剑桥雅思18阅读真题电子版Test4 Passage1

剑桥雅思18共收集了雅思真题4套，羊驼雅思整理了第四套阅读真题答案及解析Test 4 Reading，以下是阅读第一篇文章Passage1的文章原文，供烤鸭们复习参考。

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READING PASSAGE  1

You should spend about 20 minutes on Questions 1-13.which are based on Reading Passage  1 below.

Green roofs

A

Rooftops covered with grass,vegetable gardens and lush foliage are now a common sight in many cities around the world.More and more private companies and city authorities are investing in green roofs,drawn to their wide-ranging benefits.Among the benefits are saving on energy costs,mitigating the risk of floods,making habitats for urban wildlife, tackling air pollution and even growing food.These increasingly radical urban designs can  help cities adapt to the monumental problems they face,such as access to resources and a    lack of green space due to development.But the involvement of city authorities,businesses and other institutions is crucial to ensuring their success-as is research investigating

different options to suit the variety of rooftop spaces found in cities.The UK is relatively new to developing green roofs,and local governments and institutions are playing a major role in spreading the practice.London is home to much of the UK's green roof market, mainly due to forward-thinking policies such as the London Plan,which has paved the way to more than doubling the area of green roofs in the capital.

B

Ongoing research is showcasing how green roofs in cities can integrate with'living walls': environmentally friendly walls which are partially or completely covered with greenery, including a growing medium,such as soil or water.Research also indicates that green roofs can be integrated with drainage systems on the ground,such as street trees,so that the water is managed better and the built environment is made more sustainable.There is also evidence to demonstrate the social value of green roofs.Doctors are increasingly prescribing time spent gardening outdoors for patients dealing with anxiety and depression. And research has found that access to even the most basic green spaces can provide a better quality of life for dementia sufferers and help people avoid obesity.

C

In North America,green roofs have become mainstream,with a wide array of expansive,

accessible and food-producing roofs installed in buildings.Again,city leaders and authorities have helped push the movement forward-only recently,San Francisco,USA,created a

policy requiring new buildings to have green roofs.Toronto,Canada,has policies dating from the 1990s,encouraging the development ofurban farms on rooftops.These countries also

benefit from having newer buildings than in many parts of the world,which makes it easier to  install green roofs.Being able to keep enough water at roof height and distribute it right across the rooftop is crucial to maintaining the plants on any green roof-especially on'edible roofs' where fruit and vegetables are farmed.And it's much easier to do this in newer buildings,

which can typically hold greater weight,than to retro-fit old ones.Having a stronger roof also makes it easier to grow a greater variety of plants,since the soil can be deeper.

D

For green roofs to become the norm for new developments,there needs to be support from public authorities and private investors.Those responsible for maintaining buildings may  have to acquire new skills,such as landscaping,and in some cases,volunteers may be needed to help out.Other considerationsinclude installing drainage paths,meeting health and safety requirements andperhaps allowing access for the public,as well as planning restrictions and disruption from regular activities in and around the buildings during installation.To convince investors and developers that installing green roofs is worthwhile, economic arguments are still the most important.The term 'natural capital'has been developed to explain the economic value of nature;for example,measuring the money saved by installing natural solutions to protect against flood damage,adapt to climate   change or help people lead healthier and happier lives.

E

As the expertise about green roofs grows,official standards have been developed to ensure that they are designed,constructed and maintained properly,andfunction well. Improvements in the science and technology underpinning green roof development have also led to new variations in the concept.For example,'blue roofs'enable buildings to hold water over longer periods of time,rather than draining it away quickly-crucial in times of heavier rainfall.There are also combinations of green roofs with solar panels,and 'brown    roofs'which are wilder in nature and maximise biodiversity.If the trend continues,it could  create new jobs and a more vibrant and sustainable local food economy-alongside many other benefits.There are still barriers to overcome,but the evidence so far indicates that green roofs have the potential to transform cities and help them function sustainably long into the future.The success stories need to be studied and replicated elsewhere,to make green,blue,brown and food-producing roofs the norm in cities around the world.