Learning English

Great Barrier Reef in danger

Some scientists say Australia's Great Barrier Reef is under threat from the effects of climate change. Now a UN delegation is going to assess its health. It wants to assess whether its World Heritage status should be changed to "in danger".

Rob and Roy look at the vocabulary used in the headlines about this story.

รับชมวิดีโอพร้อมทำแบบฝีกหัด

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The story

United Nations delegation is beginning an assessment of the state of the
world's largest coral reef off the western coast of Australia. The UN last year recommended the Great Barrier Reef be added to the World Heritage Committee’s ‘in danger’ list because of damage caused by climate change.

The Australian government lobbied against such a move. But Doctor Jodie Rummer, from James Cook University in Queensland, says It may be what's needed to highlight the danger the reef faces.

Key words and phrases

in danger
at risk

• The badly maintained house is in danger of falling.
• The island is in danger of being submerged as sea levels rise.

weighs
carefully considers facts in order to make a decision 

• The teacher weighed all the facts before deciding who started the fight.
• We need to weigh the benefits against the cost of buying a new car.

dire
extremely serious

• The situation in the war-torn country is dire.
• There will be dire consequences if you break the rules.

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