Table of Contents
BEST IELTS General Reading Test 553
IELTS GENERAL READING TEST 553 – PASSAGE – 3
IELTS GENERAL READING TEST – 553
READING PASSAGE – 3
The price of your newspaper
A: The average family buys two newspapers and a magazine every week, in addition to receiving up to three pieces of junk mail. Multiplied by the global population, this amounts to a lot of paper, and therefore a lot of wood. Although the rise of the home computer has gone a long way in reducing this excessive use of paper, the demand is still considerable.
B: Social and economic concerns have over-ridden environmental common sense, and in many western countries, the woods and forests that once covered the land have long since been cleared away. A shocking example can be found by looking at the United States, which now has less than two per cent of its original forest. Other areas, predominantly tropical countries, are now following the same destructive path.
IELTS General Reading Test
In 1995 over one million hectares of forest in Brazil were cleared, a disturbing statistic but nonetheless inevitable as timber and other related raw materials are important exports for countries that often have little other way of supporting themselves. They provide employment for those who harvest the wood, extract rubber or make products using available materials. With one third of the world depending on wood for fuel, it is very tempting, though shortsighted, for poorer countries to exploit the market.
C: It could be argued, then, that countries with rich wood resources should be fully entitled to exploit them. However, there are less destructive alternatives for generating an income from the rainforests. The forest environment provides a popular setting for ecotourism, which includes hiking, camping, bird watching and other outdoor adventure or nature study activities. International travel is becoming increasingly popular, making the rainforests accessible for the more adventurous holidaymaker.
IELTS General Reading Test
D: No matter what the solution, the rampant spread of deforestation has to be halted. Surveys in Cameroon, the Ivory Coast, Ghana and Liberia found that forest wildlife accounted for 70 to 90 per cent of the total animal protein consumed, thus arguing that some indigenous peoples are completely dependent on forests for food. In many of these countries, wood harvesting is carried out on a considerably more sensible scale. There appears to be the realisation that selling the wood is a temporary solution that would inevitably lead to worse problems for the future. Not only would the traditional food source be gone, but the trees which protected the soil against erosion would be gone.
Landslides would become more common and rainwater would not be absorbed so easily into the ground, leading to a shortage of freshwater supplies. There is also the global impact, not only from the burning of the wood but also because trees provide an important role in the recycling of carbon dioxide and the production of oxygen. Estimates based on the current rate of deforestation have predicted a 15 per cent rise in the greenhouse effect around the planet.
IELTS General Reading Test
E: In order to combat the problem of deforestation, it is important to consider its causes in greater detail. In Brazil, we should look at the unequal and unfair distribution of land – 4.5 per cent of landowners hold 81 per cent of the country’s farmland, and 70 per cent of rural households are landless. With either no legal claim to the land or ownership of so much, deforestation is inevitable as land owners profit from the land. This is the point in which the situation is in the hands of government, yet often the landowners have shown their ability to sway official regulations regarding timber harvesting.
F: To effect a serious reversal of the damage, some governments are taking a more active role in forest management to protect the environment and employment – a change which has been largely encouraged by the voting and demands of the general population which have resulted in policies of replantation and protection. As well as creating political pressure, individuals can make a difference by practising green consumerism. Recycled paper is readily available, and we can all make an effort to purchase the most ecologically sensitive products. Demanding alternative products, such as clear-cut free paper and eco-certified lumber, is important in convincing companies that markets exist for such products.
IELTS General Reading Test
G: None of these activities can occur without the raising of public awareness to inform consumers about the environmental effects of their products, and this is not an easy task. Many people are too entrenched in their habits or too lazy to change, yet one of the most important ways for a person to have a positive effect is to reduce his or her consumption of forest and related products. An increase in the participation of the public in, and the accessibility and productiveness of facilities for, reducing, reusing and recycling is not only necessary, but also a duty. So next time you buy a newspaper, just consider the cost.
Questions 30 – 35
Choose the most suitable headings for paragraphs B–G from the list below. Use each heading once only.
i. Government profiteering at the expense of citizens
ii. A balance provides the best options
iii. Resistance to a change in attitudes
iv. Landowners the driving force for positive political change
v. Renewable forests unable to get public support
vi. The risks of an unequal share of land
vii. Temporary gain outweighing long term concerns
viii. Options for alternative income generation
ix. The impact personal decisions can have
IELTS General Reading Test
30. Paragraph B
31. Paragraph C
32. Paragraph D
33. Paragraph E
34. Paragraph F
35. Paragraph G
IELTS General Reading Test
Questions 36 – 40
Write NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the text.
36. What phenomenon is predicted to increase at a global level due to deforestation?
37. What is becoming more common, allowing for more ecological uses of forested areas?
38. Over two thirds of people living in the countryside in Brazil are what?
39. Which country has only one fiftieth of their original forested areas remaining?
40. What needs to be increased so that people can begin to change negative habits?
IELTS General Reading Test
IELTS General Reading Test
ANSWERS
30. VII
31. VIII
32. II
33. VI
34. IX
35. III
36. GREENHOUSE EFFECT
37. INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL
38. LANDLESS
39. UNITED STATES
40. PUBLIC AWARENESS