5 ways to reduce your carbon footprint from home 减少家庭碳足迹的5种方法

2021-01-02王涛涛

疯狂英语·新阅版 2021年11期

王涛涛

这5种方法可帮助你在日常生活中积极地减少碳足迹，实现可持续发展。

1 The easiest way to be sustainable on a day⁃to⁃day basis is by taking active strides （大步;步幅） towards reducing your carbon footprint. Here are five easy methods you can consider.

·Sticking to the five Rs

2 To reduce your carbon footprint from home， you should learn to Reduce， Reuse， Recycle， Rot and Refuse. There are many things you can do. For examole， you can set up a live compost （堆肥） bin in your home to change biodegradable waste into manure or energy. It is an excellent technique to reduce carbon footprint. Similarly， recycling plastic or glass objects or repurposing them in your home is also effective.

·Refusing single?use plastic

3 Around 17 percent of the global carbon budget by 2050 will be consumed by plastic， without any intervention， as per a study. This rise in the use of plastic can be largely attributed to the role single⁃use plastic plays in the day⁃to⁃day consumption. An easy way to reduce your carbon emissions is by simply switching from using single⁃use plastic items， especially water bottles and straws， to those made of reusable materials like metal and wood.

·Switching to more sustainable modes of fashion

4 A study from the United Nations has revealed that “fast fashion” has contributed to nearly 10 percent of the global greenhouse gas emissions. By merely shopping less， opting to buy second⁃hand clothes or purchasing from certified eco⁃friendly labels you can reduce your carbon footprint.

·Conserving water

5 Another simple way is simply by turning off the tap whenever possible. This includes shutting off the tap when doing routine jobs like brushing your teeth or shaving. By actively implementing this， you will be able to conserve water without leaving behind a large carbon footprint.

·Buying local produce

6 Sustainability includes using resources that are readily available to you in your environment. One method in which you can drastically reduce your carbon footprint is by sourcing most of the ingredients used in your kitchen locally. A large chunk of the greenhouse gas emissions are involved in the production of food that comes in transport. By choosing resources locally， you will be able to reduce your carbon footprint efficiently.

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Ⅰ. Choose the best answers according to the text

Detail 1. Which of the following belongs to “Sticking to the five Rs”？

A. Refusing single⁃use plastic.

B. Recycling glass objects.

C. Buying a non⁃renewable item.

D. Shopping in a nearby store.

Vocabulary 2. Which of the following can best replace the underlined phrase “contributed to”？

A. Led in. B. Turned into. C. Resulted in. D. Taken into.

Detail 3. What can we learn from the paragraph of “Refusing single⁃use plastic”？

A. Around 17% of the global carbon budget is consumed by plastic.

B. Plastic consumption is mainly caused by single⁃use plastic.