Passage One
Questions 46 to 50 are based on the following passage
Manufacturers of products that claim to be environmentally friendly will face tighter rules on how they are advertised to consumers under changes proposed by the Federal Trade Commission
The commission’s revised“Green Guides”warn marketers against using labels that make broad claims, like“eco—friendly”.Marketers must qualify their claims on the product packaging and limit them to a specific benefit, such as how much of the product is recycled.
“This is really about trying to cut through the confusion that consumers have when they are buying a product and that businesses have when they are selling a product, ”said Jon Leibowitz, chairman of the commission.
The revisions come at a time when green marketing is on the rise.According to a new study,the number of advertisements with green messages in mainstream magazines has risen since 1987, and peaked in 2008 at 10.4%.In 2009, the number dropped to 9%
But while the number of advertisements may have dipped, there has been a rapid spread of eco—labeling.There are both good and bad players in the eco-labeling game.
In the last five years or so.there has been an explosion of green claims and environmental claims.It is clear that consumers don’t always know what they are getting.
A handful of lawsuits have been filed in recent years against companies accused of using misleading environmental labels.In 2008 and 2009, class.action lawsuits(集体诉讼)were filed against SC Johnson for using“Greenlist”labels on its cleaning products.The lawsuits said that the label was misleading because it gave the impression that the products had been certified by a third party when the certification was the company’s own.
“We are very proud of our accomplishments under the Greenlist system and we believe that we will prevail in these cases, ”Christopher Beard, director of public affairs for SC Johnson, said, while acknowledging that“this has been an area that is difficult to navigate.”
Companies have also taken it upon themselves to contest each other’s green claims.
David Mallen.associate director of the Council of Better Business Bureau.said in the last two years the organization had seen an increase in the number of claims companies were bringing against each other for false or misleading environmental product claims.
“About once a week.I have a client that will bring up a new certification I’ve never even heard of and I’m in this industry,”said Kevin Wilhelm.chief executive officer of Sustainable Business Consulting.“It’s kind of a Wild West.anybody can claim themselves to be green.”Mr.Wilhelm said the excess of labels made it difficult for businesses and consumers to know which labels they should Pay attention to.
46.What do the revised“Green Guides”require businesses to do?
A. Manufacture as many green products as possible.
B.Indicate whether their products are recyclable.
C.Specify in what way their products are green.
D.Attach green labels to all of their products.
47.What does the author say about consumers facing an explosion of green claims?
A. They can easily see through the businesses’ tricks.
B.They have to spend lots of time choosing products.
C.They have doubt about current green certification.
D.They are not clear which products are truly green.
48.What was SC Johnson accused of in the class.action lawsuits?
A. It gave consumers the impression that all its products were truly green.
B.It gave a third party the authority to label its products as environmentally friendly.
C.It misled consumers to believe that its products had been certified by a third party.
D.It sold cleaning products that were not included in the official“Greenlist”.
49.How did Christopher Beard defend his company’s labeling practice?
A.There were no clear guidelines concerning green labeling.
B.His company’s products had been well received by the public.
C.It was in conformity to the prevailing practice in the market.
D.No law required the involvement of a third party in certification.
50.What does Kevin Wilhelm imply by saying“It’s kind of a Wild West”(Lines 2-3, Para.11)?
A.Businesses compete to produce green products.
B.Each business acts its own way in green labeling.
C.Consumers grow wild with products labeled green.
D.Anything produced in the West can be labeled green.
答案解析：
46. 由题干中的关键词 “Green Guides” 和 require businesses to do” 定位到文章第二段。该段提到 Marketers must qualify their claims on the product packaging and limit them to a specific benefit”，其中 qualify their claims” (限定其声明) 和 limit them to a specific benefit” (将其限定在一个具体的益处上) 正是选项 C “Specify in what way their products are green” (具体说明其产品的环保之处) 的同义转述。所以选 C。
47. 由题干中的关键词 consumers” 和 explosion of green claims” 定位到文章第六段。该段最后一句明确指出 It is clear that consumers don’t always know what they are getting”，意思是消费者并不总是清楚他们买到的到底是什么，这与选项 D “They are not clear which products are truly green” (他们不清楚哪些产品是真正环保的) 意思完全一致。所以选 D。
48. 由题干中的关键词 SC Johnson accused of” 定位到文章第七段。该段详细说明了诉讼的原因：the label was misleading because it gave the impression that the products had been certified by a third party when the certification was the company’s own”，即该标签具有误导性，因为它让消费者以为产品经过了第三方认证，而实际上认证是公司自己做的。这直接对应了选项 C “It misled consumers to believe that its products had been certified by a third party”。所以选 C。
49. 由题干中的关键词 Christopher Beard defend” 定位到文章第八段。Christopher Beard 在回应中承认 this has been an area that is difficult to navigate”，即“这是一个难以把握的领域”，言下之意是，该领域缺乏明确清晰的指导方针或规则，因此公司的做法情有可原。这对应了选项 A “There were no clear guidelines concerning green labeling”。所以选 A。
50. 由题干中的关键词 “Wild West” 定位到文章最后一段。Kevin Wilhelm 在说出这个比喻后，紧接着进行了解释：anybody can claim themselves to be green”，即“任何人都可以宣称自己是环保的”。这句话揭示了当前环保标签市场缺乏规范、各自为政的混乱状态。选项 B “Each business acts its own way in green labeling” (每个企业在环保标签上都我行我素) 恰当地概括了这种“西部拓荒”般无序、混乱的状况。所以选 B。
