February 27, 2015 by Liz Below are some questions for the topic of the environment for IELTS speaking part 3.
- Are there many environmental problems in your country?
- Are people concerned about environmental problems in your country?
- Do you think enough is being done to deal with them?
- What can individuals do to help?
- Do you think older people have as much awareness of environmental problems as the younger generation?
- Do you believe that climate change is a serious problem?
- What causes climate change?
- Do you think recycling is important?
Here are some sample answers:
- Q) Are people concerned about environmental problems in your country?
- A) Well, it’s hard to say for sure. I think some people are concerned but probably not enough of them. There are people who take environmental problems seriously enough to actually recycle their rubbish appropriately but I don’t think there are enough people who concern themselves with resource depletion which I consider to be a pressing issue. So many people are using energy and buying products without any thought to the impact of their actions. We all know that the world’s resources are being used at an alarming rate but no one seems to actually feel it’s their responsibility to change the way they live. So, I guess, although there are some people who are concerned, it’s not enough and more people in my country need to change the way they live.
- Q) Do you believe climate change is a serious problem?
- A) Yes, I do. The issue of climate change has been growing over the past few decades and we are now witnessing serious changes in global weather patterns. While some countries are suffering heat waves, other countries are suffering from terrible snow storms. But that isn’t the worst of the problem. The changes in the climate are also causing extreme weather such as typhoons, earthquakes and tsunamis, which are devastating many countries. On top of that, there are also concerns about rising sea levels, which although not a problem now, will be a serious concern to any low lying country in the future. So, I feel that climate change is something which needs to be taken very seriously.
Recommended
- Environmental Problems Vocabulary
- More Speaking Part 3 Questions and Topics
It’s impossible to predict what questions you will be asked in the IELTS Speaking Exam, but you can reliably guess what topics will appear. There are only a certain number of topics that show up commonly – like education, society, childhood, technology, sports, family, etc – and so you need to prepare your answers by topic rather than a specific question. Today, I’m going to give you some example questions about the environment, arranged by parts of the test, along with sample answers. PART ONE Do you or your family take steps to help the environment? To be honest, we don’t really do as much as we should. We try to recycle when we can, but we can be forgetful about it.
Do you take an interest in nature? Yes, I’m very interested in nature. I love wild animals and taking walks in the forests and mountains near my home.
Are there any environmental problems in your country? I think every country has some environmental problems, and mine is no exception. There is air pollution in the cities and around the coast the water has a lot of waste material in it.
PART TWO Describe an environmental problem that has been in the news. You should say - when this was
- where the event happened
- what actually took place
and say how you felt about this problem. Before I show you my sample answer, I would like to draw your attention to some features of the cue card. In this case, you are being asked about “an environmental problem.” This is a pretty wide topic and it could concern many different areas, like pollution or climate change. I think that the obvious thing to do it to view this as a global warming IELTS speaking question. Even though it does not specifically say that is what you should talk about, you can certainly guide the topic in that direction. Global warming is a massive issue and I think everyone should be prepared to talk about it in IELTS. Sample Answer about Global Warming Well, these days everyone is talking about global warming. In the United States, there is a big controversy because the new president says that he doesn’t believe in it, even though the scientists have more or less all come to a consensus that it is a real and dangerous phenomenon. The story has been going on for years, of course, so it is never out of the news, but with Donald Trump in the White House people are talking about it even more. Global warming is taking place all over our world, with various causes and effects. No one place is responsible, and we are all in danger. However, it is people on small islands or in low-lying coastal areas who are most at risk. If we can’t take action now to stop the situation being exacerbated, then the future looks very bleak. This whole situation makes me feel quite depressed, and honestly I don’t see how we will be able to remedy it with world leaders in denial. However, hopefully the combined efforts of concerned people and scientists will help push humanity in the right direction and maybe we can solve this problem before it becomes unfixable.
Useful vocabulary I think answer, I used the word “exacerbated.” This means “to make something worse.” For example: - Listen, it’s bad enough. Don’t try to exacerbate the situation.
- Oh come on and give up. Please! You’re just making things worse. Stop exacerbating everything!
PART THREE What do you think is the main danger the world faces in terms of the environment? The main danger right now is probably climate change. It seems inevitable that we will see our sea levels rising and deserts expanding. Humans will clash more frequently over resources, and our standard of living will stagnate and then drop.
What examples are there of how we damage the natural world? It is clear to see that we are damaging the natural world. Recently I went to the sea and saw coral reefs dying. Humans are consuming too much sea food and not allowing the oceans to recover. What’s even worse is that we are polluting the seas, too. The numbers of whales and sharks are depleting, along with countless other species.
In which ways do we respond well to environmental problems? Many years ago, people were talking about the ozone layer. There was a hole in it that was expanding in the 1990s and everyone was really worried about it. However, after many laws were passed to prohibited the use of certain chemicals, the damage has begun to be repaired. This gives us a clear message – we must continue to take care of our environment before it is too late.
UNIT 12: ENVIRONMENT
Môi trường không còn là một chủ đề mới lại trong IELTS Speaking, tuy nhiên tần suất thí sinh IELTS bắt gặp chủ đề này là không nhỏ, kể cả trong các kỹ năng khác như listening, reading và writing.
Trong bài học hôm nay, thầy xin giới thiệu với các em list rất nhiều từ vựng về môi trường bao gồm cả những từ vựng căn bản và nâng cao. Bên cạnh đó, thầy cũng đưa ra một số câu hỏi kèm theo câu trả lời mẫu cùng một số câu hỏi tự luyện tập. Mong rằng qua chia sẻ này, chủ đề môi trường không thể làm khó các IELTS Fighter thêm được nữa!
Xem thêm bài viết khác: I. VOCABULARY
Một số từ vựng căn bản
- acid rain: rain which contains large amounts of harmful chemicals as a result of burning substances such as coal and oil.
- biodegradable: able to decay naturally and harmlessly.
Biodegradable packaging helps to limit the amount of harmful chemicals released into the atmosphere.
- Biodiversity: the number and variety of plant and animal species that exist in a particular environmental area or in the world generally, or the problem of preserving and protecting this.
A new National Biological Survey to protect species habitat and biodiversity.
- carbon monoxide: the poisonous gas formed by the burning of carbon, especially in the form of car fuel.
- carbon dioxide: the gas formed when carbon is burned, or when people or animals breathe out.
- Climate: the general weather conditions usually found in a particular place.
The Mediterranean climate is good for growing citrus fruits and grapes. There has been a growing concern about climate change.
- Deforestation: the cutting down of trees in a large area; the destruction of forests by people.
Deforestation is destroying large areas of tropical rain forest.
- desertification: the process by which land changes into desert.
- disposable products: describes an item that is intended to be thrown away after use.
- drought: a long period when there is little or no rain.
This year (a) severe drought has ruined the crops.
- earthquake: a sudden violent movement of the Earth's surface, sometimes causing great damage.
- endangered species: endangered birds/plants/species animals or plants which may soon not exist because there are very few now alive.
- energy: the power from something such as electricity or oil, which can do work, such as providing light and heat. There are different types of energy: solar, nuclear, hydroelectric...
The energy generated by the windmill drives all the drainage pumps.
- energy conservation: the process of conserving energy
- environment: the air, water and land in or on which people, animals and plants live.
Certain chemicals have been banned because of their damaging effect on the environment.
- Extinction: Many species of plants and animals are in danger of/threatened with extinction (= being destroyed so that they no longer exist)
- Flood: a large amount of water covering an area that is usually dry.
- Fumes: strong, unpleasant and sometimes dangerous gas or smoke.
Petrol fumes always make me feel ill.
- natural resources: things such as minerals, forests, coal, etc. which exist in a place and can be used by people.
Some natural resources, such as natural gas and fossil fuel, cannot be replaced.
- global warming: 1a gradual increase in world temperatures caused by polluting gases such as carbon dioxide which are collecting in the air around the Earth and preventing heat escaping into space.
- greenhouse effect: an increase in the amount of carbon dioxide and other gases in the atmosphere which is believed to be the cause of a gradual warming of the surface of the Earth.
- green peace: an organization that fights for the protection of the environment.
- renewable energy: describes a form of energy that can be produced as quickly as it is used.
- ozone layer: a layer of air high above the Earth, which contains a lot of ozone, and which prevents harmful ultraviolet light from the sun from reaching the Earth.
Scientists believe that there is a hole in the ozone layer.
- Pollution: damage caused to water, air.... by harmful substances or waste.
- recycle waste: to collect and treat rubbish to produce useful materials which can be used again.
- sustainable development: a development that is causing little or no damage to the environment and therefore able to continue for a long time.
- Tsunami: an extremely large wave caused by movement of the earth under the sea, often caused by an earthquake (= when the Earth shakes)
- man-made disaster: widespread damage or loss of life brought about by the action of humans
- natural disaster: an event such as an earthquake, flood or hurricane which causes widespread damage or loss of life
- natural environment: the place where animals and plants would normally be found in nature
Một số từ vựng nâng cao
- to become extinct: to no longer exist
- to be under threat: to be in danger of becoming extinct
- to die out: see ‘to become extinct’
- energy conservation: the careful management of energy resources to ensure they last as long as possible
- environmentally friendly: behaviour and products that do not harm the environment
- exhaust fumes: the toxic gases given off by vehicles powered by petrol
- future generations: the people who live after us
- to get back to nature: to live a life that is closer to nature
- humanitarian aid: the act of showing support to people struggling to survive
- impact on: the effect on
- loss of habitat: the decline in areas of land where animals and plants would normally exist
- the natural world: the world of nature
- poaching: to hunt and kill wild animals illegally
- pollution levels: the amount of toxic waste
- pressure group: a group of people who try to raise awareness of issues and try to affect the views and actions of people and organisations
- wildlife conservation: to protect animals and plants and their habitats
- regrettable: something that you are sorry about and wish that it had not happened.
- exhaust emissions: waste gases that come out of a car or other vehicle.
- contaminate: make a place or thing dirty, by adding a substance that is dangerous or polluting.
- discharge: when somebody discharges a gas or liquid, they release it and it goes into the water or the air.
- aquatic: living in water
- life-threatening: likely to kill someone.
- cutting down on: reducing the size, amount or number of something.
- awareness: knowing that something exists and is important.
II. QUESTIONS AND SAMPLE ANSWERS
PART 1
- Are there any environmental problems in your country?
Yes … we have a serious issue with pollution levels in some of our big cities … exhaust fumes from cars and lorries are definitely one reason for the problem but we also have a lot of heavy industry in some areas and this also results in poor air quality …
- Do you take an interest in nature?
Well … I’m a city person through and through and don’t get back to nature very often I’m afraid … but like everyone else I’m fascinated by the natural world and I like watching documentaries showing wild animals in their natural habitat …
- Do you or your family take steps to help the environment?
My parents have always tried to make us aware of our impact on the environment… they’re really into energy conservation … and always try to buy environmentally friendly products if they have the chance …
PART 2
Describe a polluted place. You should say:• What the place is• What type of pollution it is/ are • Cause and effect of pollution
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