Describe some of the effects of spraying the land with pesticides.

8. Read an extract from the newspaper article and answer the questions:

HARVESTING POISON IN COLOMBIA

“First they tell us to buy their poisons to kill the pests,” says Aguilar bitterly. “Now they say we need poisons to solve the problems created by the first ones.” Aguilar is a South American farmer whose land has been swamped by a strange new plague of moths. His main crop is tomatoes. ”When the sales people first told us of the new pesticides, we were excited by the thought of being free of our problems. After three years we had a nasty surprise. Some moths which the pesticides had so far killed survived. They began to reproduce at a terrible rate, eating all the tomatoes they could find. The chemicals had disturbed the balance of nature by killing not only the pests but also their natural predators. The farmers began to try new pesticides, which worked at first, then the same pattern of events took place.”

Questions:

1. Why did Aguilar first begin to buy the pesticides?

2. What problems emerged after a few years?

3. What did Aguilar have to do to control the pests again?

4. Can you think of any other way in which pests can be controlled?

9. What do you think?

1. What is the difference between chemical and organic fertilizers?

2. What methods can be used to spray crops?

10. Work in pairs. Read, translate and comment on the following dialogue:

SOIL POLLUTION

- What sort of environmental problems can give rise to threat for the well-being of the world population?

- We shouldn’t forget that industrial pollution is only part of a vast problem of the environmental hazards. Of great consequence is the polluted environment of areas where millions suffer the efforts of ignorance, poverty, lack of sanitary conditions, poor food and disease.

- Which of the agent of pollutants in those areas are the most dangerous for man?

- First of all I must mention human excreta.

- What harm can they effect on human health?

- Excreta are responsible for hookworm and many other parasites dangerous to life. Besides I want to mention the resurgence of an old and forgotten in the developed countries diseases – cholera, which is transmitted from man to man by a polluted environment, polluted by human waste and unprotected water supply.

- So the most pressing problem is ignorance and lack of sanitary condition…

- Solid waste disposal in general is a serious problem. Refuse of all kinds help flies, mosquitoes, rodents and other disease agents to thrive, passing on illness to man.

- How many people are the victims of disease in developing countries?

- Millions fall victims to a wide variety of communicable diseases in places where the biological pollution from community waste is allowed to reach drinking water source and food.

- What kind of work is being carried on at present?

- The general problem of pollution is being vigorously attacked. Sanitation and sanitary education is being carried on among the population at large.

11. Find the meanings of the following words and word combinations in the dictionary and try to remember them:

Hookworm, solid waste disposal, disease agent, resurgence, rodent.

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