阅读理解
The shortage of clean drinking water is a major problem worldwide.The World Health Organization
says more than one billion people live in areas where fresh water resources are not available.The problem
is especially serious in Asia and the Pacific.A United Nations report says water availability in that area is
the second lowest in the world,after Africa.
Nearly half a billion people in Asia and the Pacific don't have enough safe drinking water.The United
Nations report notes that the world's poor countries are also the ones that use the most water for
agriculture.Agriculture uses about 80% of the water in the AsiaPacific area.There has also been an increase in water used for industry.India used three times more industrial water between 1999 and 2009 than in the past.
The shortage of clean drinking water around the world forces millions of people to drink unsafe water.
This leads to an increase in diseases like diarrhea (腹泻),the second leading cause of death in children.
Floods,pollution and climate change have made the water crisis more serious.
The Millennium Development Goals for 2015 plans a 50% decrease in the number of people without
safe drinking water.Scientists,governments and aid organizations around the world are increasing their
efforts to meet these goals.Still the United Nations says there is much work to be done.During this World Water Day celebration it called on other organizations to work together to fight against the water crisis.
The American researchers are designing a new technology for turning sea water into drinking water.The process uses electricity to help bring salt out from sea water to make it drinkable.The technology removed 99% of the salt and other harmful materials from sea water.So far the method has purified only small
amounts of water.But the researchers say it may someday be available as a personal water purifying
machine.
1. Which of the following has the lowest water availability in the world?
A. Asia.
B. Africa.
C. Europe.
D. Australia.
2. What's the condition of water in poor countries?
A. The problem of wasting water is much serious.
B. Industry has been using most of the water.
C. Most of the water is used for watering farms.
D. The increasing population causes the water crisis.
3. From the passage we can know ________.
A. more people around the world are paying attention to the water crisis
B. World Water Day is celebrated every four years by the United Nations
C. more organizations are sending safe drinking water to the people in need
D. the water crisis will be solved with the effort of many organizations by 2015
4. What do we know about the new technology for turning sea water into drinking water?
A. It can take all the salt and harmful materials from sea water.
B. Scientists have made it widely used in daily life by now.
C. It has turned a large amount of sea water into drinking water.
D. It will cost some electricity during the process of purification.
5. The passage mainly tells us ________.
A. which country has the least drinking water
B. which country has the most agricultural land
C. the ways to reduce the water waste
D. the water crisis humans meet with
