Nature Protection

1. Warm-up
 How do our lifestyles affect the environment?
 Is it necessary for young people to be involved in the environmental movement? 
 If the environment could speak, what would it tell us?

2. Match the word-combinations with the pictures:

burn fossil fuels / cut down trees / plant trees / pollute the air / recycle waste / switch off the lights / use public
transport / use solar power

1. 2. 3. 4.

5. 6. 7. 8.

Say whether each activity is a good or bad idea like in the example below:
"Burning fossil fuels is a bad idea."
3. Grammar: should – shouldn’t

►We use should + infinitive to say that something is a good idea. We should protect our planet.
►We use shouldn’t + infinitive to say that something is a bad idea. He shouldn’t keep the lights on.

a) Complete the sentences with should or shouldn’t and the correct verbs below:
buy / drink / eat / feed / go / spend / stop / tell / visit / wear
1. If you want to lose weight, you………………………………… so many sweets.
2. I think you……………………………………. smoking. It’s bad for your health.
3. You…………………………………….. the dog. She’s very hungry.
4. It’s cold outside. You…………………………………….. something warm.
5. We…………………………………. home now. It’s getting late.
6. Which cities……………….. we………………….. during our trip to India?
7. You……………………… so much coffee. You won’t be able to sleep.
8. I need a new laptop. Which model……………….. I …………………..?
9. The kids…………………………….. so much time in front of the television.
10. It isn’t a good idea to lie. You…………………………….. her the truth.

b) Read the situations from the list below; try to suggest some advice using should or shouldn’t:
1. I want to buy a new car but I don’t have enough money.
2. I have problems getting up early.
3. I want to improve my English.
4. My job is very stressful.
5. I want to go for a walk but it’s raining outside.
6. I want to visit an exotic country.
7. I want to do something new in my free time.
8. I want to have a healthier lifestyle.
9. I want to buy a new laptop.

c) Read and translate the dialogue to check your answers from exercise 2:
A: It is a dangerous time for the environment. What should we do to save the earth?
B: Well, we should use public transport instead of travelling by car. Too many cars pollute the air.
A: Should we plant more trees?
B: Yes, we should. Definitely. Trees help us to breathe. And at the same time, we shouldn’t cut down so many
trees.
A: And what about waste?
B: We should always try to recycle waste. Recycling waste saves natural resources.
A: And what should we do at home? Should we continue to use electricity all the time?
B: No, we shouldn’t. We should try to use less electricity at home. For example, we should turn off the lights
when we don’t need them. But in the future we shouldn’t burn fossil fuels. We should use solar energy
instead. It’s cleaner and safer for the environment.

4. Restore the word order in the following sentences:

1. an / awareness / inspire / to / aims / that / event / annual.
2. global / a / of / idea / the introduced / He / holiday.
3. adopted / quickly / was / It / Nations United / the / by.
4. of / cargo / fragile / and / warm / its / life / animate.
5. environmental / the / of / modern / movement / birth / the.
6. Earth / countries / 175 / in / observed / now / is / Day.
7. coordinated / profit / by / Earth / the / Day / non / Network -.
8. together / planet / to / countries / help / to / save / act / our.
9. and / clean / for / need / urgent / the / energy / green.
10. planet / our / help / can / people / ways / many / the.

►Search for information concerning the Earth Day, share it with your group mates.

5. a) Read and translate the text and find out the negative things that could happen if the Earth
continues to get warmer.
Earth in Danger
The year is 2080, and the world is a very different place. Sea levels have risen and flooded millions of
homes. London, New York and many other cities are underwater. The Earth has become a lot warmer, and
heatwaves are killing crops. People are fighting because they don’t have enough food or clean water. Malaria is
common in Europe, and many of the animals and plants we know have disappeared forever. This sounds like
the story of a Hollywood film. But it could really happen if we keep damaging the environment.
Many issues affect the environment but which ones could cause the biggest problems in the future?
Claire Addison, 23, from Edinburgh, works for an organization called Envision in London, which teaches teens
about environmental issues. “The biggest problem for our planet is climate change,” Claire explains.
“Greenhouse gases are causing higher temperatures around the world, which is causing ice to melt and sea
levels to rise.”
Many people talk about factories and industry but the truth is: we all cause climate change. Lots of our
favourite things – like mobile phones, televisions and computers – need energy to work. Most of this energy
comes from burning fossil fuels like coal, oil and natural gas, which releases carbon dioxide (CO2 ), methane
and other gases into the air. These greenhouse gases trap the heat from the sun in our atmosphere, which makes
our world warmer.
We all contribute to climate change whenever we:
• travel by car, by plane or on public transport.
• take a bath or shower with hot water.
• turn on the heating.
• use electricity that comes from fossil fuels.
• buy products that need lots of energy to make and/or come from far away.
What in the world is happening? There are already signs that our climate is changing. “In Bangladesh
there are more storms, which makes it difficult to grow crops,” says Claire. “Flooding is becoming worse, and
people are dying of diseases found in the water.” Some scientists think the Earth could be six degrees warmer
by 2100. That doesn’t sound like a lot, but it would have disastrous effects:
Wild weather: There could be more drought and desert in Australia and Africa, and dangerous
heatwaves in Europe. Or the Gulf Stream, which normally keeps Northern Europe warm, may change and make
Europe a lot colder. This is not only bad for us – it can also badly affect animals and plants.
Wet wet wet: Sea levels could rise, covering low-lying areas like Bangladesh, the Netherlands and
Florida. Even London and New York could be flooded.
Death and disease: Malaria and other tropical diseases could spread to Europe.
Using too much? Do you throw things away even though they’re not really broken? Do you buy more
food than you can eat, and use more water than you need? Most people don’t realize how much they waste. But
we’re cutting down trees faster than they can grow back, using more energy than the planet can give us and
producing more rubbish than nature can deal with.
The facts. If we keep using more than nature can give us, there’ll soon be nothing left.
Goodbye green: We’ve already lost two thirds of the world’s forests. Every year, we cut down 160,000 square
kilometres – an area the size of England and Wales! This is also bad news for climate change because forests
absorb a lot of CO2 .
Helpless habitats: When we cut down trees or build new things, we destroy the natural habitats of animals.
Dirty dumps: Our rubbish dumps pollute the air and land, and our plastic ends up in the sea. There are even
rubbish dumps for old aeroplanes and ships.
You can help! Our homes produce around 30 per cent of CO2 emissions. Everyone knows we can save energy
by turning off lights and using energy-efficient light bulbs. But there are lots of other simple things you can do:
 Unplug your television and laptop. They use energy even when they’re turned off. Always unplug your
phone charger after your phone is charged.
 Turn down the heating by one degree. This can reduce your energy use by ten per cent!
 Take a short shower instead of a bath. A bath uses about 100 litres of hot water.
 Put the lids on pots and pans when you’re cooking.
 Keep your fridge full. Empty fridges need more energy to stay cool.
 Don’t boil more water than you need.
How to use less!
We need to use less. “We should live in a way that leaves enough for future generations,” says Claire from
Envision. Recycling more and driving less are good ways to help. But try out these tips too:
 Use things for as long as possible. It takes energy to make new products.
 If your old stuff can still be used, give it to charity instead of throwing it away.
 Eat less meat! Meat production uses lots of energy, and rainforests are destroyed to make space for
cattle.
 Wash fruit and vegetables in a bowl, then use that water for your plants.
 Turn off the tap while brushing your teeth. Use a normal toothbrush instead of an electric one.
 Drink tap water instead of bottled water.
 Keep water in the fridge so you won’t have to run the tap until the water gets cold.
 Take your own travel mug to the coffee shop instead of using paper cups.
Population zero. What would nature do if we disappeared and didn’t use up any more resources? Without
humans, plants and wild animals would take over our cities. Within five years, parks would be overgrown
and plants would cover our roads and buildings. After 500 years, our cities would be covered by forest. After
1,000 years, Manhattan would look like an area of countryside. And 10,000 years after we disappeared, there
would be very little to show that we had ever existed.
 b) Answer these questions in note form. Then use your notes to retell the text:
1. Name three negative things that could happen if the Earth continues to get warmer.
2. What are fossil fuels, and what happens when we burn them?
3. How much warmer might the Earth’s temperatures become by the end of this century and why is this a bad
thing?
4. Name six things you can do to use less energy at home.
5. Why is eating meat bad for the environment?
6. What size area of trees is cut down every year and what effect does this have on the environment and nature?

6. Tick the best solutions to the following problems. Explain your choice.
a) Deforestation:
— Join a library instead of buying books.
— Print as little as possible.
— Stop using paper towels.
— Turn the sink water off when brushing your teeth.
— Take shorter showers.
b) Air pollution: 
— Switch off anything that uses electricity when not in use.
— Drive less, use a bike instead.
— Choose public transportation.
— Buy local food.
c) Plastic rubbish:
— Bring your own bags to the supermarket.
— Carry your own reusable cup or water bottle.
— Try to use as little packaging as possible.
— Wrap gifts in fabric.

7. Our impact on nature is called our ‘ecological footprint’. To find out what your footprint is, go to
[Link]
Do the online test. Think about your family and the people in your house and answer the questions;
compare your family’s ecological footprint with that of another student’s family.

8. Using the information from the text and the information from the webquest, make a poster “Save the
Earth!”; Include information about what is happening to our climate and how the future could be if we do not
change our habits and what we can do to stop our negative impact on the planet. Add facts, figures, website
links, pictures, etc.

[Link] the Internet and find information about Earth Day. Talk about what you discover with your
group mates in the next lesson.