The world itself is becoming much smaller by using modern traffic and modern communication means (通讯手段). Life today is much easier than it was hundreds of years ago, but it has brought new problems. One of the biggest is pollution. To pollute means to make things dirty. Pollution comes in many ways. We see it, smell it, drink it and even hear it.

Man has been polluting the earth. The more people, the more pollution. Many years ago, the problem was not so serious because there were not so many people. When the land was used up or the river was dirty in one place, man moved to another place. But this is no longer true. Man is now slowly polluting the whole world.

Air pollution is still the most serious. It’s bad for all the living things in the world, but it is not the only one kind of pollution. Water pollution kills our fish and pollutes our drinking water. Noise pollution makes us angry more easily.

Many countries are making rules to fight pollution. They stop people from burning coal (煤) in houses and factories in the city, and from putting dirty smoke into the air. Pollution by SO₂ is now the most dangerous kind of air pollution. It is caused by heavy traffic.

The earth is our home. We must take care of it. That means keeping the land, water and air clean. And we must take care of the rise in population at the same time.

[1]Masks that helped save lives during COVID-19 are proving a great danger to wildlife. Single-use masks have been found thrown away irresponsibly across streets, waterways and beaches worldwide, since countries began asking people to wear masks in public places to①           the spread of COVID-19.

[2]Ashley Fruno of an animal rights group said, “Face masks aren’t going away anytime soon-but when we throw them away, they can harm the environment and the animals who share our planet.” Monkeys have been found biting the straps (带子) of used masks in the hills outside Malaysia’s capital Kuala Lumpur, which may cause them to lose their breath or even die. There is a similar case. In Britain, a seagull’s legs have been found tangled(缠住的) in the straps of a mask for up to a week.

[3]It is thought that the ②           influence may be in the water. More than 1.5 billion masks made their way into the world’s oceans last year, resulting in around 6,200 tons of plastic pollution in the oceans, according to Oceans Asia, an environmental group. George Leonard, chief scientist from US-based NGO Ocean Conservancy, said, “When those plastics break down in the environment, they will form smaller and smaller particles (颗粒).” Those particles then enter the food chain and influence the whole ecosystems, he added.

[4]Besides, environmentalists suggest that the public deal ③           single-use masks properly and cut the straps to reduce the risk of animals eating them. Oceans Asia also encourages the use of washable masks.