Umwelt

Abstract

Throughout Western Europe, and in many other societies all over the world, environmental questions have grown in importance over the last few years, and the public awareness of such questions is particularly strong in the Federal Republic. There die Grünen, the political party which has made environmental issues one of the main planks of its policy, has gained seats in parliament. Questions such as the problems of Waldsterben as a result of acid rain, and the pollution of the environment by the motor-car, seem much more part of public debate than is the case in the United Kingdom. In the first passage below, you are given some statistics about the problem of disposing of rubbish in modern society. Then follows a passage about the particular pollution problems presented by the motor-car.