雅思阅读 029 · The Untapped Potential of Rooftop Gardens

改编自 Grist（Matt Simon, 2026）。题型：段落信息匹配 + T/F/NG + 填空。难度：中等偏上（Passage 2，约 800 词）。

---

🎧 课文朗读音频（约 1 分钟）

正文 Passage

A. A wasted opportunity

The city has long been a beacon of opportunity, where people flock to make it big. But metropolises the world over are wasting a major opportunity — many, many square feet of it: flat rooftops are painted white, when really they should be green.

Not shades of mint green, forest green, or lime green, but with the lushness of actual plants. Adding vegetation to roofs — even if it's just a coating of grass, moss, and succulents — bestows many overlapping, reinforcing benefits not only on a building's occupants and owner, but on the surrounding community. Like parks on the ground, gardens in the sky reduce local temperatures and help prevent flooding, all while improving urban biodiversity and feeding pollinators like bees.

B. A European report

According to a recent report prepared for the European Commission, if cities accelerated the transformation of these unused spaces into oases — and converted empty walls into vertical yet verdant surfaces — they'd make themselves more comfortable for urbanites as temperatures climb.

"Our goal is to get our cities more dense, but keep them liveable and climate-safe," said Vera Enzi-Zechner, co-lead author of the report. "Of course, also water comes in, energy comes in, multi-functionality, social cohesion, engagement, and biodiversity."

C. An old idea

The green roof is a surprisingly old technology. Consider the Moos Water Filtration Plant, near Zurich, whose rooftops have hosted nine acres of meadows for over a century. Less of a planned amenity and more of a serendipitous colonisation of plant life, the rooftops have nevertheless transformed into refuges for native species.

These days, architects would rather not have their buildings bloom by accident. Instead, they're incorporating the requisite infrastructure into the design. To keep the garden from leaking into the top floor, for instance, they add waterproofing and barriers to contain roots. Designers also must consider the additional weight of the plants and water that soaks into the substrate.

D. How green roofs cool

Whereas a traditional roof absorbs the sun's energy, a green one sweats like a human, as its plants release water vapour during photosynthesis and shade the surface. This cools the air, and the substrate and waterproofing insulate the top floor. Beyond reducing cooling and heating costs, the greenery can extend the life of a roof, because relentless sunlight, extreme heat waves, and hail aren't aging shingles and paint.

E. Flood prevention

Cities, too, could save money by embracing gardening in the sky. As the planet heats up and rainfall gets more intense, gutters and sewers — designed for the climate of yesteryear — are struggling to keep up. Green roofs soak up some of that deluge and slow the flow of water into these systems, preventing costly flooding.

Some designers are even going a step further with blue-green roofs, which incorporate systems that store rainwater to flush the toilets inside.

---

题目 Questions

Questions 1-5: Which paragraph mentions the following?

1. an example of a green roof that is over 100 years old

2. how green roofs cool the air

3. a European Commission report on green roofs

4. blue-green roofs that store rainwater

5. the need for waterproofing and root barriers

Questions 6-9: T/F/NG

6. Flat rooftops should be painted white to save energy.

7. Green roofs reduce local temperatures and prevent flooding.

8. Green roofs are a new technology invented in the 21st century.

9. Green roofs can extend the life of a traditional roof.

Questions 10-13: Complete the notes. Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS.

• Green roofs feed pollinators like (10) ____________.
• The Moos Water Filtration Plant is near (11) ____________.
• Green roofs release water vapour during (12) ____________.
• (13) ____________ roofs store rainwater to flush toilets.

---

答案 Answers

题号	答案
1	C
2	D
3	B
4	E
5	C
6	FALSE（should be green, not white）
7	TRUE
8	FALSE（surprisingly old technology）
9	TRUE
10	bees
11	Zurich
12	photosynthesis
13	blue-green

---

核心词汇

green roof / rooftop garden / vegetation / biodiversity / pollinator / urban heat island / waterproofing / substrate / photosynthesis / insulation / flood / blue-green roof