Pollution

1. Pollution is the fouling of the environment that is, land, water and air by
waste, smoke, chemicals and other harmful substances. Every industrial country
faces the problem of waste. As factories make new goods for people to buy, old ones
are thrown out with the household trash. Burning this garbage pollutes the air;
throwing it in rivers and seas pollutes the water; and rubbish tips are unpleasant and
take up much- needed space. Getting rid of plastic is particularly difficult- with time
wood and paper decay through action of bacteria, but plastics never decay.
2 As industry needs a regular supply of raw materials, the best solution to the
problem of waste is to make use of it as a raw material by reusing or recycling it.
For example, old cars can be taken apart and the valuable metal used again.
3 The worlds oceans have been used as dustbins, with millions of tons of litter
being thrown into the seas every year, endangering marine life. If too much sewage
is poured into sea, lakes and rivers the water can no longer dilute it all the oxygen
gets used up and the fish die. The bacteria which normally break down the refuse
into harmless matter also die; only harmful bacteria which do not need air remain,
and these cause disease.
4 In the 1950s, people in Japan became ill with a new disease, named Minamata
disease. It was found that they had been eating tuna fish containing mercury. The
mercury had come from chemicals poured into the sea by factories.
5 Smoke from factories and gases from motor vehicles pollute the air .Chemicals in
the air combine with the wetness in the air make acids, which eat away stone and
brick, and damage buildings. Carbon monoxide gas and substances called
hydrocarbons given out by the engines of cars and lorries and buses can damage
peoples health.
6 Smog formed by chemical reactions among the fumes (gases) in strong sunlight
darkens the skies. It is bad for health, especially for people with lung problems.
Smog also damages trees and other plant life.
7 Chemicals in the fumes, especially from coal fired power stations mix with
moisture to make acid rain which may fall hundreds of kilometers away.
8 Another very serious form of pollution is the build - up of carbon dioxide in the
upper layer of air. As we burn coal, wood, petrol and oil, more carbon dioxide is sent
into this layer. This is causing the suns warmth to be caught near the earths
surface, by what is called the green house effect. If the burning continues,
average temperatures could rise by around 3 to 5 C in the next fifty nine years or
so. Weather patterns will change, so that regions that now grow wheat or corn will
receive no rains at all. Also, the polar ice caps may melt and raise sea levels by over
Prepared and designed by Sumesh India
sumeshel@gmail .com

five meters. This would mean that big sea port cities and vast areas of low -lying
land, such as the Netherlands and Maldives, will be covered with water.
9 Pollution is also caused by the fertilizers and insecticides used by farmers. The
chemicals in fertilizers may be washed from the soil into rivers. They can build up in
water supplies, and they can also make algae (a very small sea plant) grow so fast
that they use up all the oxygen in the water, and kill all life in it.
10 Nuclear energy has two main drawbacks. It can result in accidents, as at
Chernobyl in the Soviet Union in 1986. It also produces radioactive wastes which
need to be dealt with. By its very nature this form of deadly pollution will be around
for thousands of years. The present solution is to put away radioactive waste in
concrete and bury them or drop them to the sea bed. But we cannot go on doing this
forever.
11 Making our world free of pollution is an unimaginably big task. There are so many
people, for one thing. Also many governments and big companies are slow to act,
since anti pollution measures are not welcome or are expensive. Many people like
the idea of reducing pollution, but not when it changes the way they live.
12. Pollution must be controlled, and the sooner the better. It will cost a great deal,
both in terms of money and a change of life style. For example, acid rain can be
stopped by checking the harmful fumes before they go out from power stations
chimneys. This may push up the price of electricity. Perhaps the packaging of goods
in bright plastic and the throw away culture should also be discouraged.
13 There are different pollutants (substances which cause pollution) in the modern
world. Scientists are trying to find ways to avoid using them so as to bring back the
balance of nature which man has upset.
1)
1.
a)
b)
c)
2.
a)
b)
c)
3.
a)
b)

Underline the correct answer [5m]

Pollution refers to
cleaning of land, water and air.
fouling of the environment by waste , smoke, chemicals and other harmful
substances .
closing down of factories .
Getting rid of plastics is particularly difficult because
they never decay, unlike wood and paper.
they can never be broken down into pieces .
they cannot be burnt .
When too much sewage is poured into the sea
the water turns brown .
the sea water turns salty.
Prepared and designed by Sumesh India
sumeshel@gmail .com

c)
4.
a)
b)
c)
5.
a)
b)
c)

it kills marine life .

Recycling means
using bicycles instead of cars and other motor vehicles .
the build-up of carbon monoxide in the upper layer of air .
using waste materials again for making new things .
When chemicals in fertilizers are washed from the soil into rivers
this river water helps plants grow very fast .
plants on the land die .
they make algae grow very fast they use up all the oxygen in the water and
kill all the life in it.
2) Find the words in the passage which best fit the meanings given
below . A paragraph number tells you where to look . [5m]
1. causing danger (3)______________________________________________
2.
3.
4.
5.

make a liquid thinner. (3) _________________________________________

chemicals used to kill insects (9) ____________________________________
difficulties or disadvantages (10) ____________________________________
keep away from (13) ___________________________________________
3) Answer the following questions.

1. The worlds oceans have become dustbins. How? [2m]

___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
2. Name the disease that caused because of eating tuna fish ?[1m]
___________________________________________________________________________________
3. What is the harmful effect of sewage poured into the sea and lakes? [2]
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________

4. What is green house effect? [2m]

___________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________
5. Write two drawbacks of nuclear energy. [2m]

Prepared and designed by Sumesh India

sumeshel@gmail .com

__________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
6. Making our world free of pollution is a big task. Why? [2m]
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
7. Name some of the pollutants that cause pollution? [3m]
__________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
8. How does smog affect our life and plant life? [2m]
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
9. What will happen to the low lying lands if polar ice caps melt? [2m]
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
10. Do fertilizers and insecticides cause pollution? How? [3m]
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
11. Suggest some ways to control pollution. [4m]
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________

Prepared and designed by Sumesh India

sumeshel@gmail .com