Climate change and pollution

2.1 Complete the text with words from the box

acid biodiversity contaminated deforestation ecosystems

emissions environmental erosion exhaust drought

fertilisers greenhouse waste

The advances made by humans have made us the dominant species on our planet.
However, several eminent scientists are concerned that we have become too successful, that
our way of life is putting an unprecedented strain on the Earth’s (1)__________ and
threatening our future as a species. We are confronting (2)_____________ problems that are
more taxing than ever before, some of them seemingly insoluble. Many of the Earth's crises
are chronic and inexorably linked. Pollution is an obvious example of this affecting our air,
water and soil.
The air is polluted by (3)______________ produced by cars and industry. Through
(4)____________ rain and (5)_______________ gasses these same (6)____________ fumes
can have a devastating impact on our climate. Climate change is arguably the greatest
environmental challenge facing our planet with increased storms, floods, (7)___________and
species losses predicted. This will inevitably have a negative impact on (8)____________
and thus our ecosystem.
The soil is (9)___________ by factories and power stations which can leave heavy
metals in the soil. Other human activities such as the overdevelopment of land and the
clearing of trees also take their toll on the quality of our soil; (10)___________ has been
shown to cause soil (11). Certain farming practices can also pollute the land through the use
of chemical pesticides and (12)____________. This contamination inturn affects our rivers
and waterways and damages life there. The chemicals enter our food chain, moving from fish
to mammals to us. Our crops are also grown on land that is far from pristine. Affected
species include the polar bear, so not even the Arctic is immune.
Reducing (13)___________ and clearing up pollution costs money. Yet it is our quest
for wealth that generates so much of the refuse. There is an urgent need to find a way of life
that is less damaging to the Earth. This is not easy, but it is vital, because pollution is
pervasive and often life-threatening.

2.2 Match the words in bold with these synonyms.

1. unspoiled => pristine.
2. crucial _____________________
3. unparalleled _____________________
4. extremely harmful _____________________
5. insurmountable _____________________
6. unaffected _____________________
7. omnipresent _____________________
8. unavoidably (x2) _____________________ _____________________
9. persistent _____________________
10. challenging _____________________
3. Consider how you would answer these questions.
1. What do you think is the greatest environmental threat we face today?
2. What can the government do to help protect the environment?
3. What can we as individuals do?
4.1 Use a dictionary to check the different forms of the words in the box as well as the
prepositions used with them. Then complete the answers to the questions in 3 using the
correct form of the word in brackets. You will need to add prepositions to the words
that are underlined.
contaminate danger dispose

erode pollute recycle

risk sustain threat

1. I think our environment is (1) under threat from (threat) many different things.We
have allowed too much (2)_______________(pollute) to enter our ecosystem and we are
(3)________________________ (danger) poisoning ourselves as a result. I think soil
(4)_________________ (erode) and water (5)________________(contaminate) are two of
the most urgent problems that we need to deal with.
2. Clearly our current lifestyle is not (6)_____________________ (sustain). The
government should educate people about these problems and encourage us to change our
habits. They need to show everyone that we are putting the very future of our planet
(7)________________(risk).
3. We can make sure we don’t throw (8)_______________ (recycle) items into our
normal waste (9)____________________ (dispose) bins. We can also help protect our planet
by not using phosphate-based detergents; this will help to keep
(10)_______________(pollute) out of our food chain.

4.2 Complete the sentences using the negative form of the words in brackets.
1. It is unrealistic (realistic) to expect everyone to change their buying habits overnight.
2. When it comes to protecting the environment, cost should be ____________(relevant).
3. It is_________________(reasonable) for rich countries to expect developing countries
to reduce carbon emissions immediately.
4. People who dump chemical waste into our waterways are very
_____________(responsible)
5. The oil spill has caused ________________ (repairable) damage to several marine
species.
6. Scientists believe that the damage to this area is ___________________(reversible)
7. These species are ____________ (replaceable) . Once they are lost our ecosystem will
be changed.
8. It is a mistake to think that increased consumerism and environmental damage are
__________________ (related) .

Vocabulary note: The prefix ir- is often used with adjectives beginning with r to form the
opposite or to mean lacking something: reversible, irreversible, regular, irregular. Some
words beginning with r form their opposite with un-: realistic, unrealistic.

5. PRONUNCIATION (Audio 15b) Some words have a different stress pattern and
therefore a different pronunciation, depending on their meaning or part of speech.
Circle the correct stress pattern for the words in italics in these sentences. Listen to the
recording to check your answers and then practise saying the sentences.
1. I refuse to go. (refuse /(refuse)
2. Disposing of refuse is a growing problem. (refuse / refuse)
3. There is a conflict here. (conflict / conflict)
 4. The two reports conflict with each other. (conflict / conflict)
5. We all need to be present at the meeting. (present / present)
6. This issue presents an enormous problem. (present / present)
7. We are making a lot of progress. (progress / progress)
8. We need to progress at a faster rate. (progress / progress)
9. There has been an increase in carbon emissions. (increase / increase)
10. Temperatures are expected to increase. (increase / increase)

I. VOCABULARY IN FOCUS
1.Topic-related

Phrases/clauses Words/phrases Phrases/clauses Pronunciation

(Vie) (Eng) - in bold (Eng)

1 Biến đổi khí hậu UK /ˈklaɪ.mət/

được coi là một US /ˈklaɪ.mət/
trong những
thách thức môi
trường lớn nhất
của chúng ta.

2 Theo các chuyên UK /kənˈtæm.ɪ.neɪ.tɪd/ US

gia nông /kənˈtæm.ə.neɪ.t̬ ɪd/
nghiệp,đất bị
nhiễm độc bởi
các nhà máy và
trạm điện.

3 Nạn phá rừng UK /diːˌfɒr.ɪˈsteɪ.ʃən/

nghĩa là nhiều US /diːˌfɔːr.əˈsteɪ.ʃən/
vùng cây cối
trong khu vực
đang bị phá huỷ,
dẫn đến việc mất
môi trường sống
tự nhiên với
nhiều loài động
vật

4 Phân bón được UK /ˈfɜː.tɪ.laɪ.zər/

sử dụng để US /ˈfɝː.t̬ əl.aɪ.zɚ/
diệt/xoá sổ sâu
bệnh, và từ đó
khiến cho cây
phát triển tốt.
5 Một vài nhà UK /ˈem.ɪ.nənt/
khoa học danh US /ˈem.ə.nənt/
tiếng đã lo ngại
rằng mực nước
biển sẽ đạt đỉnh
trong năm 2021.

Hint - mực nước

biển - Sea level

6 Từ khi nông UK /ˈpes.tɪ.saɪd/

nghiệp ra đời, US /ˈpes.tə.saɪd/
một số phương
pháp canh tác
nhất định ể gây ô
nhiễm đất do sử
dụng thuốc trừ
sâu hóa học.

7 Nhiều nhà môi UK /ɪnˌvaɪ.rənˈmen.təl.ɪst/

trường / nhà US /ɪnˌvaɪ.rənˈmen.t̬ əl.ɪst/
hoạt động môi
trường đề xuất
việc giáo dục
cộng đồng về tầm
quan trọng của
cân bằng tự
nhiên

8 Hiện nay có rất UK /ɪnˌvaɪ.rənˈmen.təl.i/

nhiều sản phẩm US /ɪnˌvaɪ.rənˈmen.t̬ əl.i/
tuyệt vời mà thân
thiện với môi
trường / thân
thiện với sinh
thái.

9 Có phải sự nóng UK /ˈɡləʊ.bəl/

lên toàn cầu là US /ˈɡloʊ.bəl/
một trong những
mối bận tâm lớn
nhất/cấp bách
nhất về môi
trường hiện nay
không?
10 Các công ty đa UK /ˈweɪ.stɪdʒ/
quốc gia cần US /ˈweɪ.stɪdʒ/
phải cắt giảm
lượng lãng phí.

Hint - lượng lãng

phí - wastage

11 Nhiều nước đang UK /səˈsteɪ.nə.bəl/

cân nhắc sự phát US /səˈsteɪ.nə.bəl/
triển bền vững.

12 Tôi không chắc UK /ɪnˌdʌs.tri.ə.laɪˈzeɪ.ʃən/

liệu lý do chính US /ɪnˌdʌs.tri.ə.ləˈzeɪ.ʃən/
cho sự ô nhiễm
này là công
nghiệp hoá hay
không

13 Chúng ta có nên UK /ˈedʒ.u.keɪt/

giáo dục công US /ˈedʒ.ə.keɪt/
chúng về môi
trường bằng cách
phát tờ rơi
không?

HInt - tờ rơi -
leaflet

14 Khí thải được UK /ˈdev.ə.steɪ.tɪŋ/

tin/cho là có một US /ˈdev.ə.steɪ.t̬ ɪŋ/
tác động nghiêm
trọng (có tính
phá hủy) đến khí
hậu của chúng ta.

Hint - Khí thải

(từ ống khói,
phương tiện) -
exhaust fumes

2. General Vocabulary

Phrases/clauses Words/phrases Phrases/clauses Pronunciation

(Vie) (Eng) - in bold (Eng)

1 Ô nhiễm nghiêm UK /ˈθret.ən.ɪŋ/

trọng có thể đe dọa /ˈθret.nɪŋ/
 tính mạng đến US /ˈθret.ən.ɪŋ/
nhiều loài động vật /ˈθret.nɪŋ/
khác nhau, bao
gồm cả động vật có
vú và bò sát.

2 Chúng tôi đang đạt UK /ˈprəʊ.ɡres/

được rất nhiều tiến US /ˈprɑː.ɡres/
bộ/tiến triển, đặc
biệt là trong nghiên
cứu của chúng tôi
về gia đình ruột thịt
và đại gia đình.

Hint
GIa đình ruột thịt -
Immediately family
(Unit 1)

Đại gia đình -

extended family
(unit 1)

3 Nhiều giải pháp đã UK /prəˈpəʊz/

được đề xuất để US /prəˈpoʊz/
giải quyết vấn đề.

4 Mọi người càng có UK /ˌæd.vænˈteɪ.dʒəs/

giáo dục tốt, thì US /ˌæd.vænˈteɪ.dʒəs/
môi trường càng có
lợi

5 Tôi nghĩ rằng sẽ UK /ˌʌn.əˈteɪ.nə.bəl/

không thể giải US /ˌʌn.əˈteɪ.nə.bəl/
quyết được vấn đề
trong vòng vài năm
tới.

6 Có thể chúng ta sẽ UK /ˈfiː.zə.bəl/

lái ô tô điện trong US /ˈfiː.zə.bəl/
tương lai gần.

7 Việc loại bỏ ô UK /rɪd/

nhiễm chắc chắn có US /rɪd/
thể đạt được.

8 Tôi nghĩ rằng ít có UK /ʌnˈlaɪ.kli/

khả năng mọi US /ʌnˈlaɪ.kli/
người sẽ từ bỏ các
hóa chất mà chúng
 ta đang sử dụng
hiện tại.

Hint
Từ bỏ (v) to
abandon

9 Tôi nghĩ rằng các UK /ˈprɒb.ə.bəl/

chính phủ có thể sẽ US /ˈprɑː.bə.bəl/
bắt đầu gây áp lực
lên các nhà sản
xuất

Hint - nhà sản xuất

- manufacturer

10 Một số lượng lớn UK /lɑːdʒ/

các loài động vật US /lɑːrdʒ/
hoang dã đang gặp
nguy hiểm (có
nguy cơ bị tuyệt
chủng).

11 Một số lượng lớn UK /rɪˈlaɪ/

người dân ở khu US /rɪˈlaɪ/
Phố Cổ dựa vào
nguồn nước sẵn có
từ hồ Hoàn Kiếm.

Hint - Hồ Hoàn
Kiếm - Hoan Kiem
lake/Sword lake

12 Ô nhiễm không khí UK /ˈsʌf.ər/

là nguyên nhân US /ˈsʌf.ɚ/
khiến con người
mắc (chịu đựng)
nhiều bệnh nguy
hiểm ảnh hưởng
đến tình trạng sức
khỏe của họ.

II. ADDITIONAL VOCABULARY

1. Topic-related Vocabulary
Words/ Words/phrases (Eng) - in bold Pronunciation
phrases
(Vie)
1 Các hoạt New ___________ have been applied to protect UK /ˈfɑː.mɪŋ/
động canh soil quality. This, unfortunately, doesn’t make US /ˈfɑːr.mɪŋ/
tác the soil resistant to natural disasters like
chemical spray.

2 chuỗi thức Chemicals damage the quality of the produce UK /ˈfuːd ˌtʃeɪn/
ăn like grapefruit and melon. On top of that, they US /ˈfuːd ˌtʃeɪn/
enter the _______ at some point, moving from
fish to mammals to us

3 miễn nhiễm UK /ɪˈmjuːn/

(không bị Affected species include the polar bear, giraffe, US /ɪˈmjuːn/
ảnh hưởng hippo(potamus), rhino(ceros). So not even the
bởi cái gì) largest animals are ___________.

4 Đổ chất thải _____________________________ into UK /dʌmp/

hóa học waterways is irresponsible behavior, to say the US /dʌmp/
least . And the problem is that this malpractice
has spanned several decades.

5 Băng tan An important event in Prehistoric times is the UK /melt/

Ice Age, which occurred around 2.4 million US /melt/
years ago. Subsequent to the Ice Age is a period
of _________, when the temperature of the
Earth rose for 1000 consecutive years.

6 có thể sinh To arrange the consequences of global warming UK /ɪnˈhæb.ɪ.tə.bəl/

sống/tồn tại in a chronological order: first, there’ll be a US /ɪnˈhæb.ɪ.t̬ ə.bəl/
được reduction on/of__________ land, and
subsequently, many animal species would be
rendered homeless. Finally, extreme weather
conditions will kill off or hurt many animals
badly.

7 quy định The government could __________. To be fair, UK /ˈreɡ.jə.leɪt/

lượng phát regulating is the easy part, monitoring actual US /ˈreɡ.jə.leɪt/
thải theo emissions so that they are not in excess of/do
công ty. not exceed the limit amount is the challenging
one. But that’s a frontier that must be
conquered to bring emissions down to zero in
the future.

8 Một hạn Since the turn of the previous century, the UK /ˈkwəʊ.tə/
ngạch emergence of factories has compounded (the US /ˈkwoʊ.t̬ ə/
issue of) air pollution, perhaps more so than
ever before. To combat air pollution, a
________ should be set on how much pollution
these factories are allowed to generate.

9 vượt quá The amount of domestic waste is ________ our UK /kəˈpæs.ə.ti/

khả năng xử ___________. In other words, unless we US /kəˈpæs.ə.t̬ i/
lý rác thải devise/invent some new breakthrough
technology in waste treatment, it’s unlikely that
 our treatment facilities could keep up with the
staggering amount of household waste. Some
prototype technologies are being developed, but
it remains to be seen whether they are
practicable/feasible.

10 Tuân thủ All companies UK /kənˈstreɪnt/

should_______________________all the US /kənˈstreɪnt/
environmental rules and pollution constraints.
Getting accustomed to all these regulations
could take time and other resources, but if they
fail to turn their attention to environmental
protection instead of profit, there’d be
disastrous consequences.

11 đặt vào tình They need to show everyone that by constantly UK /rɪsk/
thế nguy demolishing old buildings in favour of US /rɪsk/
hiểm. skyscrapers, we are ______the future of our
planet. Construction work takes a heavy toll on
the environment.

2. General Vocabulary

Words/ Words/phrases (Eng) - in bold Pronunciation

phrases (Vie)

1 chưa từng Our way of life is putting a ___________ UK /ʌnˈpres.ɪ.den.tɪd/

có strain on the Earth's ecosystems. And it US /ʌnˈpres.ə.den.t̬ ɪd/
doesn’t just happen in some particular
countries, but rather a worldwide/universal
phenomenon. From all the mod cons,
concrete buildings, to the way we dump our
waste … I’ve lost track of the list of
environmentally damaging activities we’ve
grown reliant on. It is now
unimaginable/unthinkable to visualize a
world without where we can lead an
emission-free life.

2 không thể We are confronting problems that are more UK /ɪnˈsɒl.jə.bəl/

giải quyết taxing than ever before, some of them US /ɪnˈsɑːl.jə.bəl/
được. seemingly ___________. We’ve tried taking
turn(s) in raising our opinions, but a few
hours have gone by/passed, and it seems we
haven’t made any progress.

3 cấp bách I guess the most ___________ UK /ɪmˈper.ə.tɪv/

environmental concern is global warming.As US /ɪmˈper.ə.t̬ ɪv/
sea level is sensitive to temperature change,
when temperature rises, we’d see rising sea
 level and a lot of associated problems. Given
this insight, we’re setting a goal/target to cut
our emissions by half by 2050. Well, half is
not everything, but it’s a very important
milestone to reach.

4 tràn lan This is not easy, but it is vital, because UK /ˌɒm.nɪˈprez.ənt/

pollution is ___________ and often life- US /ˌɑːm.nɪˈprez.ənt/
threatening.

Pollution is ________ and often life-

threatening. It affects people from all walks
of life, from all over the world, sparing no
one. You can be virtually anywhere, and it’s
likely that you can’t escape the impact of
pollution. Therefore, curbing pollution, or at
the very least slowing it down, is not easy,
but it’s crucial/vital.

5 vô ích. I think educating the public by handing out UK /ˈfjuː.taɪl/

leaflets would be ___________. Most people US /ˈfjuː.t̬ əl/
find leaflets not worth reading, and would
just throw them away

6 loài người Environmental problems are one of the UK /ˌhjuː.mən ˈreɪs/

greatest concerns of the ___________ of the US /ˌhjuː.mən ˈreɪs/
21st century. Having said that, studying
about the environment could be a time
consuming & frustrating process, since
there’s an overwhelming amount of
conflicting information on it. It’s going to be
well worth the effort though, because when
all is said and done, it has a direct impact on
our well-being.

7 nhắc Nowadays, pollution is so UK /pɔːˈtreɪ/

đến/phác pervasive/omnipresent that the issue is US /pɔːrˈtreɪ/
hoạ trên các frequently ___________________________.
phương tiện The frequent _________ is not necessarily a
truyền thông bad thing though, because many people are
đa phương out of touch with what’s going on. This is
tiện. when multimedia coverage proves useful, for
it keeps the public informed about the
environment we live in, which is important
since our planet is now home to (over) 8
billion people.

8 cố tình/có My brother and I don't actually have a lot in UK /dɪˈlɪb.ər.ət.li/

chủ đích common. He cares about world problems US /dɪˈlɪb.ɚ.ət.li/
like overpopulation in megacities or
environmental pollution, while I don’t.
When we were little, he used to talk about
 environmental facts he’d memorized, just to
_________ annoy me.

9 Như một A: ______________, the government might UK /rɪˈzɔːt/

phương án have to ban the use of cars on the street. US /rɪˈzɔːrt/
cuối cùng,
(Khi các biện B: Personally speaking, switching to public
pháp khác transport once in a while/every now and then
không hiệu is something I can live with. But banning
quả) cars altogether? I don’t think I can ever be
punctual again.

10 biểu tình A: We can ____________ companies in the UK /ˈprəʊ.test/

phản đối heavy industries to stop polluting the US /ˈproʊ.test/
environment.

B: That sounds like an intriguing idea to me.

I don’t think they can stand the pressure if
we all protest together

11 không thể A: Scientists believe that the damage to this UK /ˌɪr.ɪˈvɜː.sə.bəl/

phục hồi. area is ___________. US /ˌɪr.əˈvɝː.sə.bəl/

B: I find that hard to believe. The

neighboring areas all seem to have
recovered. There should be a way to remedy
the situation.

12 Không thể A: _____________ that a large number of UK /ɪˈnev.ɪ.tə.bəl/

tránh khỏi populations in a small city always causes US /ˌɪnˈev.ə.t̬ ə.bəl/
environmental pollution.

B: Are you talking about Grab-car drivers?

They are in their cars almost all the time.
And prior to Grab, we have those traditional
taxi drivers as well.