Britain’s seed bank, the only one in the world aiming to
collect all of the planet’s wild plant species, has reached its goal of banking
10 percent by 2010.
The Millennium Seed Bank Project, run by Kew Gardens—one
of the oldest botanical gardens—will officially deposit the 24,200th species on
Thursday, a pink, wild banana from China.
More than 50 countries are now on board with Kew's giant
task but vast places of the globe, including India and Brazil, still need to
join in and donate seeds, director Paul Smith
said.
The seed bank is one of the largest and most diverse in
the world with more than 1.5 billion seeds. Its goal is to help protect the
planet’s bio-diversity during a time of climate change.
The wild banana seed is under threat of extinction(灭绝) in southwest China from
agricultural development. It is a vital food source for Asian elephants and
important for growing bananas for human consumption.
Stored at minus-20 degrees centigrade, so they can last
for thousands of years, the seeds await the day that scientists hope never
comes—when the species no longer exist in the wild.
It is
a race against time, Smith said, because in the last decade alone, 20 plants
held in the bank have already been wiped out in the wild. He estimates that
between a third and a quarter will become extinct this century.
"It is urgent and it is happening now. An area, the
size of England, is cleared of primary vegetation(植被)every year." Smith said.
Because most of the world's food and medicines come from
nature, protecting wild plant species is quite important, scientists say. There
are already many other seed banks safeguarding food crops, which only account
for 0.6 percent of plant diversity.
For Kew's next goal—to collect a quarter of wild
varieties by 2020—the botanists need 10 million pounds a year, or a further 100
million pounds on top of the 40 million they have already been granted.
1.What’s the final purpose of the Britain’s
seed bank?
A. To
collect enough money for the project. B. To safeguard food crops.
C. To
protect wild plants from extinction. D.
To help scientists study wild plants.
2.The wild banana seed in China is in danger
because of _______.
A. the
expanding of farming
work B. the climate
change in this area
C. the
large number of Asian elephants D. human’s
large consumption
3. We can learn from the passage that _______.
A. the
seeds in the bank can be used now and then all over the world
B.
India and Brazil haven’t joined in the Seed Bank Project at present
C.
there is only one seed bank in the world at present
D. the
wild plants in places like India and China will never die out
4. What does the underlined word “it” in
paragraph 7 refer to?
A. The
extinction of plant species. B.
The Millennium Seed Bank Project.
C. Britain’s seed bank. D.
Kew Gardens’ next goal.
5.Which of the following information isn’t
mentioned in the passage?
A. The
global partnership of collecting wild plant species.
B. The
temperature condition of the conservative wild plant species.
C. The
government’s financial support for the seed bank project.
D. Scientists’ concern on the extinct wild plant
species.