首页
外语
计算机
考研
公务员
职业资格
财经
工程
司法
医学
专升本
自考
实用职业技能
登录
考研
The majority of the population in the world might drink only two liters of water a day, but they consume about 3,000 liters a da
The majority of the population in the world might drink only two liters of water a day, but they consume about 3,000 liters a da
admin
2020-03-21
27
问题
The majority of the population in the world might drink only two liters of water a day, but they consume about 3,000 liters a day if the water that goes into their food is taken into account. The rich gulp down far more, since they tend to eat more meat, which takes far more water to produce than grains. So as the world’s population grows and incomes rise, farmers will need a great deal more water to keep everyone fed; 2,000 more cubic kilometers a year by 2030, according to the International Water Management Institute(IWMI). Yet in many farming regions, water is scarce and likely to get scarcer as global warming worsens. The world is facing not so much a food crisis as a water crisis, argues Colin Chartres, IWMI’s director-general.
The solution, Mr. Chartres and others contend, is more efficient use of water or, as the sloganeers put it, "more crop per drop". Some 1. 2 billion people live in places that are short of water. Farming accounts for roughly 70% of human water consumption. So when water starts to run out, farming tends to offer the best potential for thrift. But governments rarely charge farmers a market price for water. So they are usually more wasteful than other consumers—even though the value they create from the water is often less than households or industry would be willing to pay for it.
The pressing need is to make water go further. Antoine Frerot, the head of the water division of Veolia Environment, promotes recycling of city wastewater to be used in industry or agriculture. This costs less and cuts pollution.
Yet as Mr. Frerot himself concedes, there are many even cheaper ways to save water. As much as 70% of water used by farmers never gets to crops, perhaps lost through leaky irrigation channels or by draining into rivers or groundwater. Investment in drip irrigation, or simply repairing the worst leaks, could bring huge savings.
" Farmers in poor countries can usually afford such things only if they are growing cash crops," says David Molden of IWMI. "Even basic kit such as small rainwater tanks can be lacking. " Ethiopia, for example, has only 38 cubic meters of storage capacity per inhabitant, compared to almost 5,000 in Australia. Yet modest water storage can hugely improve yields in rain-fed agriculture, by smoothing over short dry spells. Likewise, pumping water into natural aquifers for seasonal storage tends to be much cheaper than building a big dam, and prevents the great waste of water through evaporation.
Agronomists are beginning to devise tools to help monitor the efficiency of water use. Some have designed algorithms that use satellite data on surface temperatures to calculate the rate at which plants are absorbing and transpiring water. That allows governments and development agencies to concentrate their efforts on the most prodigal areas.
Raising yields does not always involve greater water consumption, especially when farms are inefficient. It would take little extra water to double cereal output in many parts of Africa, Mr. Molden argues. IWMI reckons that some three-quarters of the extra food the world needs could be provided simply by bringing yields in poor countries closer to those of rich ones. That is more realistic than the absolute alternative: giving up meat and other thirsty products altogether.
选项
答案
F
解析
题目对应信息在第一段最后一句:“The world is facing not so much a food crisis as a water crisis…”意思是“与其说世界面临的是食物危机不如说是用水危机。”“Not so much as”比较结构,意思是“与其说……不如说……”。因此干扰项[G]要排除。
转载请注明原文地址:https://kaotiyun.com/show/wnY4777K
0
考研英语二
相关试题推荐
Animportantfactorofleadershipisattraction.Thisdoesnotmeanattractivenessintheordinarysense,forthatisabornqua
Whichofthefollowingcanbethebesttitleofthispassage?Accordingtothepassage,whydoesadrinkbringseriousresults
Theconference______thepossibilityofestablishingcloserdiplomaticrelationshipbetweenthetwocountries.
Asa______president,hisviewsaretreatedwithrespectwhenheisinterviewed.
WholesalepricesinJulyrosemoresharplythanexpectedandatafasterratethanconsumerprices,【1】thatbusinesseswerestill
Thecellphone,adevicewehavelivedwithformorethanadecade,offersagoodexampleofapopulartechnology’sunforeseensi
Theroleofgovernmentsinenvironmentalmanagementisdifficultbutinescapable.Sometimes,thestatetriestomanagetheresou
Everyone,itseems,hasahealthproblem.AfterpouringbillionsintotheNationalHealthService,Britishpeoplemoanaboutdir
Afewdecadesago,theworldbankingcommunityinventednewElectronicFundsTransfer(EFT)systemstomovemoneymoreefficiently
随机试题
表单一般有两种用途:________和交互通信。
男性,38岁,出现会阴部持续性疼痛,伴发热,疼痛逐渐加重,并出现排尿困难、里急后重,直肠指诊因剧烈疼痛不满意,WBC16.0×109/L。最可能的诊断是
肱骨穿胸侧位,适用的病变是
李某长期吸毒,多次自费戒毒均未成功。某公安局在一次检查中发现后,将李某送至强制隔离戒毒所进行强制隔离戒毒。强制隔离戒毒属于()。
常用的物流服务项目质量计划编制方法有()
简述合同有效成立的条件。
个人贷款应当遵循()的原则。
属于账账核对的是()。
小组活动开始后,组员间有下面一段对话:成员甲:“其实一直以来,我们的婚姻生活都不太幸福……”成员乙:“你丈夫有了‘第三者’?”成员甲:“不是。”成员乙:“那是你的问题,你已不再爱他?”成员甲:“不是……”成员乙:“那……我猜……”在此情景中,社会工作者最适
设f(x)=dt+2,y=f(x)的反函数为y=g(x),则g’(2)=________
最新回复
(
0
)