Global View - Carbon Footprint (C0222)

A:

So what's your guys' take on all this global warming hysteria in the media?

B:

It's pretty serious, man. There have been tons of scientific studies and the scientific community says that the earth is heating up. We need to make some drastic changes to our lifestyle if we want to preserve our planet.

A:

I don't know. It sounds like a bunch of mumbo jumbo if you ask me. "Save the earth!" The earth will save itself. It's survived worst disasters in the past. I mean, honestly, we live in the boonies. There's no way anyone here is ever going to walk or bike to work, especially in the winter. And we have no bus system. My house is forty years old and it would take a lot of money to get it refitted to be "green" and "energy-efficient".

C:

Well I don't really know if I believe in global warming either, or whether or not it was our doing or a natural change the earth is going through, but you have to admit that we're living pretty irresponsibly here in the west.

A:

I guess...

C:

I think the issue at hand is sustainability. We've only got this one earth we can live on, and our resources are quickly disappearing because of our own carelessness and our inability to think of anyone but ourselves and anything but the present.

B:

So, like I was saying, we need to change the way we live. We need to reduce our carbon footprint.

C:

But it doesn't have to be that drastic. Hybrid vehicles and solar panels are too expensive to be feasible right now. And we don't have to be hippies living off the land and buying everything organic either, though it helps.

B:

I car pool to work everyday with some buddies of mine. I have a rain barrel outside my house I use to water my plants and my lawn in the summer, and I make sure I always bring reusable bags with me when I get my groceries. And we just started using bio-degradable plastic made from corn oil for take-out orders at my family's restaurant. Remember the three R's? Reduce. Reuse. Recycle.

C:

Exactly, it's just small simple changes, like buying energy-saving light bulbs, starting a compost bin, recycling bottles and papers, using reusable water bottles, stop using disposable cups and cutlery.

A:

Like the ones we're drinking out of?

B:

Yeah.

Key Vocabulary

mumbo jumbo

unintelligible or incomprehensible language

heat up

gain heat or get hot

preserve

maintain in safety from injury, peril, or harm

boonies

rural country or jungle

sustainability

keep in existence and maintain

drastic

sudden and severe

feasible

capable of being done with means at hand

refit

add new parts

refit

prepare and equip for additional use

resource

available source of wealth

car pool

share the car with others to work

Supplementary Vocabulary

going green

the term used for being more environmentally friendly

energy star

a label given to efficient appliances.

realization

to come to a sudden conclusion

skeptic

a person who questions popular thought

alternatives

to replace something with something of equal use

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