Comprehension [ 21 ] Upper Intermediate & Advanced

21- ] Comprehension

Upper Intermediate & Advanced

 

Read the following passage , then answer the questions below . Do not look back at the passage . Compare your answers to the Answer Key . Check any incorrect answers by reading the passage .

             There is nothing new about people cutting down trees . In ancient times , Greece , Italy , and Great Britain were covered with forests . Over the centuries those forests were gradually cut back , until now almost nothing is left .

             Today , however , trees are being cut down far more rapidly . Each year , about 42 million acres of forest are cut down . That is more than equal to the area of the whole of Great Britain . While there are important reasons for cutting down trees , there are also dangerous consequences for life on earth .

            A major cause of the present destruction is the worldwide demand for wood . In industrialized countries , people are using more and more wood for paper , furniture , and houses . There is not enough wood in these countries to satisfy the demand . Wood companies , therefore , have begun taking wood from the forests of Asia , Africa , South America , and even Siberia .

              Wood is also in great demand as firewood in developing countries .  In many areas , people depend on wood to cook their food . As the population grows , the need for wood grows , too . But when too many trees are cut at once , forests are destroyed . A future source of wood is destroyed as well . When some trees in a forest are left standing , the forest can grow back . But only if it is not cut again for at least 100 years . In reality , it usually has no chance to grow back . Small farmers who are desperate for land move in . They cut down the rest of the trees , and burn them . In this way , many millions of acres of forest are destroyed every year . Unfortunately , the forest soil is not good for growing food . Thus , these poor farmers remain as poor and desperate as before . They have also lost the resources of the forest .

            However , the desperate and poor people are not the only ones to cut and burn forests . In Brazil and Central America , large landowners want to raise lots of cattle for export . They put too many cattle on too little land . When that land has been ruined , they burn parts of forests . Then they move the cattle into the forest land . This way both land and forest are destroyed .

           The destruction of forests affects first the people who used to live there . However , it also has other effects far away . For example , on the mountainsides , trees help to absorb heavy rains . When the trees are cut down , the rain pours all at once into the rivers and there are terrible floods downstream . This has happened to the Ganges , the Mekong , and other major rivers in Asia .

              But finally , the loss of forests may have an effect on the climate of our planet . Together with increasing pollution , it could cause temperatures to rise and the climate to change around the world . No one knows exactly what effects this would have on our lives . For many people , however , the effects would probably be destructive .

***************

Circle the best answers to the following questions . Do not look back at the passage .

1 . The passage is about

( A ) the tropical forests .

( B ) how landowners cut down trees in Brazil . 

( C ) the destruction of forests .

( D ) why people are cutting down so many trees .

2 . Greece , Italy , and Great Britain

( A ) are all covered by forests .

( B ) never had any forests .  

( C ) have growing populations .

( D ) used to be covered by forests .

3 . These days , forests are being cut down in

( A ) Asia , Africa , and South America .

( B ) Australia , New Zealand , and Tanzania .

( C ) Greece , Italy , and Great Britain .

( D ) the industrialized countries .

4 . The demand for wood in industrialized countries

( A ) is helping to save the forests .

( B ) is one cause of the forests’ destruction .

( C ) is easily satisfied by the United States .

( D ) has declined in recent years .

5 . We can infer from this passage that poor people generally

( A ) do not like living in the forests .

( B ) make a lot of money from the forests .

( C ) do not benefit from cutting down the forests .

( D ) want the forest to grow back again .

6 . Large landowners in Brazil and Central America

( A ) use the forests for hunting .

( B ) worry about the effects of cutting down the forests .

( C ) use a lot of wood to build their houses .

( D ) destroy forests to raise beef cattle .

7 . When trees are cut down on mountainsides ,

( A ) the wood is usually of poor quality .

( B ) they grow back quickly .

( C ) there are floods downriver .

( D ) cattle come in to eat the grass .

8 . The cutting down of forests

( A ) could improve the climate .

( B ) could cause heavy rains .

( C ) has no effect on people in cities .

( D ) could affect the climate .

Answer Key

1 . C 2 . D 3 . A 4 . B 5 . C 6 . D 7 . C 8 . D