Adapting to the effects of climate change– IELTS Reading Answers [Explained]

Adapting to the effects of climate change: IELTS Reading Answers

In this post, you'll find the complete solution and explanation for reading passage  Adapting to the effects of climate change from the IELTS Book Cambridge 20. Each answer is explained in the easiest possible way, along with the answer location from the passage. This is perfect for students who want to understand not just the correct answers, but why they are correct, helping you improve your IELTS Reading skills with every practice test.

Questions 14–17    Matching Paragraph Information

14. How a type of plant functions as a natural protection for coastlines. Answer: C

Keywords: type of plant, functions, coastlines

Answer Location: Paragraph C, Lines. Seawalls are a staple strategy for many coastal communities, but on the soft, muddy northern shores of Java, Indonesia, they frequently collapse, further exacerbating coastal erosion. There have been many attempts to restore the island's coastal mangroves: ecosystems of trees and shrubs that help defend coastal areas by trapping sediment in their net-like root systems, elevating the sea bed and dampening the energy of waves and tidal currents.

15. A prediction about how long it could take to stop noticing the effects of climate change. Answer: A

Keywords: prediction, stop noticing,

Answer Location: Paragraph A, Lines, with scientists forecasting that global warming would continue for around 40 years. In the meantime, ice caps would continue to melt and sea levels rise. Some countries and regions will suffer more extreme impacts from these changes than others.

16   a reference to the fact that a solution is particularly cost-effective. Answer: D

Keywords: fact, solution, cost-effective

Answer Location: Paragraph D, Lines. It's much cheaper than permanently elevating houses, English explains - about a third of what it would cost to completely replace a building's foundations. It also avoids the problem of taller houses being at greater risk from wind damage.

17   a mention of a technology used to locate areas most in need of intervention, Answer: F

Keywords: technology, locate area, need intervention

Answer Location: Paragraph F, Lines. Using a Geographic Information System data mapping tool, the programme identified streets with low tree canopy cover in three of the city's neighbourhoods and covered them with a light-grey, light-reflecting coating, which had already been shown to lower road surface temperature in Los Angeles by 6°C. Spotts says one of these streets,

Questions 18–22   Sentence Completion Questions

18. Answer: Pumps

Keywords: stormwater management, Miami, installation

Answer Location: Paragraph B, Lines. The elevation work was carried out as part of Miami Beach's ambitious yet much-needed stormwater management program. In addition to the road adaptations, the city has set up new pumps that can remove up to 75,000 litres of water per minute.

19. Answer: dams

Keywords: construction, first stage , Indonesia

Answer location: Paragraph C , lines,  ........the majority of mangrove-planting projects fail. So, Wetlands International started out with a different approach, building semi-permeable dams, made from bamboo poles and brushwood, to mimic the role of mangrove roots and create favourable conditions for mangroves to grow back naturally.......

20. Answer: float

Keywords: rising floodwater, Mekong Delta, building houses,

Answer Location: Paragraph D, Lines. As the floodwaters rose in the rice fields of the Mekong Delta in September 2018, four small houses rose with them. Homes in this part of Vietnam are traditionally built on stilts, but these ones had been built to float.

21. Answer: crops

Keywords: rising sea levels, Bangladesh, suitable, salt, content

Answer Location: Paragraph E, Lines. Rather than fighting against it, one project is helping communities adapt to salt-affected soils. ICCO Cooperation has been working with 10,000 farmers in Bangladesh to start cultivating naturally salt-tolerant crops in the region.

22. Answer: trees

Keywords: LA, Increased, Number of

Answer Location: Paragraph F, Lines. He leads the Cool Streets LA programme, a series of pilot projects, which include the planting of trees and the installation of a 'cool pavement' system, designed to help reach the city's goal of bringing down its average temperature by 1.5°C.

Questions 23-26: Match each statement with the correct person

23   It is essential to adopt strategies which involve and help residents of the region. 

Answer: B

Keywords: multifunctional approach, benefits, communities...

Answer Location: Paragraph C, lines, says Tol. 'For long-term success, it's critical that we transition towards multifunctional approaches that embed natural processes and that engage and benefit communities and local decision-makers."

24   Interventions which reduce heat are absolutely vital for our survival in this location. Answer: E

Keywords: Greg Spotts, reduce heat,  matter of life and death

Answer Location: Paragraph F, Lines, Greg Spotts from Los Angeles (LA) in the USA is chief sustainability officer of the city's street services department. He leads the Cool Streets LA programme, a series of pilot projects, which include the planting of trees and the installation of a 'cool pavement' system, designed to help reach the city's goal of bringing down its average temperature by 1.5°C. 'Urban cooling is literally a matter of life and death for our future in LA,' says Spotts.

25   More work will need to be done in future decades to deal with the impact of rising water levels. Answer: A

Keywords: more work, future decades, rising water levels

Answer Location: Paragraph B, Lines, says Yanira Pineda, a senior sustainability coordinator. She knows that they're essential and that the job is far from over. 'We know that in 20, 30, 40 years, we'll need to go back in there and adjust to the changing environment,' she says.

26   The number of locations requiring action to adapt to flooding has grown in recent years. Answer: C

Keywords: number of locations, flooding, grown, recent years

Answer location: Paragraph D, Line ‘When I started this,’ explains founder Elizabeth English, ‘climate change was not on the tip of everybody’s tongue, but this technology is becoming necessary in places that didn’t previously need it.’ It’s much cheaper than permanently elevating houses, English explains – about a third of what it would cost to completely replace a building’s foundations. It also avoids the problem of taller houses being at greater risk from wind damage.

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         Hard Vocabulary from the Passage " Adapting to the effects of climate change"

Word / Phrase	Meaning	Example Sentence
Forecasting	Predicting what will happen in the future	Scientists are forecasting more intense storms in coming years.
Innovation	New ideas, methods, or inventions	Innovation in technology has changed how we communicate.
Breaching	Breaking through or failing to contain	Floodwater was breaching the city walls.
Seeping	Slowly passing through small openings	Water was seeping through the cracks in the wall.
Vulnerable	Weak or easily harmed	Children are more vulnerable to diseases than adults.
Elevation	The act of raising something to a higher level	The elevation of the road prevented it from flooding.
Ambitious	Showing strong determination to succeed	The company launched an ambitious project to expand globally.
Mitigation	Action to make something less harmful or serious	Planting trees is a form of climate-change mitigation.
Exacerbating	Making a bad situation worse	Cutting down forests is exacerbating climate change.
Ecosystems	Communities of living things and their environment	Wetlands are important ecosystems for many birds.
Sediment	Sand, soil, or mud carried by water	The river deposits sediment along its banks.
Subsidence	Gradual sinking of land	Some cities face land subsidence due to groundwater extraction.
Infrastructure	The basic structures and facilities of a society	Roads and bridges are part of a country’s infrastructure.
Multifunctional	Designed to serve many purposes	This room is multifunctional; it can be used as a classroom or a hall.
Retrofitting	Adding new features to old structures	The school is retrofitting its old buildings with solar panels.
Amphibious	Able to function both on land and water	Amphibious vehicles can travel through rivers and roads.
Foundations	The base that supports a building	The house was built on strong foundations.
Cultural needs	Requirements based on traditions or customs	The design of the building respected the community’s cultural needs.
Salinity	The amount of salt in soil or water	High salinity makes it hard for plants to grow.
Cultivating	Preparing land and growing crops	Farmers are cultivating wheat in this region.
Barren	Land with no plants or crops	The desert was dry and barren.
Lush	Rich and healthy growth of plants	The valley was filled with lush green grass.
Harvests	The gathering of crops	The farmers celebrated after a good harvest.
Pilot projects	Small-scale projects used to test an idea before expanding	The government started pilot projects for solar energy.
Installation	The process of putting something in place for use	The installation of the new system took two days.
Geographic Information System (GIS)	Computer system for mapping and analyzing locations	The city used GIS to plan new roads.
Canopy	The cover formed by tree tops	The rainforest canopy blocks much of the sunlight.
Thermal image	A picture showing heat differences	The firefighters used a thermal image to find people in the smoke.

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