Plástico, contaminación y decisiones cotidianas

by Vocafy Verificado

Inglés (Estados Unidos) B2 12 preguntas Nature & animals

Explora de dónde proviene la contaminación por plástico, cómo funciona el reciclaje y qué hace que una decisión cotidiana sea mejor para el medio ambiente.

1. 1. Elige la respuesta correcta.

   ¿Cómo podría llegar la envoltura al arroyo?

   A snack wrapper lies beside a storm drain. Water from this drain flows directly into a nearby creek.

   • Rain could wash it through the drain.
   • The drain could send it through a recycling facility.
   • It would first have to pass through a sewage treatment plant.

   Show solution

   • Rain could wash it through the drain.

   Los desagües pluviales pueden llevar la basura de las calles a los cursos de agua. No es necesario tirar el plástico directamente al agua para que la contamine.

2. 2. Elige la respuesta correcta.

   ¿Qué acción evita generar residuos de botellas desechables durante el viaje?

   You already own a refillable water bottle. There is a safe drinking-water refill station where you are going.

   • Buy a disposable bottle and recycle it afterward.
   • Bring your bottle and refill it.
   • Buy a disposable bottle made with recycled plastic.

   Show solution

   • Bring your bottle and refill it.

   Volver a llenar la botella evita usar otra botella desechable. El reciclaje se ocupa de los residuos después de que se han generado.

3. 3. Elige la respuesta correcta.

   ¿Qué determina si este envase debe ir en tu contenedor de reciclaje?

   A plastic takeout container has a triangle with a number inside. Your local recycling program accepts only certain types of containers.

   • Whether the triangle is printed clearly.
   • Whether the container is made of any kind of plastic.
   • Whether the local program accepts that type of container.

   Show solution

   • Whether the local program accepts that type of container.

   El número identifica el tipo de plástico; no garantiza que se acepte en tu localidad. Las reglas de reciclaje dependen de lo que un programa pueda recolectar y procesar.

4. 4. Elige la respuesta correcta.

   ¿Qué ventaja y qué desventaja muestra este ejemplo?

   A thin plastic covering can protect some foods from damage and help them last longer. However, the covering also creates packaging waste.

   • Less packaging always means less food waste.
   • Packaging can create waste while helping prevent food waste.
   • Food protection makes packaging disposal unnecessary.

   Show solution

   • Packaging can create waste while helping prevent food waste.

   Desperdiciar alimentos también implica desperdiciar los recursos utilizados para cultivarlos y transportarlos. Una comparación útil tiene en cuenta tanto el empaque como los alimentos que protege.

5. 5. Completa el espacio en blanco.

   Many car tires contain synthetic rubber. Small particles collect on roads as tires wear down, and rain can carry them into streams. This means ___ can cause plastic pollution even without littering.

   • fuel evaporation
   • metal corrosion
   • tire wear

   Show solution

   Many car tires contain synthetic rubber. Small particles collect on roads as tires wear down, and rain can carry them into streams. This means tire wear can cause plastic pollution even without littering.

   Las partículas de los neumáticos son una fuente de contaminación por microplásticos. La contaminación por plásticos incluye las partículas que se liberan durante el uso cotidiano, no solo los objetos desechados.

6. 6. Elige la respuesta correcta.

   ¿Qué conclusión se desprende de la etiqueta?

   A cup is labeled “industrially compostable.” Its instructions require controlled conditions at a suitable facility. Your garden compost pile does not provide those conditions.

   • The cup should break down equally well in the garden pile.
   • The label does not guarantee that the cup will break down in the garden pile.
   • The cup should go into ordinary plastic recycling instead.

   Piensa en las condiciones que exige la etiqueta.

   Show solution

   • The label does not guarantee that the cup will break down in the garden pile.

   El compostaje industrial ofrece condiciones controladas que el compostaje doméstico puede no ofrecer. Además, la instalación debe aceptar el artículo en cuestión.

7. 7. Completa el espacio en blanco.

   Sunlight and weather can make a plastic bottle brittle. If it breaks into smaller solid pieces that remain plastic, it has undergone ___, not complete biodegradation.

   • fragmentation
   • evaporation
   • dissolution

   Show solution

   Sunlight and weather can make a plastic bottle brittle. If it breaks into smaller solid pieces that remain plastic, it has undergone fragmentation, not complete biodegradation.

   Que los fragmentos sean más pequeños no significa que el plástico haya desaparecido. La fragmentación puede hacer que la contaminación sea más difícil de recoger y eliminar.

8. 8. Elige la respuesta correcta.

   ¿Por qué es importante el uso repetido en esta comparación?

   A sturdy reusable bag requires more resources to make than a very thin disposable bag, but it can carry groceries on many trips.

   • Each use changes the bag into a recyclable material.
   • Repeated use removes the resources needed to manufacture it.
   • Its manufacturing impact can be spread across more shopping trips.

   Show solution

   • Its manufacturing impact can be spread across more shopping trips.

   La cantidad de usos afecta el impacto por viaje. No existe un único punto de equilibrio para todas las bolsas reutilizables; los materiales y otras condiciones influyen.

9. 9. Elige la respuesta correcta.

   Which conclusion do these tests support?

   Polyester clothing can release plastic fibers during washing. In matched laundry tests, fewer fibers left the washing machine when a filter was installed.

   • The filter reduced the number of fibers leaving the machine.
   • The filter stopped the clothing from shedding any fibers.
   • The filter made the captured plastic fibers biodegradable.

   Show solution

   • The filter reduced the number of fibers leaving the machine.

   Capturing fibers is different from preventing them from being released. The captured fibers still need appropriate disposal.

10. 10. Elige la respuesta correcta.

    ¿Cuál es la principal dificultad de reciclaje que se describe aquí?

    A snack pouch combines plastic and metal layers to protect its contents. The available recycling process handles these materials separately but cannot separate the pouch's bonded layers.

    • The pouch is too light to contain useful material.
    • The materials cannot be separated for the available process.
    • Neither plastic nor metal can ever be recycled.

    Show solution

    • The materials cannot be separated for the available process.

    Los materiales que se pueden reciclar por separado pueden ser difíciles de reciclar cuando están unidos entre sí. El diseño de los productos influye en lo que los sistemas de reciclaje pueden recuperar.

11. 11. Elige la respuesta correcta.

    What can these survey results establish about the cause of the decrease?

    A town introduced a restriction on disposable plastic bags. During the same period, it also increased street cleaning. Later surveys found fewer bags on the streets, but there was no comparison area.

    • The bag restriction alone caused the entire decrease.
    • The extra street cleaning alone caused the entire decrease.
    • The two changes had equally large effects.
    • The survey results alone cannot separate the effects of the two changes.

    More than one thing changed during the same period.

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    • The survey results alone cannot separate the effects of the two changes.

    A decrease after a policy change does not reveal its exact effect when another relevant change happened too. A suitable comparison could help separate their effects.

12. 12. Elige la respuesta correcta.

    ¿Qué conclusión está mejor respaldada?

    In a hypothetical comparison, one bag creates less plastic litter but requires more energy to manufacture than another. The comparison excludes transport, repeated use, and disposal.

    • Less plastic litter proves that the bag has a lower overall environmental impact.
    • Higher manufacturing energy proves that the bag is worse in every environmental category.
    • Neither measure alone establishes which bag has a lower overall environmental impact.
    • The two differences must cancel each other out.

    Considera tanto los diferentes impactos como las etapas que faltan.

    Show solution

    • Neither measure alone establishes which bag has a lower overall environmental impact.

    Las comparaciones ambientales pueden implicar beneficios y costos contrapuestos. Una evaluación del ciclo de vida examina los impactos en todas las etapas, desde la producción hasta el uso y la disposición final.