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Text 5

Too Many People

Many experts on different subjects believe that there are already too many people in the world. Unless there are great changes in the way people think about the number of children they should have, the world’s population will double in twenty-five years. There will be more than 20 cities with population greater than 20 million people. At present there are only three.

Some people who do not understand what ‘overpopulation’ means point to countries such as Australia and say ‘But there is plenty of room there. The country is almost empty’. It is true that most of Australia is unpopulated, and much of it is very thinly populated, but there are reasons for this. Firstly, much of the land is desert and it is waterless, and secondly, even the land that is not desert is not suitable for anything, not even growing grass. Even with its present population of 17 million, Australia has serious water problems. Furthermore, if it has to feed more people, it will have less food to sell to other countries which, in turn, as their population grows, will have to buy more food from outside.

Another major problem we will have to face as the world’s population grows is a shortage of energy. We are using up coal and oil and when they have been exhausted, we will have to find something instead of them. It is true that we can make electricity from the heat of the sun and moving water, but we do not yet have the technology to produce great amounts of this energy.

Perhaps, though, the most urgent problem when the world’s population doubles will be pollution. The earth and the air we breathe are already badly polluted. Twice the number of people will cause twice the amount of pollution.

The world’s leaders have to solve many problems. Population control is the greatest. It is probably the one that many countries are doing the least about. Sadly, it is the poorer nations, especially in Africa, which have the greatest population growth, and their peoples will suffer even more than they are suffering now.

Words

point показывать; указывать

empty пустой

reason причина

suitable подходящий, пригодный

grow (grew, grown) расти; выращивать

grass трава

furthermore больше того

sell (sold) продавать

exhaust истощаться

perhaps возможно

urgent насущный;актуальный; срочный

pollution загрязнение

breathe дышать

cause вызывать; быть причиной

solve решать

suffer страдать

Ответьте на вопросы

1. How long will it take for the population of the world to double?

2. What is the population of Australia?

3. How can we make electricity?

4. What will be our biggest problem?

5. Which area of the world will suffer the most?

6. What can be done about the problems of pollution?