Unit three Recycling

I. Objectives

1) to learn to deal with synonyms and antonyms in reading

2) to learn the new words and expressions about recycling and environment protection

II. Reading skill practice

1. Synonyms and antonyms

♣ Synonyms are words that generally similar in meaning. Antonyms are words that are opposite in meaning.

♣ The main value of synonyms and antonyms is that they give you a variety of words to choose from in verbal or written communication.

♣ Methods to deal with synonyms and antonyms

1) check the dictionary for synonyms and antonyms of a word and their various shades of meaning;

2) learn some often-used synonyms and antonyms by heart.

2. Practice

Read the passage on page 30 and find at least two synonyms and two antonyms for each word.

irritate S1__ S2__ A1__ A2__

fashionable S1__ S2__ A1__ A2__

ingenious S1__ S2__ A1__ A2__

device S1__ S2__ A1__ A2__

III. Warming-up activities

Discuss among yourselves the topics below. 1) Everyone of us produces waste every day. Have you

ever wondered where has the waste gone? 2) If it does not disappear automatically, what are the

ways to deal with all the waste produced? 3) Do you recycle things? If yes, give us some examples

of recycling? What are the benefits of recycling?

1. Recycling:

IV. Ways to deal with used materials

It is processing （加工） used materials (waste into new products to prevent waste of potentially useful materials, reduce the consumption of fresh raw materials, reduce energy usage, reduce air pollution (from incination 焚化 ) and water pollution (from landfilling 用垃圾填 ) by reducing the need for “conventional” waste disposal, and lower greenhouse gas emissions as compared to virgin(未经利用的、原始

的） production.

2. The waste hierarchy

The waste hierarchy （分级系统） refers to the 3Rs of reduce, reuse, and recycle, which classify waste management strategies according to their desirability（客观需要） .

◆ Reduce - to buy less and use less.

◆ Recycle - discards are separated into materials that may be incorporated （合成） into new products.

◆ Reuse - elements of the discarded (abandon 抛弃 ) item are used again.

Reduce, Reuse and Recycle

3. Landfill (垃圾填埋场 )

Also known as a dump, rubbish dump or both, Rubbish Landfill Dump, is a site for the disposal of waste materials by burial and is the oldest form of waste treatment. Historically, landfills have been the most common methods of organized waste disposal and remain so in many places around the world.

2) Infrastructure(基础设施 ) damage (e.g., damage to access roads(通道 ) by heavy vehicles);

Disadvantages of landfill:

1) Fatal accidents;

3) Pollution of the local environment (such as contamination(污染 ) of groundwater and/or aquifers(含水层 ) by leakage 泄漏 and residual soil( 残积土 )contamination during landfill usage, as well as after landfill closure);

4) Offgassing of methane( 沼气 ) generated by decaying organic wastes (methane is a greenhouse gas many times more potent 强有力的 than carbon dioxide, and can itself be a danger to inhabitants of an area);

5) Harbouring 藏匿 of disease vectors (媒介） such as rats and flies, particularly from improperly operated landfills, which are common in developing countries;

Disadvantages of landfill:

7) And simple nuisance problems (e.g., dust, odour, vermin 害虫 , or noise pollution).

Disadvantages of landfill:

6) Injuries to wildlife;

4. Incineration (burning):

A waste treatment process that involves the combustion (burning) of organic substances contained in waste materials. Incineration and other high temperature waste treatment systems are described as “thermal （热量的 ） treatment".

1) The highly toxic( 剧毒 ) fly ash ( 粉煤灰 ; 飞灰 ) must be safely disposed of;

Disadvantages of Incineration:

3) Incinerators emit varying levels of heavy metals such as vanadium （钒） , manganese 锰） , chromium （铬） , nickle( 镍 ) , arsenic （砷） , mercury, lead, and cadmium （镉 , ） which can be toxic at very minute 微小 levels.

2) The health effects of dioxin( 二氧 ( 杂 ) 芑 qi )and furan ( 呋喃 )emissions into the atmosphere;

Waste treatment in Zhuhai

• 普通垃圾主要是填埋，主城区这边是在前山上冲沥溪西坑尾垃圾填埋场 ( 下图 )

垃圾被厚土覆盖之后，可以掩盖脏乱的外表和 气味，但垃圾自身的液体，还会慢慢溢出，污染环

境

• 珠海市垃圾焚烧发电厂

珠海日产生垃圾 2000 吨，大力推广垃圾分类

V. The passage

■Recycling is one of the best environmental success stories of the late 20th century.

to recycle: to treat or process (used or waste materials) so as to make suitable for reuse 回收；再循环利用

e.g. recycling paper to save trees.

■ This nationwide, grassroots effort creates an immense flow of materials.

grassroots: of, or involving the common people, especially as contrasted with or separable from an elite ( 精英 ) 基层的，草根的

e.g. grassroots movement (T) 这项全国性的草根活动创作了巨大的物资流。

■ This perspective focuses solely on how an individual recycling program impacts a community’s total waste management costs, compared to the alternative of sending everything to landfill or incinerator.

perspective: a particular attitude towards sth; a way of thinking about sth. 态度；观点

to impact: to influence alternative: a possibility of choice, esp. between two

things, courses of action, etc. 两者 ( 或两者以上间 ) 择一 ( 或挑一 ) ，取舍

(T) 这种观点唯一的关注点是，与把所有的垃圾都运到垃圾填埋场或焚烧厂相比，某一具体的资源再生计划怎样影响一个社区废弃物管理的总成本。

■ To somewhat insulate recycling programs from severe market swings, the efficiency of recycling programs must be improved.

to insulate: to to isolate or detach 隔离；使孤立to swing: to cause to move to and fro, sway 摆动(P) To prevent recycling programs from being

affected to some extent by radical market changes, we must improve their efficiency.

(T) 为了在一定程度上免受剧烈的市场波动的影响，必须提高回收项目（资源再生项目）的效率。

• One of the goals for the recycling community in the next decade must be to identify and replicate the factors that determine success.

to replicate: to make or be a copy of; reproduce 复制

e.g.Nothing has the capacity to replicate itself except

DNA.（ T ）资源再生业界今后十年的目标之一是确定

并复制那些成功的决定性因素。

■ With this abundance came an increasing tendency to discard and replace products after their initial use, rather than to reuse or recycle them.

abundance ： an extremely plentiful or oversufficient quantity or supply 充裕，丰富

initial ： of, at, or concerning the beginning 最初的（ T）随着物资丰富而来的是日渐明显的趋势：物品使用一次就被丢掉，换用新的，而不是再利用或回收。

• Recycle Ann Arbor bids competitively for, and consistently wins the city contract to provide recycling service.

to bid: to offer (a certain sum) as the price one will pay or charge 投标，出价

contract: an agreement between two or more parties for the doing or not doing of something specified 合同

（ T ）安阿伯再生公司的投标具有很强的竞争力，总能赢得为其所在城市提供再生服务的合同

Ⅵ. Summary

• Through the success stories

of recycling programs throughout America in the late 20th century by statistics and examples, the writer intends to tell us the significance and benefits of recycling to the environment and economy of the world.

VII. Exercise