IN THE NEWS THIS WEEK: U.S. East Coast, smoky skies latest sign of a changing climate

INTRODUCTION:

The news: This week, the East Coast of the United States is grappling with something that other places around the world are all too familiar with wildfire smoke.

NEW VOCABULARY:  grappling with, all too familiar with, wildfire, smoky

SECTION ONE:

Fires raging across eastern Canada are choking the skies from Ottawa to New York to Washington and beyond with dangerous levels of smoke. More than 400 wildfires were burning in Canada on Thursday, according to the Canadian government — with most of them considered to be burning out of control, The New York Times reported. 

The novelty of New York City landmarks shrouded in a thick haze has dominated headlines in the United States the past few days — but it may not stay a novelty for long: Americans should start expecting more of these episodes thanks to climate change. 

NEW VOCABULARY: raging, choking, out of control, novelty, landmarks, shrouded, haze, headlines, episodes

WRITING SECTION ONE:  Write a short two-sentence paragraph describing the effects of pollution in your city.  In your writing use two of the new vocabulary from the introduction and section one above.

LISTENING SECTION:   Watch the video and answer the four questions below.

QUESTIONS:

1. 1. 1. * What do the words “startling”and “apocalyptic” mean?
      2. * Delhi is known for its noxious  air. What does noxious mean?
      3. * New York is getting huge “plumes”of smoke. What are plumes?
      4. *  Schools have cancelled “field trips.” What are field trips?

————————————————————

ADVERTISEMENT: 

Are you learning another language for example French or German? Why not get yourself organised with one of our specialised organisers? Designed, written and produced by Steve, your English Teacher.

I’m Learning German:  https://www.amazon.de/dp/B0C7TG1B4W

I’m Learning French:  https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C87DW48N

I’m Learning Spanish:  https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C7SZ98GQ

I’m Learning Portuguese:  https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C7T5HXRW

I’m Learning Mandarin:

I’m Learning Italian:  https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C7SZ98V7

I’m Learning Japanese:

————————————————————-

SECTION TWO:

“Many of us on the East Coast of the United States have largely been able to avoid or ignore negative climate change impacts in recent years,” noted Emily Nyrop, a climate change expert at Conservation International who is based in Boston. “But these last few days have starkly illuminated for many on the East Coast that none of us is immune from the effects of the change in climate.”

The big picture: Wildfires have made the news elsewhere in recent years, most memorably in Singapore to Sao Paulo, where thick haze turned day into dusk. In both those cases, fires that were intentionally set elsewhere to clear land went out of control, and weather conditions exacerbated by climate change made them worse than they would have been. 

NEW VOCABULARY:  largely, noted, based in, illuminated, starkly,  the big picture, elsewhere, memorably, dusk, exacerbated

GRAMMAR SECTION: phrasal verbs one.

What is a phrasal verb?

WRITING SECTION TWO:

Ask Google for a list of phrasal verbs in English. Choose one and then write a sentence using it. Don’t forget to check the sentence for grammar tenses and punctuation before you send it to me.

UDEMY UPPER BEGINNER ENGLISH COURSE #6:  https://www.udemy.com/course/aprenda-rapidamente-o-ingles-britanico-e-divirta-se-curso6/?referralCode=CA513FD4BF8982EA6880

SECTION THREE:

Canada’s fires, on the other hand, reportedly were mostly caused by lightning. But the effects of climate change have made them especially bad this year: Record heat in Alberta, Quebec and Nova Scotia — along with record-breaking drought in the Canadian Atlantic region — have made the country’s dense forests a tinderbox. 

Cause for hope? Conservation International’s Nyrop sees a silver lining in the haze.

“While the negative effects we’re seeing right now from climate change are sobering, what gives me hope is how rapidly everyone has adapted. People are fashioningfacemasks for their dogs as well as for themselves to go outside. People are making makeshift air purifiers out of box fans, and furnace filters. This latest climate crisis illuminates the resilience and creativity that we all have in the face of these types of changes.” 

NEW VOCABULARY:  on the other hand, lightening, record heat, record-breaking, drought, dense, tinderbox, a cause for help, a silver lining, sobering, fashioning, makeshift, purifiers, furnace, filters, illuminate, resilience, 

WRITING SECTION THREE:

Write a short three-sentence paragraph using the three phrases below:

1. 1. 1. 1. 1. all too familiar with
            2. the big picture
            3. record-breaking drought

SECTION FOUR:

“I am heartened by the fact that the drumbeat of climate change and its importance is getting louder and louder,” she continued. “The connection between the poor air quality on the East Coast and wildfires in Canada is a link that more and more people are making to the ultimate cause: climate change.”

What’s next: Conditions on the East Coast should improve slowly over the next few days, but it’s likely just a taste of what’s to come: The Canadian government has predicted higher-than-normal fire activity throughout this year, CBS News reported this week. 

NEW VOCABULARY:  heartened by, drumbeat, getting louder and louder, higher-than-normal

SECTION FIVE:

Nyrop is hopeful that the fires are a wake-up call, propelling the issue of climate change into presidential platforms, companies’ strategic plans and governments’ budget considerations. 

“I believe that as a greater number of people directly experience the negative effects of climate change, and are able to connect those negative events to climate change itself, the importance and prioritization of this issue is going to exponentially increase,” she said. 

NEW VOCABULARY:  a wake-up-call, presidential, platforms, budget

STUDENT ASSISTANCE SECTION:

Diaries for almost anything you want to record.

https://weupcycle.co.uk/our-diaires/

STUDENT REVISION SECTION:  Past Perfect Progressive Explained.