Part 1. Vocabulary
|
torrential |
/təˈren(t)SHəl/
adj - falling or
falling rapidly and in copious quantities and with force A storm is
coming that’s why there is a torrential downpour. |
|
decimate |
/ˈdesəˌmāt/ v
- kill,
destroy, or remove a large percentage or part of The
project of housing would decimate the
fragile wetland wilderness. |
|
dynasty |
/ˈdīnəstē/ n - a
succession of people from the same family who play a prominent role in
business, politics, or another field The most
famous dynasty in the name of the business is the Ford family. |
|
premium |
/ˈprēmēəm/
modifier noun - relating to
or denoting a commodity or product of superior quality and therefore a higher
price The very best
of all ingredients make their beer a premium drink. |
|
accumulate |
/əˈkyo͞om(y)əˌlāt/
v - gather
together or acquire an increasing number or quantity of The
investigators have yet to accumulate enough evidence for the murder case. |
Part 2.
Comprehension Questions
1.
What were the reasons that lead to the decimation of tea production in Taiwan?
2.
Where is most tea of Taiwan growing?
3.
What is the outcome if there is a small harvest
of tea?
4.
What are the other problems brought by climate
change?
5.
What can influence the chemical makeup of tea?
Part 3. Article Reading
A once-in-a-century drought in
2020 followed by torrential rain in 2021 has decimated Taiwan’s
tea crop and left farmers scrambling. One such farmer is 28-year-old Chien
Shun-yih, whose tea fields in Taiwan’s southern Meishan township are weakening.
"Right, it's the climate. The weather is the hardest element to control in
tea production. We can control other elements of the production process by
using equipment, but we are powerless in the face of climate.”
Chien returned to run the family
plantation after his father passed away four years ago and is determined to
cope with the extreme conditions in any way he can. "This sort of thing,
the tea is growing here, and I live here as well, this land belongs to me. My
upbringing relied on it, so I want to take good care of it as well and bring up
the next generation of my family here.”
Tea has been grown in the
mountains around Meishan since the 19th century when the island was part of
China’s Qing dynasty.
Taiwan’s tea output does not come
close to matching China’s or India’s, but what it lacks in quantity it makes up
for in quality. The high mountain premium Oolong variety is a specialty
of the area. But Chien estimates that he will only harvest 1,300 pounds of tea
this year, half of last year’s crop, due to the drought and rain. "Of
course, it has an impact, it's a big difference. We tea pickers also make less
money. When the harvest is small, then we also make less money."
But the extreme weather also
brings another problem: pests that attack the young tea buds. Lin Shiou-reui is
a government researcher helping Meishan’s farmers.
"So actually, under this
sort of climate change, the growth of tea trees will firstly be very limited
and secondly it will lead to massive reproduction of pests, so all in all, the
number of leaves that tea trees produce will decrease. And then because the
trees are weak, and with the additional onset of big numbers of parasites, if
these factors aren't dealt with properly then this might even lead to some tea
trees dying." Some officials debate whether what is happening in Taiwan’s
tea county is directly linked to climate change.
Chen Yung-ming, head of the
Climate Change Division at Taiwan’s National Science and Technology Centre for
Disaster Reduction, has said it’s not possible to blame the drought on climate
change, though she believes the chance of continuous drought may increase. Tsai
Hsein-tsung, the director at Taiwan Executive Yuan Tea Research and Extension
Station, disagrees.
"Tea is very sensitive because during the 50 to 60 days of every growing season, the accumulated
hydration and temperature as well as the amount of humidity in the air that the
tea touches can influence its chemical makeup. Especially as tea is a habitual
beverage, and when those elements are brewed into a cup of tea, will it taste
good and have a fragrant quality? All of this is heavily influenced by climate
change."
Source: https://news.yahoo.com/