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(单词翻译:双击或拖选)
塑料袋的使用大大方便了我们的生活，但与此同时也给我们的环境造成了很大的负担.....应该如何正确得使用呢？
Rob: Hello, I'm Rob…
Cath: And I'm Cath.
Rob: And this is 6 Minute English from BBC Learning1 English. Today we're talking
Cath: Yes, they're very useful for carrying our shopping home in from the
supermarket but are a bit of a problem.
Rob: Not surprisingly millions are used every day all around the world. And today
we'll be telling you about a fight to cut the number being used and thrown
away. Now, Cath, do you use lots of carrier bags?
Cath: Well I try not to. I think it's really really important not to but I do seem to end
up with quite a few. Either I stuff3 them in a drawer and try and forget about
them or I recycle them.
Rob: That's good because recycling the plastic carrier bags is one way to reduce
waste but I'll tell you more about plans to cut their use soon. But first Cath, we
always like to start the programme with a question. So are you ready to answer
this one?
Cath: Alright then!
Rob: Now, approximately how many plastic carrier bags are used worldwide every
year? Is it:
6 Minute English © bbclearningenglish.com 2011
Page 2 of 6
a) 500 million
b) 500 billion
c) 500 trillion
Cath: I don't even know what 500 trillion means. I'm going to go for – I can't believe
it's billions – it must be 500 million.
Rob: OK, well, we'll see if you're right at the end of the programme. Now let's get
back to the story about a fight to reduce the use of carrier bags.
Cath: Yes, and of course, this is not a real fight! This is a campaign. And it sounds
tricky4 because plastic bags are so useful.
Rob: Yes. Plastic actually is a very useful resource. There are so many things we
use every day that are made from this chemically produced material – but the
carrier bag is probably the product that gets the most criticism5.
Cath: Criticism – that's when something or someone gets unfavourable comments.
And the plastic carrier bag gets blamed for lots of environmental problems.
Rob: Yes. For example, many of them end up in our seas and in our countryside and
get swallowed by animals and fish. The problem is they're not biodegradable.
Cath: Yes, they don't decompose6 naturally very quickly. It can take up to 1000 years.
Rob: So that's why the government in Wales is trying to fight the problem. Let's hear
from the BBC's Collette Hume to hear what's being done and how widespread
the problem is…
Collette Hume, BBC
The carrier bag. Shoppers in Wales will have to pay five pence7 for every one they use, making
Wales the first part of the UK to charge for them. UK shoppers use around 13,000 carrier bags
in their lifetime. In Wales that amounts to around 480 million bags every year or 150 bags for
every person.
6 Minute English © bbclearningenglish.com 2011
Page 3 of 6
Cath: Incredible8! She says shoppers in the UK use around 13,000 carrier bags in their
lifetime.
Rob: So to try and cut that number, the Welsh government is introducing a
compulsory9 tax of five pence for every bag that someone uses.
Cath: Compulsory – so you have to pay it, there's no choice. So if someone uses 20
bags in a week then that's an extra pound you will spend just on plastic bags!
Rob: Well this is the idea of the tax – or financial levy10 – people might think twice
about using a bag.
Cath: And of course, they might start re-using the old bags or recycling. This will cut
down on the number of bags being dumped12 and left to decompose in landfill
sites – that's another name for a rubbish dump11.
Rob: This new tax is one way to wean people off the single-use carrier bag. But the
government is also providing tougher, stronger bags that last for a long time
and can be used again and again.
Cath: Yes, I've got something like that from my supermarket. But the problem is I
sometimes forget to take it with me every time I go shopping!
Rob: That is annoying! But for the Welsh government, this isn't just an issue about
carrier bags but more about getting people to think about the wider
environment. Let's hear more about the government's thinking from the Welsh
environment minister, John Griffiths. Listen out for the word he uses to
describe what he wants people to change…
6 Minute English © bbclearningenglish.com 2011
Page 4 of 6
John Griffiths , Welsh Environment Minister
We want people to think more about environmental issues and change the way they behave so
that they reuse their bags rather than having lots and lots of carrier bags spoiling13 their
environment. But as a result of the change they think more about environmental issues
generally and change their behaviour so that we have a cleaner, tidier Wales.
Rob: So he wants people to think more about environmental issues and to change
how they behave – their behaviour.
Cath: So he wants to change their habits and that could lead to a cleaner and tidier
Wales – a more environmentally friendly Wales.
Rob: That means being more caring about the natural world around them.
Cath: It's a good ethos and it will be good to see if these new plans work. Of course
there are many other parts of the World where a plastic bag tax has already
been introduced with good results.
Rob: But still billions – or is it trillions?! – of new carrier bags get used every year.
And that brings me back to today's question. Now, Cath, I asked you
approximately how many plastic carrier bags are used worldwide every year?
a) 500 million
b) 500 billion
c) 500 trillion
Cath: And I said 500 million but I'm guessing that's far too few.
6 Minute English © bbclearningenglish.com 2011
Page 5 of 6
Rob: Far too few. Absolutely wrong! The actual answer is 500 billion. OK, well
we're almost at the end of the programme, so Cath could you please remind us
of some of the vocabulary we've heard in today's programme?
Cath: We had:
campaign
resource
criticism
biodegradable
compulsory
financial levy
landfill sites
to wean
behaviour
environmentally friendly
ethos
Rob: Thanks Cath. We hope you've enjoyed today's programme. OK well it's time to
go now but we'll see you next time!
Both: Bye!
收听单词发音 |
1
learning
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| n.学问，学识，学习；动词learn的现在分词 | |
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2
carrier
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| n.运货人；带菌者；运输军队的交通工具 | |
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3
stuff
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| n.原料，材料，东西；vt.填满；吃饱 | |
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4
tricky
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| adj.狡猾的，奸诈的；(工作等)棘手的，微妙的 | |
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5
criticism
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| n.批评，批判，指责；评论，评论文章 | |
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6
decompose
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| vi.分解；vt.（使）腐败，（使）腐烂 | |
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7
pence
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| n.便士；名词penny的复数形式 | |
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8
incredible
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| adj.难以置信的，不可信的，极好的，大量的 | |
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9
compulsory
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| n.强制的，必修的；规定的，义务的 | |
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10
levy
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| n.征收税或其他款项，征收额 | |
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11
dump
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| n.垃圾场；v.倾卸，切断电源，倾倒 | |
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12
dumped
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| adj.废弃的v.倾倒( dump的过去式和过去分词 )；丢下；随便堆放；释放 | |
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13
spoiling
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| v.变质( spoil的现在分词 )；损坏；毁掉；破坏 | |
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