emphasis has been laid on economic growth regardless of the cost.

C. Because it’s impossible to relocate the enterprises for lack of money.

D. Because the production capacity of enterprises falls behind the required speed.

3.It can be learned from the passage that the essential reason for the worsening air conditions in China is_______.

A. the sharp growth of coal consumption in recent years

B. the rapid increase of motor vehicles in cities

C. the building of power plants in northern China

D. the poor weather conditions caused by complex geographical factors

4.According to the writer, which of the following is the key to solving the air pollution problem?

A. Giving priority to economic development in policymaking.

B. Making environment-friendly policies and carrying them out effectively.

C. Increasing investment in the construction of coal-fired facilities.

D. Limiting the use of cars not meeting the required emission standard

5.Which best describes the writer’s tone in the passage?

A. Pessimistic.    B. Convincing.     C. Doubtful.      D. Concerned.

This winter, the air quality over the north China plain was so bad that it was actually off the standard scale. The air pollution reached levels that the World Health Organization describes as dangerous. On Thursday, heavy smog blanketed most of northern and eastern China again. 
It is reasonable to ask why the air pollution is so bad this winter. Weather conditions and topographic(地形学的) factors have been given as reasons, but, although contributing factors, these are not to blame. The worsening air pollution is linked to an energy mix that relies heavily on coal and to motor vehicle emissions(排放). But despite the astonishing growth of motor vehicles in our cities, it is the burning of coal that is the biggest cause of air pollution. More than half of the country's power plants are located in the eastern region and China's coal consumption has more than doubled in the past decade, reaching 3.8 billion tons last year, accounting for almost half the world's total coal consumption. And with coal occupying nearly 70 percent of the country's primary energy consumption, it has become critical to reduce the use of coal if we are to solve the nation's overall air pollution problem.
In the face of the poisonous air recently, one citizen said, "we have nothing but hot air to purify the skies". In fact, the government plans to have 350 billion yuan ($55.67 billion) investment in improving coal-fired facilities and limiting the use of yellow-label cars that do not meet the Euro I emissions standard and so on.
However, it would be far more effective to reduce emissions at the source, which means that the biggest challenge currently facing government departments is saying "no" to the country's air polluting offenders. According to the Joint Prevention and Control Plan on Air Pollution in Key Regions released recently by the State Council, the amount of coal the nation consumes is set to rise by 30 percent during the period of the 12th Five-Year Plan. This is not going to let anyone breathe easier. 
This highlights a key problem when it comes to environmental issues in this country - economic development comes first. The fundamental cause of the worsening air pollution is the idea of economic growth at any cost, which has resulted in ever-worsening pollution. And the priority(优先权)given to economic growth presents another problem, namely the failure of existing environmental protection policies and regulations to control pollution. For instance, the current weak regulations covering emissions would suggest there has been a significant reduction in emissions when clearly this is not the case. Also those enterprises found breaking the regulations are still far lower than the cost of treating the pollution they produce. This means even if many large-scale enterprises with lagging production capacity(能力) fail to meet the requirements for environmental protection, the environmental protection department is incapable of shutting these enterprises down or forcing their relocation. 
Dealing with air pollution requires taking action at the local level to reduce vehicle emissions and at the regional level to reduce industrial emissions. But it also requires giving more priority to environmental issues in policymaking. Our hope is that the environmental protection department will be truly capable of saying "no" to pollution, and it will raise standards and effectively enforce them, and that governments at all levels will prioritize quality of life not just economic growth

1. 1.

   The writer mentions the heavy smog in parts of China in Paragraph1 in order to_____

   1. A.
      remind people to stay in doors because of the bad air quality
   2. B.
      show people’s concern about the priority to economic growth
   3. C.
      introduce the issue about the serious air pollution
   4. D.
      highlight the importance of government’s policies and regulations
2. 2.

   Why is it a big challenge for the government to say “no” to the air polluting offenders in China?

   1. A.
      Because enterprises are encouraged to develop economy at the cost of the environment
   2. B.
      Because much emphasis has been laid on economic growth regardless of the cost
   3. C.
      Because it’s impossible to relocate the enterprises for lack of money
   4. D.
      Because the production capacity of enterprises falls behind the required speed
3. 3.

   It can be learned from the passage that the essential reason for the worsening air conditions in China is_______

   1. A.
      the sharp growth of coal consumption in recent years
   2. B.
      the rapid increase of motor vehicles in cities
   3. C.
      the building of power plants in northern China
   4. D.
      the poor weather conditions caused by complex geographical factors
4. 4.

   According to the writer, which of the following is the key to solving the air pollution problem?

   1. A.
      Giving priority to economic development in policymaking
   2. B.
      Making environment-friendly policies and carrying them out effectively
   3. C.
      Increasing investment in the construction of coal-fired facilities
   4. D.
      Limiting the use of cars not meeting the required emission standard
5. 5.

   Which best describes the writer’s tone in the passage?

   1. A.
      Pessimistic
   2. B.
      Convincing
   3. C.
      Doubtful
   4. D.
      Concerned