READING COMPREHENSION

OCEAN POLLUTION
The world population is increasing and consuming without worrying about the repercussions on its environment.
Every day, in our daily life, we use objects made of plastic: a water bottle,
a bag for shopping, a packet of biscuits... They
it takes time to biodegrade: 400 years for
a plastic bag and 450 years for a water bottle. And
for various reasons, a large part of this waste,
after only a few minutes of use, it
found in the seas and oceans.
Indeed, in 1997, Charles Moore, a captain
by boat, discovered, in the North Pacific, a place
where there was a lot of plastic waste that had
were gathered there because of the whirlwinds of several
ocean currents. He then uses the term 'plastic continent' to refer to this 'new continent'. Upon his return,
he directly alerted the scientific community.
Later, several expeditions are undertaken and unfortunately, enormous floating garbage patches are
discoveries in all the oceans. The largest concentration is found in the North-East Pacific and represents nearly
six times the area of France!
Plastic is not just an aesthetic problem,” explains marine biologist David Barnes from the British
Antarctic Survey. 'It can truly change entire ecosystems.' So to protect our planet, it is important
to act now!

WHY SUCH A SITUATION??? AND WHAT ARE THE IMPACTS???

In the last ten years, we have produced more plastic than in the entire last century.
According to some estimates, at the current rate at which we throw away our plastic bottles, bags, and containers,
for single use, there will be more plastic than fish in the oceans by 2050, and about 99% of
seabirds will have eaten plastic. Animals like the whale, the sea lion, the turtle are dying because of
plastic waste present in the oceans. Fishing nets that are sometimes abandoned, called ghost nets,
injure, trap, and cause the drowning of thousands of large marine animals each year. These nets also restrict the
mobility of animals and prevents them from going to search for food. One million seabirds and 100,000
Marine mammals are killed each year by plastics in the oceans. 44% of all bird species...
Sea, 22% of cetaceans, all species of sea turtles, and a growing list of fish species have been
found with plastic in or around their bodies.
An international report stated that 8 to 9 million tons of plastic waste were released into the
oceans each year. This figure is 33 times higher than previous estimates. Plastic accounts for about
90% of all the waste floating on the surface of the oceans, with 46,000 pieces of plastic per square mile. Like
plastic is cheaper to manufacture than other materials, it is widely used at present. The report, prepared by
Ocean Conservancy and McKinsey highlighted that if the top five countries in terms of plastic waste
they were starting to take measures, they could reduce 65% of waste by 2025, which would reduce 45% of the
total waste worldwide.
More than 50% of the waste comes from Asian countries, including China with 2.4 million tons. The four
others among the top five are Indonesia, the Philippines, Vietnam, and Thailand. The volume of waste
plastics in Asian countries is expected to increase rapidly in the coming years, as the volume of
plastic consumption is expected to rise by 80% over the next 10 years and exceed 200 million
tons by 2025.
 In 2004, a study conducted by Dr. Richard Thompson at the University of Plymouth, UK, revealed
a large amount of plastic particles on the beaches and waters in Europe, the Americas, Australia,
Africa and Antarctica. In 2006, Greenpeace declared that they had counted at least 267 species of animals.
different ones that had already eaten plastic debris. According to the National Oceanographic Administration and
atmospheric, plastic debris kills about 100,000 marine mammals each year, as well as millions
of birds and fish.

MICROBEADS, ANOTHER PROBLEM

In May 2016, 340 members of the European Parliament signed the petition for action on microbeads, asking
the reduction of micro-plastic pollution and for the European Commission to take action on a source
particular: personal care products, such as facial scrubs and shower gels.
Why this petition?
Microbeads are the result of the fracturing of plastic pieces released into the oceans.
the effect of currents. However, they also come directly from industrial discharges, particularly in the sectors
clothing and cosmetics, which use it in large quantities. It is found everywhere in skin scrubs,
shampoos, toothpaste, soaps. The Surfrider Foundation explains on its website that 'a single tube of
These cosmetics, facial care or toothpaste, can contain thousands of microbeads.
There are some that are visible, but there are hundreds of others that are invisible to the naked eye. And these microbeads are
so small that wastewater treatment facilities are not designed to filter them. So, these
Microparticles are found in the sea and have negative impacts on the marine environment. And they can, thanks to the
currents, move from one end of our planet to the other and as they carry contaminating agents, they
can disrupt the local fauna and flora and contaminate beaches and seabeds. Living organisms
in the oceans, lakes, rivers... also eat these microbeads. Fish, plankton eat them. So, at
at the end of the food chain, Humans eat them too.
This year, on February 23, 2017, UN Environment launched a global campaign aimed at the elimination of
two major sources of marine waste: microplastics present in cosmetics and excessive use
from single-use plastic. Launched at the global summit on the oceans held in Bali, the campaign
#CleanOceans calls on governments to adopt plastic reduction policies, urging industries to
minimize plastic packaging and rethink product design. It also invites consumers to
change their habits before our oceans are irreversibly damaged.

Excerpt from the MAFNU'17 report of the commission on Sustainable Development

 READING COMPREHENSION
OCEAN POLLUTION
Read very carefully the text on ocean pollution and then answer the following questions.

1- Say whether the information is true or false by checking the corresponding box and cite the passage from the text that
justify your answer.
TRUE FAKE

There are fewer and fewer people living on our planet.

Justification: _____________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________

2- Complete the sentences below.

to biodegrade. met ____________ and to biodegrade.

3- How does Charles Moore name the place he found?_________________________________________

4- To whom does Charles Moore announce his horrible discovery? __________________________________________
5- Which ocean has the most waste discovered and what is the size of the waste area?

6-The production of plastic…

decreases over the years. □ keeps increasing. is less important than it was about ten years ago.
By which year will there be fewer fish in the oceans than plastic waste?

8- Currently, which marine animals are dying because they have eaten plastic?

□ □ □ □ □
9-How many seabirds die each year due to plastic waste in the seas?
oceans?
10- How many tons of plastic waste enter the oceans each year?

11- Indicate whether the information is true or false by ticking the corresponding box and cite the passage of the
text that justifies your answers.
TRUE FALSE

Asian countries are responsible for half of the plastic waste that is present in
the oceans.
Justification
In Europe, the beaches are not polluted and the waters are very clean.
_____________________________________________________________

12- What is the petition signed by the 340 members of the European Parliament in favor of?

13- Name 4 products that may contain microbeads?

- -

14- The microbeads are very mobile. TRUE FALSE We don't know.
15- Only animals eat microbeads? TRUE FALSE We do not know.
What are the 3 objectives that the #CleanOceans campaign aims to achieve with governments?

- _______________________________________

WRITTEN PRODUCTION
THE POLLUTION OF SEAS AND OCEANS
According to you, what are the different sources of pollution in the seas and oceans? And what solutions?
Is it important to find out if we want to continue enjoying the salty waters of our planet?

You will write a text of 220-240 words expressing your opinion. Your writing must be composed of a
introduction, a development of two paragraphs and a conclusion.

Also think about making complex sentences and using the maximum number of vocabulary words seen in class this.
year on the theme of ecology.

CONCEPTION: Céline TOUSSAINT