People living on parts of the south coast of England face a serious problem. In 1993, the owners of a large hotel and of several houses discovered, to their horror, that their gardens had disappeared overnight. The sea had eaten into the soft limestone cliffs on which they had been built. While experts were studying the problem, the hotel and several houses disappeared altogether, sliding down the cliff and into the sea.

Erosion of the white cliffs along the south coast of England has always been a problem but it has become more serious in recent years. Dozens of homes have had to be abandoned as the sea has crept farther and farther inland. Experts have studied the areas most affected and have drawn up a map for local people, forecasting the year in which their homes will be swallowed up by the hungry sea.

Angry owners have called on the Government to erect sea defenses to protect their homes. Government surveyors have pointed out that in most cases, this is impossible. New sea walls would cost hundreds of millions of pounds and would merely make the waves and currents go further along the coast, shifting the problem from one area to another. The danger is likely to continue, they say, until the waves reach an inland area of hard rock which will not be eaten as limestone is. Meanwhile, if you want to buy a cheap house with an uncertain future, apply to a house agent in one of the threatened areas on the south coast of England. You can get a house for a knockdown price but it may turn out to be a knockdown home.

1. What is the cause of the problem that people living on parts of the south coast of England face?

A. The rising of the sea level.

B. The experts’ lack of knowledge.

C. The washing-away of limestone cliffs.

D. The disappearance of hotels, houses and gardens.

2. The erosion of the white cliffs in the south of England        .

A. will soon become a problem for people living in central England

B. has now become a threat to the local residents

C. can be stopped if proper measures are taken

D. is quickly changing the map of England

3. The experts’ study on the problem of erosion can         .

A. warn people whose homes are in danger   B. provide an effective way to slow it down

C. help to prevent it from worsening         D. lead to its eventual solution

4. It is not feasible to build sea defenses to protect against erosion because     ___ .

  A. house agents along the coast do not support the idea

  B. it is too costly and will endanger neighboring areas

  C. the government is too slow in taking action

  D. they will be easily knocked down by waves and currents

5. According to the author, when buying a house along the south coast of England, people should _____.

A. take the quality of the house into consideration

B. guard against being cheated by the house agent

C. examine the house carefully before making a decision

D. be aware of the potential danger involved

参考答案：C B A B D

住在英格兰南海岸一些地区的人面临一个严重的问题。1993年一家大饭店和几栋房屋的主人惊恐地发现他们的花园一夜之间消失了。海水腐蚀掉了花园下面的软石灰岩悬崖。专家还在研究这个问题时，饭店和那几栋房屋也完全消失，顺着悬崖滑到海里去了。
英格兰南海白色悬崖峭壁的腐蚀一直是个问题，不过最近几年变得更为严重了。几十座房屋不能不被放弃，因为海水已经侵蚀到内陆越来越远的地方。专家已经研究了受影响最严重的一些地区，并为当地人画出一张图，预报哪一年他们的住宅将被饥饿的海洋所吞食。
愤怒的房主们要求政府建立海堤以保护他们的住宅。政府的勘测员指出在大多数情况下这是不可能的。新的海堤要耗资几亿英镑，而且只不过是使波浪和水流沿着海岸前移，把问题从一个地区转移到另一个地区。他们说：这种危险很可能还要延续下去，直到波浪到达不像石灰岩那样的被侵蚀的由坚硬岩石构成的内陆为止。同时，如果你要买一栋将来未卜的便宜住宅，你可以向英格兰南海岸的一个受威胁地区的房地产代理商申请。你可用最低的价格买到一栋房子，但它可能也不堪一击的房子。