Forests in countries like Brazil and the Congo get a lot of attention from environmentalists, and it is easy to see why. South America and sub-Saharan Africa are experiencing deforestation on an enormous scale: every year almost 5 million hectares are lost. But forests are also changing in rich Western countries. They are growing larger, both in the sense that they occupy more and that the trees in them and bigger. What is going on?
51. What is catching environmentalists’ attention nowadays?
A) Rich countries are stripping poor ones of their resources.
B) Forests are fast shrinking in many developing countries.
C) Forests are eating away the fertile farmland worldwide.
D) Rich countries are doing little to address deforestation.
Forests are spreading in almost all Western countries, with fastest growth in places that historically had rather few trees. In 1990 28% of Spain was forested; now the proportion is 37%. In both Greece and Italy, the growth was from 26% to 32% over the same period. Forests are gradually taking more and in America and Australia. Perhaps most astonishing is the trend in Ireland. Roughly 1% of that country was forested when it became independent in 1922. Forests cover 11% of the land, and the government wants to push the proportion to 18% by the 2040s.
52. Which countries have the fastest forest growth?
A) Those that have newly achieved independence.
B) Those that at have the greatest demand for timber
C) Those that used to have the lowest forest coverage.
D) Those that provide enormous government subsidies.
51. B项正确。细节题，根据题干catching environmentalists’ attention nowadays可以定位到第一段的第一句，但是第一段并没有具体说森林的问题，后面几句提到南美和非洲的的森林减少，西欧森林面积增多。符合原文表述的只有B。A中发达国家剥削发展中国家的资源属于无中生有;C中存在世界范围内的森林占据耕地现象也是无中生有;D中发达国家无所作为明显与原文相反，属于正反混淆错误。
52. C项正确。细节题，根据the fastest forest growth可以定位到第二段第一句，文中historically had rather few trees的国家增长最快。C项used to have the lowest forest coverage这一表述与原文相符;A项have newly achieved independence是干扰项，文中提到爱尔兰1922年独立，但并不是 newly achieved independence，而且也不能用一个特例代替普遍现象;B项 have the greatest demand for timber属于无中生有;D项中that provide enormous government subsidies在后文有提及，但是与最快增长无关。
