At present, timberlands cover 30% of the area, but wooded areas are being lost ____ a regular basis because people are looking for homes, food, and materials.

Why is Everglades National Park endangered?

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Why is Everglades National Park special?

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What kinds of animals are taken care of in Nairobi’s Orphanage?

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Where is Nairobi National Park?

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II. Read an article about national parks. Then answer some questions below.

National Parks

Have you ever been to a national park? Below are three of national parks in the world. They may be taken as reference for your travel list.

1. Cuc Phuong National Park, Vietnam

Cuc Phuong National Park is located 160 kilometres south west of Hanoi. It is the first of Vietnam's nine national parks to be established, and it contains over 200 square kilometres of rainforest. Tourists go there to study butterflies, visit caves, hike mountains and look at the 1,000-year-old tree. The best time to visit the park is during the dry season, from October to April, when the rainy season is over.

2. Nairobi National Park, Kenya

Nairobi National Park is Kenya's smallest park, but you may be surprised at the large variety of animals that live there. Visitors, especially children, can go there to learn how to recognise the different species of animals and plants. They also learn about the habits of animals and how one species is dependent upon another for survival. An interesting feature of this park is the Orphanage, where lots of orphaned or abandoned animals are taken care of.

3. Everglades National Park, USA

Everglades National Park is a sub-tropical wilderness in the southeastern United States. This national park is special because it has plants and animals from both tropical and temperate zones. Due to an increase in population and the use of nearby land for farming, there are toxic levels of chemicals in the water. This contamination has threatened the park and many of the animals in it.

Is June a suitable time to visit Cuc Phuong National Park? Why?

Even in some less populated (4)__________ provinces, over 20% of the work force is made up of children.

Although there is no official figure on the number of children working in China, it is (2) __________ by many that of the 10 million children out of school, over 5 million are working in factories.

I. Choose the word or phrase among A, B, C or D that best fits the blank space in the following passage.

China’s child labour is a huge problem, and there is (1) _________ evidence that it is increasing in China. Although there is no official figure on the number of children working in China, it is (2) __________ by many that of the 10 million children out of school, over 5 million are working in factories. It was reported in Sichuan, China’s most (3) __________ province, that 85% of children who drop out of school are working elsewhere. Even in some less populated (4)__________ provinces, over 20% of the work force is made up of children. Also, in the last few years, the rate of children kidnapped has increased rapidly. It is believed that the children kidnapped are sold off to factories to work. For example, in 1994, about 48 Chinese brick-shop-workers kidnapped over 100 children. It is known that forty of those children were forced to work 10 hours a day, but with no (5) __________. China’s child labour cannot be overlooked.