If you live in a city in North America or Europe, you have probably never thought much about water. Whenever you need some, you

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问题      If you live in a city in North America or Europe, you have probably never thought much about water. Whenever you need some, you turn on the tap and there it is. Millions of people in other parts of the world are not so lucky. They have trouble getting enough clean water for their basic needs. This situation may soon become common all around the world, scientists believe. In fact, they say that the lack of clean water may be one of the biggest issues in the twenty-first century.
     The reasons for this are clear. On the one hand. people are using more water than ever before. Over the last fifty years, the population of the world has more than doubled. On the other hand, many sources of surface water such as rivers, lakes, and streams are too polluted and unhealthy for use as drinking water.
     This has forced more and more people to drill wells so they can get water form underground. There are enormous amounts of water deep underground in lakes called aquifers. Until recently, scientists believed this underground water was safe from pollution. Then, in the 1980s. people in the United States began to find chemicals in their well water, and scientists took a closer look at what was happening. Weldon Spring, Missouri, for example, was the site of a bomb factory during World War Ⅱ. The factory was destroyed after the war. but poisonous chemicals remained on the ground.  Very slowly, these chemicals dripped down through the ground and into the aquifer. Once they did, however, the water form that aquifer was no longer drinkable.
   It probably never will be drinkable again, Underground water is not renewed regularly by the rain, like lake or river water. Thus, if a harmful chemical gets into an aquifer, it will stay there for a very long time. Furthermore, it is nearly imp6ssible to remove all the water in an aquifer and clean out the pollutants.
    Industrial sites like Weldon Spring are one cause of underground water pollution. There are thousands of such sites in the United States alone, and many others around the world. Underground water pollution is also caused by modern farming methods, which require the use of large amounts of chemicals in the fields. And finally, yet another important cause of underground water pollution is waste. That includes solid waste thrown away in dumps and landfills, and also untreated human and animal waste.
     The situation is indeed very serious. Fortunately, there are many aquifers and they are very large. Only a small number have been seriously damaged so far. But if the world does not want to go thirsty in the near future, further pollution must be prevented. Around the world, governments must make real changes in industry, agriculture, and waste disposal.  
This passage is mainly about ______.

选项 A、pollution problems in general
B、people in North America or Europe are living happier than those in other parts
C、people drilling wells to check chemicals in well water
D、underground water pollution

答案D

解析 主旨题。第一段后半部分引出主旨“They have trouble getting enough clean water for their basic needs.This situation may soon become common all around the world,...lack of clean water may be one of the biggest issues in the twenty-first century.”。第二段谈及clean water变少的两个主要原因,第三段告诉读者既然可饮用水减少,人们就拼命掘井。然而井水也被污染。第四段说一旦地下水被污染,就不是短时间内可以恢复的。第五段阐述地下水污染的三个主要原因(化学物质、农业和废物)。最后一段再次重申地下水问题的重要性并呼吁全球政府采取措施。因此,正确答案为D项。
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