托福閱讀資料之21 ways to 'kick the habit'
我們中的每個人都應該對自己日常生活活動和選擇所產生的溫室氣體負責。因此，防止氣候變化需要地球上的每個人共同來努力。
The average household carbon footprint in China is 2.41 tons of carbon dioxide annually. That`s enough to fill half an Olympic swimming pool.
在中國，平均每戶每年的碳排放量是2.41噸二氧化碳。足夠填充半個奧運游泳池了。
Surprised? Well, here`s how you can work to reduce it:
看到這個數字覺得吃驚么?下面，我們來看看怎樣減少碳排放量。
1.Get started by calculating your own carbon footprint. This will give you a starting point from which to begin monitoring your progress. You enter details such as what sort of apartment you live in, your personal energy use and travel habits.
開始計算你自己的碳排放量。這個數據是你的起點，從這里開始你可以監(jiān)控自己的進展。接下來，你可以記錄一些細節(jié)，例如：你所居住的公寓的情況，你的個人能源消費及旅游習慣。
2. Each week, choose one day when you don`t eat meat. Meat uses up lots of energy because it takes a long time to produce. Animals produce methane, which is another dangerous greenhouse gas, when they burp and fart.
每周有一天吃素。由于烹飪肉類耗時較長，所以耗能更多。此外，動物打嗝、放屁時會產生另一種危險的溫室氣體--甲烷。
3. Only buy the amount of food you need and if there are leftovers, get creative. For instance, make them into a soup. Ask to take food home from restaurants if there`s some left, but remember to take your own container to avoid using a disposable carton.
只買適量的食物，如有剩飯要富有創(chuàng)新精神。例如：將剩菜做成湯。在餐廳吃飯，如有剩飯一定要打包。但是，切記要適用自己的飯盒，避免用一次性飯盒。
4. Find out what the recycling options are in your area. Then make sure you keep items such as paper and plastic bottles separate so that they can be recycled. There are places where you can recycle electronic appliances and batteries. Make sure you find them.
了解身邊的回收利用設施。然后，確保把紙張、塑料瓶等物品分開以方便回收。也有回收電器、電池的地方，確保你能找到它們。
5. Conserve energy by using efficient light bulbs. They use about one-third of the energy of normal bulbs and last 10 times as long.
使用節(jié)能燈泡節(jié)省能源。它們的耗電量僅是普通燈泡的三分之一，持續(xù)時間卻是后者的10倍。
6. Only turn the water heater on when necessary, and adjust temperature controls to avoid overheating. Put a lid on a pan when boiling water.
熱水器不用就別開，溫度控制不要過熱。燒水時在鍋上蓋好蓋子。
7. After use, waste water has to be treated, and some methane from sewage escapes into the atmosphere. Take showers rather than baths and reduce your shower time by two minutes. This will save water and give you an extra two minutes in bed.
使用后的廢水將被處理，此時污水中的部分甲烷會釋放到大氣中。建議采用噴頭淋浴而非浴缸。縮短兩分鐘洗澡時間，省水同時為自己多爭取兩分鐘睡眠時間。
8. When using the washing machine, be sure there`s a full load and turn the temperature down if it`s not really grubby.
使用洗衣機時，確認滿載，如果衣服不是很臟就把溫度調低。
9. The greediest home device along with the washing machine is the fridge. Make sure it`s as efficient as possible by keeping it out of direct sunlight and away from the oven or heater. Don`t put food in when it`s still warm.
和洗衣機一樣位列“最貪婪”家電的就是電冰箱了。電冰箱要避免太陽直射，遠離微波爐或火爐，盡量保證它的工作效率。另外，切記不要把熱的食物放進冰箱。
10. This is obvious, but essential: switch off all appliances when you`re not using them. This includes lights.
這一點很明顯也很重要：不使用時，關掉所有電器，包括燈。
11. There`s no point having the heat up high while the wind`s blowing in under the door or sneaking in through the window. Reseal all window frames to keep the heat in.
門底或窗戶縫進風時，沒必要提高室內溫度。再密封一下窗戶縫就可以留住熱氣了。
