Question

This week, our topic is pollution. What’s the answer to all of our pollution problems? We asked two experts to give their views.

Forest Smith is a member of Green First, an environmental group:

Our future on Earth looks terrible. We’re filling our country with waste. We can’t breathe the air and the sea is polluted too.

I visited some relatives recently in a small village. They grow their own food and cycle everywhere. They are not rich, but they are happy and healthy. We have too many possessions. Most of us have more things that we would ever need. It’s such a waste!

We must close down most of our factories that would reduce rubbish and the air pollution. We must recycle more, give up all cars and improve public transport. Another big problem is that we live in big cities that are crowded with people. It’s time for us to give up our big cities and factories and go back to a simple way of life.

John Green is a scientist at a university:

“Things are not as bad as Forest says. We all have a bright future. We don’t need to give up cars, but we do need to invent better, cleaner cars that do not pollute the environment. Traffic will still be bad, so we need better public transport. We should also recycle more. But some things are getting better. My sister returned last month after living abroad for five years. She said, “Our city looks different from before—it is cleaner and greener now.

Science has made life better in so many ways. A hundred years ago, most people died before the age of fifty because life was so hard. We can’t go back to a world like that.”

1.What’s Green First?

2.Why do Forest Smith’s relatives grow their own food?

3.who thinks we should invent cleaner cars?

4.Why does Forest Smith suggest closing down most of our factories?

5.What do both experts think we should do to deal with pollution problems?

Answer 1