Read the following passage and do the tasks below.
1 Donnachadh McCarthy takes environmental issues very seriously. As an eco-auditor he gives advice to people and companies on how to make their homes and offices more eco-friendly. As an author he writes books that persuade readers to have a greener lifestyle, and he is often a speaker on environmental issues at different conferences.
2 Yet, he doesn’t believe words are enough: he would like to lead by example. This is why he turned his home in central London into a place where he can prove he lives by the green principles which he promotes. His Victorian house from the 1840s was equipped with different environmentally friendly devices to become first a zero-carbon house (same amount of co, in and out) and later on carbon-negative (less CO2 out than in).
3 How is this possible? First of all, he is very careful to use alternative energy sources like wind and sun wherever possible. Heating in the house is provided by a wood burner that is powered by waste wood near his house. Hot water comes from a solar water heating system from the roof and his toilet only uses rainwater. Water is not wasted in his home. While the average British household consumes 160 litres of tap water a day, he only uses 26 litres.
4 The same level of attention is given to household waste in his house. With thorough recycling he only needed one bin for the whole of last year and even this one bin was not full.
5 He does not misuse electricity either. Donnachadh McCarthy does not buy any from outside sources because he generates his own ‘green’ electricity with the solar electric panels on his roof. In fact, he produces so much that the national system pays him for the extra amount.
(Solutions Intermediate - Workbook)
Choose the most suitable heading (A-G) for each paragraph. There are two extra heading you do not need.
Paragraph 1 _____________ | A - You can give it a try! |
Paragraph 2_____________ | B - Providing a good model to follow |
Paragraph 3_____________ | C - Throw it out - are you sure? |
Paragraph 4_____________ | D - How to build a green house |
Paragraph 5_____________ | E - A man of many talents |
| F - No bills to pay |
| G - Watch your step |
