Air pollution, global warming and overflowing landfills are the most serious environmental problems we are currently facing today.
The main cause of air pollution is the burning of fossil fuels. Other human activities, such as construction and the burning of waste, also contribute to air pollution. The effects on our health can be very serious. You can easily contribute to (reduce) air pollution by using public transport.
Global warming (cause) by the build-up of carbon dioxide and other pollutants in the atmosphere. These trap the sun's heat and warm up the planet. Global warming has already caused wide range of problems.
Landfills are used for waste disposal in many countries around the world. However, due the amount of waste our lifestyles produce, these landfills are now reaching full capacity. When this happens, the chances of dangerous (chemical) in the waste entering our water supply increase. The amount of waste in landfills in China (rise) greatly over the last decade. The government is now trying to find alternative waste disposal methods. Apart from the three Rs (Reduce, Reuse and Recycle), some experts have begun advocating the fourth R — Responsibility. They believe , although recycling waste is effective, the most effective way of solving the problem of overflowing landfills (be) to encourage people (take) responsibility for reducing the waste they produce (they).
Trees are useful to man in three very important ways: they provide him food, wood and other products; they give him shade; and they help to prevent drought(干旱) and floods.
Unfortunately, in many parts of the world, man has not realized that the third of these services is the most important. In his eagerness to draw quick profit from the trees, he has cut them down in large numbers.
Two thousand years ago, a rich and powerful country cut down its trees to build warships, with which to gain itself an empire. It gained the empire but, without its trees, its soil became bare and poor. When the empire fell to pieces, the country found itself faced by floods and starvation.
Even where the government realizes the importance of a plentiful supply of trees, it is difficult sometimes to make the people realize this. They cut down the trees but are too careless to plant and look after new trees. So unless the government has a good system of control, or can educate the people, the forests will slowly disappear.
This does not only mean that there will be fewer trees. The results are even more serious: for where there are trees, their roots break the soil up, allowing the rain to sink in, and also bind the soil. This prevents the soil from being washed away. But where there are no trees, the rainfalls on hard ground and flows away on the surface, and this causes floods and the rain carries away the rich top soil in which crops grow. When all the top soil is gone, nothing remains but worthless desert.
Do you want to know how to live an environmentally friendly lifestyle? Here is a short list of ways that you can help protect the environment.
Prevent energy leaks (泄漏) at home.
Heating and cooling can make up to 50 percent of your energy bill each month. So you'll save money and reduce your influence on the environment.
Plant trees in your yard and community.
Everyone knows that planting trees can help the environment. Trees cool your home, reducing the energy used for cooling. Trees improve mental health. Trees reduce noise pollution.
If you use ceiling fans during hot summer days, you can create a cooling environment. A few ceiling or regular fans properly placed in your home can reduce the amount of time you spend with the air conditioning on.
Use solar energy more often.
There are lots of inexpensive solar products you can try out. For example, solar-powered lights. How about solar cellphone chargers? Additionally, there are many forms of passive solar energy that can help you take advantage of the sun.
Think about green transportation.
Just sit and think about a few environmentally friendly ways you can get from one place to another. You can walk or bike to the corner store. Walking instead of driving to a store is a great way to help the environment!
A. Trees have many good influences.
B. Use natural wind to dry your clothes.
C. There are many ways to use solar power.
D. Use ceiling fans to cool off in summer.
E. You can take a bus when going to the movie theater.
F. Turn off lights and electronic devices when you're not using them.
G. You can heat and cool your home more efficiently by fixing leaks.
In our modern world, when something wears out, we throw it away and buy a new one. The1 is that countries around the world have growing mountains of 2 because people are throwing out more rubbish than ever before.
How did we become a throwaway society? First of all, it is now easier to3 an object than to spend time and money to repair it. Thanks to modern manufacturing (制造业) and technology, companies are able to produce products quickly and inexpensively. Products are plentiful and 4.
Another cause is our5 of disposable (一次性的) products. As 6 people, we are always looking for ways to save time and make our lives easier. Companies 7 thousands of different kinds of disposable products: paper plates, plastic cups, and cameras, to name a few.
Our appetite for new products also8 to the problem. We are addicted to buying new things. Advertisements persuade us that 9 is better and that we will be happier with the latest products. The result is that we 10 useful possessions to make room for new ones.
All around the world, we can see the11 of this throwaway lifestyle. Mountains of rubbish just keep getting bigger. To 12 the amount of rubbish and to protect the 13, more governments are requiring people to recycle materials. 14, this is not enough to solve our problem.
Maybe there is another way out. We need to repair our possessions instead of throwing them away. We also need to rethink our attitudes about15. Repairing our possessions and changing our spending habits may be the best way to reduce the amount of rubbish and take care of our environment.
阅读下面材料，根据其内容和所给段落开头语续写两段，使之构成一篇完整的短文。
On a cold windy day, a poor boy tried to pay his way through school (支付学费) by selling goods door to door. Wandering on the street, he was not a successful seller. What's worse, he found that he only had one dime (一角硬币) left. His empty stomach reminded him constantly that for days he hadn't eaten anything. He had no choice but to beg for a meal at the next house.
Hesitantly he knocked at the door, thinking about what to say when it opened. However, he lost his nerve when a lovely young woman opened the door. "What can I do for you?" asked the young woman. The boy paused for a while, "Would you please give me some…a drink of water?" The boy dared not to look directly into her eyes. She looked at the bony boy and thought he might need something to give him energy so she brought him a glass of milk. His head rising and small hands taking the cup. He drank it up slowly, and then asked, "How much do I owe you?" "You don't owe me anything," she replied with a warm smile on her face. "My mother has taught me never to accept pay for a kindness." Deeply moved, he said sincerely, "Then I shall thank you from the bottom of my heart." As Howard Kelly left that house, he not only felt stronger physically, but it also increased his faith in God and the whole human race. As a matter of fact, he was about to give up and quit before that point.
Years later the young woman became seriously ill. However, the local doctors were unable to give the effective medical treatment. Finally they sent her to a hospital in the big city, where specialists can be called in to cure her rare disease. Among those famous specialists, Dr. Howard Kelly was called in for the consultation (会诊). When he heard the name of the town she came from, a strange light filled his eyes. Immediately, he rose and went down through the hospital hall into her room.
注意：续写词数应为150左右。
Dressed in his doctor's gown, he went in to see her.
……
The bill was sent to her room.
