Listening

Warm Up

Helpful Words and Phrases

Listen and repeat.

  1. distress
    • ex. The family was in distress after their house was damaged by the storm.
  2. arid
    • ex. Few plants can live in this arid area because there is little rain.
  3. cracked
    • ex. The farmer looked at the cracked soil and worried about his crops.
  4. thermal
    • ex. Thermal water from the ground is used to heat some buildings.
  5. mimic
    • ex. The child tried to mimic his teacher’s voice during the class play.

Article

Read the article below and answer your tutor's questions.

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Farmers on the Great Hungarian Plain are feeling great distress as their land becomes drier each year. The Homokhátság region in Hungary has become quite arid, with cracked soil, dry wells, and sand hills similar to desert areas. Rainfall is low, and groundwater levels continue to fall. Because of this, crops that once grew easily barely survive now, and many farmers worry about their future.

One local farmer, Oszkár Nagyapáti, has started a project to protect the land. He became a water guardian and worked with other volunteers. Their plan uses thermal water from a local spa. Instead of letting the unused thermal water go to waste, the team cleans and cools it. Then they guide it onto low fields to mimic the environment during a natural flood.

The water guardians hoped that by flooding certain areas, they could raise the groundwater level as well as reduce temperatures and dust and help plants return. Scientists say keeping water in the land can also cool the air and improve conditions for farming in the future.

This material was based on an article by The Associated Press.
Photo Credits: The Associated Press

Discussion

Choose a topic and discuss the questions with your tutor.

Arid Lands

  • Farmers on the Great Hungarian Plain are struggling because their land is becoming drier each year. What do you think farmers should do when the climate makes farming harder? Discuss.
  • Why do you think arid land is a serious problem for farmers? Discuss.
  • In your opinion, what is the general condition of land in your country? Discuss.

Water Guardians

  • Oszkár Nagyapáti and other local volunteers became water guardians to help protect their land. What do you think about the idea of becoming a water guardian? Discuss.
  • The water guardians made use of unused thermal water from a local spa to flood low areas. What do you think about using unused water instead of wasting it? Discuss.
  • Imagine you’re leading a project to protect the environment. What kind of project would it be? Why? Discuss.