Listening 4.2. African walkout at Copenhagen talks.

Listen to the tape and say whether these statements are TRUE or FALSE. Prove your point.

1.Some African states claim that their countries are trying to abandon the Kyoto Protocol that makes the developing world cut carbon emissions singlesided. _________________

2. According to some the developing world representatives the EU, Japan, the USA and Australia negatively affect the integrity of the climate negotiations.______________________

3. The negotiations were suspended for three hours as environmentalist groups protested outside the conference halls . ________________

4. The developing world wants to extend the Kyoto Protocol rather than create a new

treaty . ________________

5. Friends of the Earth representative believes that there are some proposals that can’t be put on the table, and shouldn’t be debated openly. ______________

6. The G77 were not let into the talks after a two hour suspension of proceedings. ___________

7. The G77 expressed their dissatisfaction with the position of Denmark's Environment Minister __________

8. The conference president Connie Hedegaard believes it is better to work out an entirely new agreement on global climate change issues. __________

4.2.2. When does your waste become litter?

Read and then discuss the article.

The Local Government Association proposes that councils allow litter to pile up in the streets occasionally in order to shock people into being a bit tidier. This strategy, which has been piloted in Manchester and East Lothian, is said to be extremely effective, demonstrating to the populace just how much rubbish results from a day of unchecked littering.

But at what point does parting with your waste become littering? Is some litter worse than others? Below, we propose a sliding scale, from excusable carelessness to littering with intent, and beyond:

· Readily biodegradable foodstuffs. Apple cores, banana skins, peanut shells etc. None of these should really count as litter, as long as they are flung somewhere vaguely out of sight.

· Newspaper. A paper left on a bus or train used to be considered a minor public service - something to read for the next commuter to come along. This was before the rise of the daily freesheet turned the newspaper into an inherently undesirable item.

· Anything a dog will eat. A discarded prawn sandwich may be unsightly, but let's face it, it's not going to sit there for very long. No chicken bones, please.

· Discarded photos, love notes, pages from diary, legal papers etc. These are not litter, but objects providing invaluable inspiration for budding novelists, poets and the terminally nosy.

· High-velocity wind-borne items. Technically a plastic sack which is torn from your grasp in a gale is litter; the only question is how far you should feel obligated to chase it. When does your responsibility for an airborne Pizza Express balloon end?

· Junk mail. Unaddressed post is simply litter that the Royal Mail has seen fit to push through your letterbox, for which it should be fined in each and every instance.

· Frozen saliva (winter only). Disgusting and antisocial, but not litter in any enforceable sense.

· Gum, fag ends, tin cans, fast-food containers, sweet wrappers. Category-one litter.

· Broken glass. The worst sort of common litter: hazardous waste which invariably gravitates to the nearest bicycle lane.