单选题 Electronics are being recycled in record numbers as more states require it and more companies collect and even pay for discarded items, but the gains come with controversy.
Some environmentalists complain that recycling is not keeping pace with electronics sales. Some say e-waste is being dumped in developing countries, where toxic materials such as lead and mercury can leach from landfills into groundwater.
"It is a success story, but we'd like to see it get more successful" to keep up with the electronics boom, says Janette Petersen of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The amount of recycled items more than doubled from 1999 to 2007, the most recent year for which the EPA has figures. But as a percentage of all electronics, it increased less, from 15% to 18%. "The demand for electronics recycling has been growing," partly because of the switch last year to digital TV, says Jennifer Berry of Earth911. corn, a private group that keeps a database of recyclers. Last year, she says 31% of inquiries involved electronics, primarily TVs, batteries and computers.
Public and private efforts are expanding. Vermont became the 21st state last month to enact a law that requires e-waste recycling. Twenty-six companies--including Dell, Hewlett Packard, AT&T and Verizon--have partnered with the EPA on the Plug-In to eCycling program to promote electronics recycling since its launch in 2003. Companies such as Gazelle. corn pay for used gadgets such as iPods, which they resell or recycle. Best Buy and other stores are collecting more e-waste. Target announced last month that it put bins in every store to accept cellphones, MP3 players and ink cartridges.
Jim Puckett of Basel Action Network, a Seattle-based non-profit organization that aims to stop toxic exports, worries that some American companies dump e-waste in Africa to save money. "People are trying to look green, but they're not telling you where it (waste) is going," he says. "You can't turn over your TV to just any recycler. " He says it's better to store an old TV than give it to a recycler that may export it to poor countries.
The Basel Action Network announced its e-Stewards program last month to ensure safe handling of electronics by using only recyclers certified by accredited organizations. It now lists 45 recyclers in 80 locations. Samsung and other companies have signed on. Environmental groups, including the Sierra Club, back it.

单选题 By saying "the gains come with controversy" (Line 2, Paragraph 1), the author means ______.
【正确答案】 B
【答案解析】[解题思路] 引号的意思是“结果却伴随着争议”,这是第一段最后一句。第二段接着谈到了一些环保主义者的不同观点,认为回收电子产品并不会很好地解决问题.故[B]就是冲突所在。第三段首句提到,这是一个成功的故事,但是我们希望看到它变得更成功,这说明回收电子产品已经取得了一些成效,[A]与文意矛盾。第一段中more companies collect and even pay for discarded items描述的是一些公司为回收电子产品所做的努力,他们同意回收,这并不是矛盾所在,[C]不符合题意。本文倡导的是节约资源和保护环境,所以回收电子产品很有必要,故[D]不正确。
单选题 We can infer from the third paragraph that ______.
【正确答案】 B
【答案解析】[解题思路] 此题要求在理解原文的基础上,推断出原文隐含的意思。第三段中的数字表明回收物品的数量从1999年到2007年间增长了一倍多,但是这个数量在所有电子产品中的百分比,却没有增加那么多,只是从15%增长到了18%,由此可以推断回收电子产品刚刚起步,并没有取得很大成就,故[B]正确。[C]与文意相反,可排除。本段谈到electronics boom“电子产品繁荣”,并未提到人们越来越多地使用电子产品,故排除[A]。[D]表述正确,原文提到The demand for electronics recycling has been growing,并不需要推断,不符合题意。
单选题 Which one of the following is NOT the efforts people have made?
【正确答案】 D
【答案解析】[解题思路] 文章第四段第一句说Public and private efforts are expanding,接着举例说明这些努力。本段最后一句提到,Target宣称,它把箱子放进每个商店用于收集手机、MP3播放器和墨盒,这不是百思买公司的措施,故[D]符合题意。本段第二句也说明“佛蒙特州上个月成为了第21个制定法律要求回收电子废品的州”,故[A]正确。本段第三句说,26家公司与美国环保署联手,参与了一个计划来促进电子产品的回收,故[B]表述正确。“一些公司,如Gazelle.com,购买二手小配件如iPods,用以再销售或者再利用”,故[C]也是采取的措施。
单选题 According to Jim Puckett, you cannot give your electronics to recyclers because ______.
【正确答案】 C
【答案解析】[解题思路] 文章第五段谈到吉姆的观点。他指出一些美国公司会在非洲倾销电子废品,并且,本段最后一句提到,他认为比起把旧电视卖给可能会把它出口到贫穷国家的回收站,把旧电视存放起来会更好,所以,根据吉姆的观点,不把电子产品卖给回收站的原因是回收站可能会把电子产品出口到贫穷国家,故[C]为正确答案。文中也提到了[A]项,但是这不是根本原因。[B]和[D]两项在文中未提及。
单选题 What is the main idea of the text?
【正确答案】 A
【答案解析】[解题思路] 此题考查的是对全文的理解,因此要对文章意思清楚明了。纵观全文,有不少公司和个人已经参与到了回收电子产品的行动中去,说明肯定了这一活动,故[A]很好地概括了全文。文章只在开头提出了一些环境保护主义者对这种做法并不看好,但在第四至六段讲述了公众和个人所做的努力,这也是文章涉及的主要内容,故[B]不正确。文章第二段首句中说回收速度跟不上电子产品销售的速度,这是环保主义者抱怨的原因,但不是全文的主旨,故[C]不符合文意。[D]与[A]要表达的意思相反,故排除。