Pollution In the Bay Reading Answers

Dec 2, 2022

Pollution In the Bay Reading Answers requires candidates to answer question within a time frame of 20 minutes. Pollution In the Bay Reading Answers comprises 13 questions. The question types in this reading passage question are of three types of questions, namely- matching the paragraph, matching the information, and true/false/not given. For true/false/not given, candidates must read the passage and understand the statement provided. In matching the information, candidates are required to answer based on a given cue. They are required to match the given information with the mentioned options. For matching the paragraph, candidates need to skim the passage for keywords, understand the concept and choose the appropriate answer. Candidates must read the IELTS reading passage, identify keywords, and recognize synonyms to answer the question.

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Reading Passage Questions

Pouring water into the sea sounds harmless enough. But in Florida Bay, a large and shallow section of the Gulf of Mexico that lies between the southern end of the Everglades and the Florida Keys, it is proving highly controversial. That is because researchers are divided over whether it will help or hinder the plants and animals that live in the bay.

What is at risk is the future of the bay’s extensive beds of seagrasses. These grow on the bay’s muddy floor and act as nurseries for the larvae of shrimps, lobsters and fish – many of the important sport and commercial-fishing species. Also in danger is an impressive range of coral reefs that run the length of the Florida Keys and form the third-largest barrier reef in the world. Since the 1980s, coral cover has dropped by 40%, and a third of the coral species have gone. This has had a damaging effect on the animals that depend on the reef, such as crabs, turtles and nearly 600 species of fish.

What is causing such ecological change is a matter of much debate. And the answer is of no small consequence. This is because the American government is planning to devote $8 billion over the next 30 years to revitalise the Everglades. Seasonal freshwater flows into the Everglades are to be restored in order to improve the region’s health. But they will then run off into the bay.

Joseph Zieman, a marine ecologist at the University of Virginia, thinks this is a good idea. He believes that a lack of fresh water in the bay is its main problem. The blame, he says, lies with a century of drainage in the Everglades aimed at turning the marshes into farmland and areas for development. This has caused the flow of fresh water into Florida Bay to dwindle, making the water in the bay, overall, more saline. This, he argues, kills the seagrasses, and as these rots, nutrients are released that feed the microscopic plants and animals that live in the water. This, he says, is why the bay’s once crystal-clear waters often resemble pea soup. And in a vicious circle, these turbid blooms block out sunlight, causing more seagrasses to die and yet more turbidity.

Brian Lapointe, a marine scientist at the Harbour Branch Oceanographic Institution at Fort Pierce in Florida, disagrees. He thinks seagrasses can tolerate much higher levels of salinity than the bay actually displays. Furthermore, he notes that when freshwater flows through the Everglades were increased experimentally in the 1990s, it led to massive plankton blooms. Freshwater running off from well-fertilised farmlands, he says, caused a fivefold rise in nitrogen levels in the bay. This was like pouring fuel on a fire. The result was mass mortality of seagrasses because of increased turbidity from the plankton. Dr Lapointe adds that, because corals thrive only in waters where nutrient levels are low, restoring freshwater rich in nitrogen will do more damage to the reef.

It is a plausible theory. The water flowing off crops that are grown on the750,000 acres of heavily fertilised farmland on the northern edge of the Everglades is rich in nitrogen, half of which ends up in the bay. But Bill Kruczynski, of America’s Environmental Protection Agency, is convinced that nitrogen from farmlands is not the chief problem. Some coral reefs well away from any nitrogen pollution are dying and, curiously, a few are thriving. Dr Kruczynski thinks that increased nutrients arriving from local sewage discharges from the thousands of cesspits along the Florida Keys are part of the problem.

Such claims and counterclaims make the impact of the restoration plan difficult to predict. If increased salinity is the main problem, the bay’s ecology will benefit from the Everglades restoration project. If, however, nitrogen is the problem, increasing the flow of freshwater could mate matters much worse.

If this second hypothesis proves correct, the cure is to remove nitrogen from farmland or sewage discharges, or perhaps both. Neither will be easy. Man-made wetlands, at present, being built to reduce phosphate runoff into the bay—also from fertilisers—would need an algal culture (a sort of contained algal bloom) added to them to deal with discharges from farmlands. That would be costly. So too would be the replacement of cesspits with proper sewerage—one estimate puts the cost at $650m. Either way, it is clear that when, on December 1st, 3,000 square miles of sea around the reef are designated as a “protective zone” by the deputy secretary of commerce, Sam Bodman, this will do nothing to protect the reef from pollution.

Some argue, though, that there is a more fundamental flaw in the plans for the bay: the very idea of returning it to a Utopian ideal before man wrought his damage. Nobody knows what Florida Bay was like before the 1950s when engineers cut the largest canals in the Everglades and took most of the water away. Dr Kruczynski suspects it was more like an estuary. The bay that many people wish to re-create could have been nothing more than a changing phase in the bay’s history.

These arguments do not merely threaten to create ecological problems but economic ones as well. The economy of the Florida Keys depends on tourism—the local tourist industry has an annual turnover of $2.5 billion. People come for fishing-boat trips, for manatee watching, or for scuba diving and snorkeling to view the exotically coloured corals. If the plan to restore the Everglades makes problems in the bay and the reef worse, it could prove a very expensive mistake.

Solution and Explanation

Questions 1-4:
The reading Passage has seven paragraphs A-J.
Which paragraph contains the following information?
Write the correct letter A-J, in boxes 1-4 on your answer sheet.

Q1. See grass turned to be more resistant to the saline water level in the Bay.

Answer: E
Supporting sentence: He thinks seagrasses can tolerate much higher levels of salinity than the bay actually displays. Furthermore, he notes that when freshwater flows through the Everglades were increased experimentally in the 1990s, it led to massive plankton blooms.
Keywords: seagrasses, salinity, Everglades
Keyword Location: Paragraph E, lines 2 to 4
Explanation: One marine biologist believes seagrasses can withstand significantly greater salt levels than the water really exhibits. It causes an algal bloom when fresh water is present. Additionally, seagrass is often found to be more salty water resistant.

Q2. Significance of finding a specific reason in controversy

Answer: C
Supporting statement: And the answer is of no small consequence. This is because the American government is planning to devote $8 billion over the next 30 years to revitalise the Everglades.
Keywords: small consequence, American government, $8 billion
Keyword Location: Paragraph C, lines 1 to 3
Explanation: The likelihood of using Everglades freshwater is high. However, the used water will also fall on the infant, which could lead to pollution. As a result, it simultaneously produces positive and negative effects. The significance of the rationale is in question because of this.

Q3. Expensive proposals raised to solve the nitrogen dilemma

Answer: H
Supporting statement: If this second hypothesis proved correct, the cure is to remove nitrogen from farmland or sewage discharges, or perhaps both.
Keywords: second, hypothesis, nitrogen
Keyword Location: Paragraph h, lines 1-2
Explanation: A large amount is required to stop the sources of nitrogen. There are several sources, and each one has a unique technique for preventing pollution of the bay. Therefore, the cost of such scientific procedures is rising.

Q4. A statistic of ecological changes in both the coral area and species

Answer: B
Supporting statement: Also in danger is an impressive range of coral reefs that run the length of the Florida Keys and form the third-largest barrier reef in the world. Since the 1980s, coral cover has dropped by 40%, and a third of the coral species have gone.
Keywords: impressive, Florida Keys, third-largest barrier
Keyword Location: Paragraph B, lines 3-5
Explanation: As a result of pollution, coral reefs suffer severe harm. Many species lay their eggs on sea grasses. Corals are disappearing day by day as the coral cover has decreased by 40%.

Questions 5-8:
Use the information in the passage to match the people (listed A-C) with opinions or deeds below.
Write the appropriate letters A-C in boxes 5-8 on your answer sheet.

Bill Kruczynski
Brian Lapointe
Joseph Zieman

Q5. Drainage system in the everglades actually results in high salty water in the bay.

Answer: C- Joseph Zieman
Supporting statement: Joseph Zieman, a marine ecologist at the University of Virginia, thinks this is a good idea. He believes that a lack of fresh water in the bay is its main problem.
Keywords: Joseph Zieman, marine ecologist, University of Virginia
Keyword Location: paragraph D, lines 1-2
Explanation: There is a certain declaration made by Joseph Zieman, a marine biologist from the University of Virginia, in the paragraph D. She claims that the bay water becomes increasingly salty due to the fresh water flowing from the Everglades.

Q6. Restoring water high in nitrogen level will make more ecological side effect

Answer: B- Brian Lapointe
Supporting statement: Brian Lapointe, a marine scientist at the Harbour Branch Oceanographic Institution at Fort Pierce in Florida, disagrees. He thinks seagrasses can tolerate much higher levels of salinity than the bay actually displays.
Keywords: Brian Lapointe, marine scientist, Harbour Branch Oceanographic, Fort Pierce in Florida
Keyword Location: Paragraph E, lines 1-3
Explanation: According to Brian Lapointe, a marine scientist at the Harbour Branch Oceanographic Institution, fertilised farms create more nitrogen in their fresh water. Restoring freshwater high in nitrogen will do additional harm to the reef since corals can only survive in conditions with low nutrient levels.

Q7. High nitrogen levels may be caused by the nearby farmland.

Answer: B- Brian Lapointe
Supporting statement: Freshwater running off from well-fertilised farmlands, he says, caused a fivefold rise in nitrogen levels in the bay. This was like pouring fuel on a fire. The result was mass mortality of seagrasses because of increased turbidity from the plankton.
Keywords: nitrogen, Freshwater, well-fertilised farmlands, fivefold
Keyword Location: Paragraph E, lines 5-7
Explanation: Brian Lapointe notes in paragraph E that the fresh water causes the bay's algae bloom to expand. Only in the presence of nitrogen is this possible. He thus assumed that the adjacent farms were the source of nitrogen.

Q8. Released sewage rather than nutrients from agricultural area increase the level of Nitrogen.

Answer: A-Bill Kruczynski
Supporting statement: Some coral reefs well away from any nitrogen pollution are dying and, curiously, a few are thriving. Dr Kruczynski thinks that increased nutrients arriving from local sewage discharges from the thousands of cesspits along the Florida Keys are part of the problem.
Keywords: nitrogen, pollution, curiously
Keyword Location: Paragraph F, Lines 4-6
Explanation: According to Dr. Kruczynski, a contributing factor to the issue is the elevated nutrient levels coming from sewage discharges from cesspits along the Florida Keys. He is saying that sewage is more detrimental to the bay than any particular nutrients.

Questions 9-13:
Do the following statements agree with the information given in Reading Passage 2
In boxes 9-13 on your answer sheet, write
TRUE if the statement is true
FALSE if the statement is false
NOT GIVEN if the information is not given in the passage

Q9. Everyone agrees with “pouring water into the sea is harmless enough” even in the Florida Bay area.

Answer: FALSE
Supporting statement: Pouring water into the sea sounds harmless enough. But in Florida Bay, a large and shallow section of the Gulf of Mexico that lies between the southern end of the Everglades and the Florida Keys, it is proving highly controversial.
Keywords: Pouring water, Florida Bay, Florida Keys, Gulf of Mexico
Keyword Location: Paragraph A, lines 1-3
Explanation: It was said in the opening paragraph that pouring water into the sea is a very contentious issue. The Florida Bay suffers damage when water is poured. Therefore, it cannot always be safe. As a result, the assertion is untrue.

Q10. Nitrogen was poured in from different types of crops as water flows through.

Answer: NOT GIVEN
Explanation: There is no clear statement given in the article.

Q11. Everglade restoration project can be effective regardless of the cause of the pollution.

Answer: FALSE
Supporting statement: What is causing such ecological change is a matter of much debate. And the answer is of no small consequence. This is because the American government is planning to devote $8 billion over the next 30 years to revitalise the Everglades.
Keywords: ecological change, small consequence, American government, Everglades
Keyword Location: Paragraph C, lines 1-3
Explanation: Even so, the American government intends to invest $8 billion over the following 30 years in revitalising the Everglades. In an effort to improve the area's health, seasonal freshwater will be replenished; however, this will cause the bay to become contaminated. As a result, it might harm or worse, pollute the bay. It is simple to say that the given statement demonstrates the exact opposite. The claim is therefore untrue.

Q12. Human has changed Florida Bay where old image before 1950s is unrecalled.

Answer: TRUE
Supporting statement: Some argue, though, that there is a more fundamental flaw in the plans for the bay: the very idea of returning it to a Utopian ideal before man wrought his damage. Nobody knows what Florida Bay was like before the 1950s when engineers cut the largest canals in the Everglades and took most of the water away.
Keywords: fundamental flaw, Utopian ideal, wrought, Florida Bay
Keyword Location: Paragraph I,lines 1-4
Explanation: It is asserted unequivocally that nobody knew what Florida Bay was like before to the 1950s. when construction workers removed the majority of the water from the Everglades' biggest canals. These days, the area is so filthy that few people can even remember how it actually was in the 1950s.

Q13. Tourism contributes fundamentally to the Florida Bay Area.

Answer: TRUE
Supporting statement: These arguments do not merely threaten to create ecological problems but economic ones as well. The economy of the Florida Keys depends on tourism—the local tourist industry has an annual turnover of $2.5 billion.
Keywords: arguments, ecological problems, Florida Keys
Keyword Location: Paragraph J, lines 1-3
Explanation: The economic dependence of the Florida Keys on tourism is made clear in the paragraph titled J; the local tourism sector generates $2.5 billion in annual revenue. This demonstrates how much tourism has impacted the Florida Bay. People visited there to enjoy themselves and go fishing. The Florida Bay Area's economy incurs some costs as a result of their presence.

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