Environmental Protection
We live in a magic, wonderful world. This world is our Earth. The
Earth means everything around us: air, water, land, all living creatures
and plants. It is our home. But today our planet is in serious
danger. The solution of ecological and environmental problems …(1) us
greatly …(2) the cooperation of all nations. The protection of the environment
…(3) one of the most burning problems of our century.
Large cities with thousands of smoky industrial enterprises appear
all over the world today. The by-products of their activity pollute
the air we breathe, the water we drink, the soil we grow grain
and vegetables on. Cars and industrial enterprises pollute the atmosphere
with millions of tons of …(4) substances, such as chemicals, exhaust
fumes, etc. They are the main reason for global warming and
acid rains.
Our forests …(5) because they are being cut down or burnt and
their disappearance upsets the oxygen balance and destroys habitat.
As a result some rare species of animals, birds and plants disappear
forever because of their …(6) habitat.
All life on the Earth depends on water but oceans — saying nothing
of rivers, seas, lakes, streams, ponds and even underground water
— are polluted with poisonous substances because of industrial
and nuclear waste, chemicals and rubbish. The pollution of air, water,
soil, destruction of the ozone layer, acid rains and global warming
are the results of man’s careless interaction with nature, a sign of
ecological crisis.
We have to remember about natural disasters: avalanche, hurricane,
flood, tsunami, cyclone, volcanic eruption, earthquake, tornado,
drought, mudslide, typhoon, and disasters which are caused by human
errors: fires, wars, plane crashes, nuclear explosions, shipwrecks,
explosions on ammunition dumps.
The …(7) horrible ecological disaster befell Ukraine and its people
as a result of the accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power station
in April 1986. A great damage …(8) to Ukraine’s agriculture, forests,
rivers, lakes, animals, plants and people’s health.
Every year thousands of plants and animal species get extinct. We
are losing biodiversity. And the problem of endangered species …(9)
worse, too, because of global warming, air and water pollution, deforestation, destroyed habitat.
So, environmental protection is really a global problem. And it goes without
saying that the most serious measures to create a universal system of ecological security …(10) immediately. If we don’t use the environment carefully and protect it from man’s destructive activities, very soon we won’t have the planet to live on.
