August 8th this year marked the Earth Overshoot Day, which essentially means that we have officially consumed far more than the Earth can replenish in a year. The Global Footprint Network estimates that the current population requires resources equivalent to that of over 1.6 Earths. And the UN projects that our population may balloon to upwards of 8.5 billion by 2030. As the population grows, more and more lands are allocated for urbanization, taking up resources that could be used for agriculture and vegetation. On top of this, the wastes and pollution resulting from human activity speeds up the degradation and deterioration of resources. Harvard University Graduate School of Design research professor, Richard Forman and professor of sustainability science at Arizona State University, Jianguo Wu wrote a call for global and regional urban planning approaches. They say that existing communities are built in the wrong places, places that should have been allocated for nature and agriculture. "Most settlements began on good agricultural soil near a body of fresh water and natural vegetation," they wrote in Nature. "Episodes of urban expansion therefore cover or pollute once-valuable natural resources at ever increasing range. Meanwhile, the exploding urban population is inundated with solid waste, wastewater, heat and pollutants." So, where do we put future humans? Although plans of colonizing Mars have been making the rounds lately, that plan is too far ahead and we need solutions here and now. The professors insist that a strategic, environment-driven urban planning system is the key to minimizing the impact of population growth, despite environmental protection being at the bottom of the pile when it comes to government priorities. "Urban planning can slow such degradation, and even improve matters. But protecting natural and agricultural land, water bodies and biodiversity are rarely top priorities for municipal governments. Planners focus on creating jobs, housing, transport and economic growth," they wrote. They say that strategically pinpointing locations for settlements must be environment-conscious: "It must consider which areas are best placed to support higher populations without greatly increasing the already heavy ecological footprint on our finite Earth."
Question 1: It can be inferred from the passage that______
A. If the world population continues to explode, future humans will have no place to live.
B. People should reduce urbanization to control the overpopulation.
C. Overpopulation is not only a country's problem, so every nation must let the world solve it.
D. The fresh water and natural vegetation will be destroyed before we can find another place for future humans to live.
Question 2: Which of the following could best reflect the main idea of the passage?
A. Scientists are searching new suitable places for people to live.
B. The Earth must globally be cared about overpopulation's consequences.
C. Effective environmental measures should be discussed to protect the Earth from overpopulation.
D. The Earth is too overpopulated to live.
Question 3: According to the passage, which of following is TRUEabout out population?
A. The more population grows, the more resources are deteriorated.
B.Wastes and population from human activities do not cause much impact on natural vegetation.
C. The Earth may support more than a half of our resources' demand.
D. As the population increase, more lands are used for cultivation.
Question 4: The word "replenish" in paragraph 1 is the closest in meaning to ___
A. Repair
B. Reduce
C. Germinate
D. Regenerate
Question 5: What is the synonym of the word"inundated" in paragraph 2?
A. Contaminated
B. Outdated
C. Overwhelmed
D. Established
Question 6: What does "it" in paragraph 3 refer to?
A. The impact of population growth
B. The pile
C. Environmental protection
D. The key
Question 7: The following are what municipal governments most concern, EXCEPT______
A. Economy
B. Biodiversity
C. Accommodation
D. Employment
1 D
2 C
3 A
4 D
5 C