Passage

　　Humanity uses a little less than half the water available worlide.Yet occurrences of shortages and droughts(干旱) are causing famine and distress in some areas,and industrial and agriculturalbyproducts are polluting water supplies.Since the world's population is expected to double in the next 50 years,many experts think we are on the edge of a widespread water crisis.

　　But that doesn't have to be the outcome.Water shortages don't have to trouble the world—if we start valuing water more than we have in the past.Just as we began to appreciate petroleum more after the 1970s oil crises,today we must start looking at water from a fresh economic perspective.We can no longer afford to consider water a virtually free resource of which we can use as much aswe like in any way we want.

　　Instead,for all uses except the domestic demand of the poor,governments should price water to reflect its actual value.This means charging a fee for the water itself as well as for the supply costs.

　　Governments should also protect this resource by providing water in more economically and environmentally sound ways.For example,often the cheapest way to provide irrigation(灌溉) water in the dry tropics is through smallscale projects,such as gathering rainfall in depressions(洼地) and pumping it to nearby crop land。

　　No matter what steps governments take to provide water more efficiently,they must change their institutional and legal approaches to water use.Rather than spread control among hundreds or even thousands of local,regional and national agencies that watch various aspects of water use,countries should set up central authorities to coordinate water supply.

　　1.What is the real cause of the potential water crisis?

　　A.Only half of the world's water can be used.

　　B.The world population is increasing faster and faster.

　　C.Half of the world's water resources have been seriously polluted.

　　D.Humanity has not placed sufficient value on water resources.

　　2.As indicated in the passage,the water problem——

　　A.is already serious in certain parts of the world

　　B.has been exaggerated by some experts in the field

　　C.poses a challenge to the technology of building reservoirs

　　D.is understated by government organiations at different level

　　3.According to the author,the water price should——

　　A.be reduced to the minimumB.stimulate domestic demand

　　C.correspond to its real valueD.take into account the occurrences ofdroughts

　　4.The author says that in some hot and dry areas it is advisable to ——.

　　A.build big lakes to store water��

　　B.construct big pumping stations

　　C.build small and cheap irrigation systems��

　　D.channel water from nearby rivers to cropland

　　5.In order to raise the efficiency of the water supply,measures should be taken to ————

　　A.guarantee full protection of the environment

　　B.centralie the management of water resources

　　C.increase the sense of responsibility of agencies at all levels

　　D.encourage local and regional control of water resources

　　Passage

　　People in Shanghai can quench their thirst(解渴) with high quality water if the Shanghai Water Authority (SWA) is able to make good on its word.It has vowed(發(fā)誓) to make the city's water match its status as a worldclass city。

　　“The current tap water quality meets national standards,but,compared with that of the European Union and the United States,it still needs to be improved,”said the SWA's director general,hang Jiayi.

　　The Shanghai Special Water Supply Layout calls for residents to be able to drinkthe tap water without boiling it,in less than a decade.

　　In other developed countries,water fountains can be found almost everywhere—people do not bother with bottled drinking water.

　　By 2020,the water of the Huangpu River will be treated to reduce the amount of organic(有機(jī)物的) waste in it.This initiative(倡議) is to be completed in the first half of this year,hang said.