The UN has agreed to (1) ____ a landmark nine-year ban on trading in ivory to (2) ____ a surge in poaching that is killing as many as 20,000 elephants annually. The agreement will go into effect after a (3) ____ sale of stockpiles of ivory to Japan. Four southern African nations will sell their government-held stock of elephant tusks, although the exact amount is unknown. Willem Wijnstekers, the Secretary General of the 171-nation Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), reckoned as much as 200 tonnes of ivory might be heading to Japan. It will be made into personal stamps that are used in (4) ____ of written signatures. However, CITES was positive about the new deal. It said: "This African solution to an African problem (5) ____ a great step forward for wildlife conservation.… It is good news for the elephants and the people who live (6) ____ them."
The agreement ends an 18-year (7) ____ on the ivory trade and elephant poaching. The future of the world’s largest land mammal was at (8) ____. There are only half a million of the majestic beasts left in the world and this number was falling due to sharp increases in hunting since the (9) ____ of the century. Conservationists say elephant numbers are decreasing every year to (10) ____ illicit markets in China and Japan. African governments hope the one-off sale to Japan will reduce demand and the money raised will go into conservation programmes. However, China is up in (11) ____ over the agreement as it is excluded from the sale. CITES refused a request by Beijing last week, saying: "We do not agree that they meet the (12) ____.” Customs officials will now be watching carefully to see if the trafficking of ivory reaches China.
1.
(a)
approved
(b)
approving
(c)
approval
(d)
approve
2.
(a)
stem
(b)
stamp
(c)
trunk
(d)
storm
3.
(a)
on-off
(b)
one-two
(c)
one-off
(d)
one-up
4.
(a)
plate
(b)
place
(c)
plaque
(d)
places
5.
(a)
marks
(b)
makes
(c)
markets
(d)
markers
6.
(a)
outside
(b)
alongside
(c)
onside
(d)
offside
7.
(a)
dead duck
(b)
deadweight
(c)
dreadlock
(d)
deadlock
8.
(a)
heart
(b)
steak
(c)
stake
(d)
beef
9.
(a)
turn-ups
(b)
turnover
(c)
turn
(d)
turn-on
10.
(a)
satisfy
(b)
satisfaction
(c)
satisfactory
(d)
satisfying
11.
(a)
arm’s-length
(b)
armpits
(c)
arm-twisting
(d)
arms
12.
(a)
criticism
(b)
criteria
(c)
critters
(d)
critiques
Ex.23. WRITING: Write about the elephants and ivory for 10 minutes. Correct
your partner’s paper.
ADDITIONAL TASKS
1. VOCABULARY EXTENSION: Choose several of the words from the text. Use a dictionary or Google’s search field (or another search engine) to build up more associations / collocations of each word.
2. INTERNET: Search the Internet and find more information about the new ban on ivory trade. Talk about what you discover with your partner(s) in the next lesson.
3. ENDANGERED SPECIES:Make a poster on one of the world’s endangered species. Include information on the animal’s lifestyle and habitat, the dangers it faces and the products made from it. Show your posters to your classmates in the next lesson. Did you all find out about similar animals or things?
4. MAGAZINE ARTICLE:Write a magazine article about the death of the world’s last elephant. Discuss who is most to blame.
Read what you wrote to your classmates in the next lesson. Which article was best and why?
5. LETTER:Write a letter to the head of CITES. Ask them three questions about the survival of the elephant. Give them three suggestions about what they should do to stop poachers. Read your letter to your partner(s) in your next lesson. Your partner(s) will answer your questions.
6. TRANSLATION:Find the article in Russian describing the CITES activities. Translate it into English. Present your translation orally in class.