Part C

Tiny Belize – a world leader in protecting the ocean

1 Belize, until 1973 known as British Honduras, is the only mainland Central American

country which is a Commonwealth realm, with the British queen or king as its monarch

and head of state. Located between the Caribbean Sea and the rainforest on the eastern

coast of Central America, Belize is the home of a small and diverse population. Tourism

is now the second largest industry in the nation. Despite its small size, no other country

can claim a greater percentage of its land mass dedicated to nature protection zones. These

include nature reserves, national parks, preserves and no-fishing areas.

2 But what has Belize actually done to protect its natural marine heritage? The world’s

second largest barrier reef, which runs along the Belize coast, has been an increasingly

popular underwater attraction for tourists. This excessive, and sometimes careless, human

contact has caused damage to the highly sensitive marine ecosystem. The coral that builds

the reefs is extremely fragile and if divers touch it they can kill it. The local tourism asso-

ciations and environmental organisations have responded to this threat to the reef – a

UNESCO¹ world heritage site – by implementing reef-protection education programs fo-

cused on scuba-diving operators. More than 90,000 corals grown in sea nurseries have

been planted in shallow waters, increasing coral cover by 35 %. Marine creatures are re-

producing, and about 90 % have survived natural and man-made pressures for almost a

decade. As a result of this hugely significant success for marine conservation worldwide,

the reef was removed from UNESCO’s World Heritage danger list in June 2018.

3 Fish stocks are stable and reef health is improving, thanks to Belize’s substantial

‘no-take’ zones enforced by marine-protection staff. Across the turquoise water by the

mangrove, ranger George Smith spots a fishing boat. “We’re going over to say hello,” he

says, before abruptly changing direction. But his real task is to check that the couple on

board have a licence to fish in this part of the Port Honduras Marine Reserve, one of nine

designated zones in Belize. Illegal fishing has declined but at night there are still raids

from Guatemala and high-speed chases around the reserve’s 500-square miles of clear

blue sea. For the four rangers working alternating shifts this is a vast area to monitor

properly.

4 The introduction of regulations to protect mangroves and the stopping of all new oil

exploration in Belize’s waters were the next steps on the agenda. After thousands of

citizens publicly supported environmental groups to push for a referendum on the issue,

Belize’s government voted for a permanent ban. This was the first time a developing

country had taken such a major step to protect its reefs from pollution caused by the oil

industry. At the same time this measure safeguarded Belize’s important scuba-diving

tourism sector. Oil-related damage, such as a spill, could have impacts as far away as

Mexico, Guatemala and Honduras and affect their lucrative tourism industry. “The de-

cision is extremely significant,” said a spokesman for the charity WWF²-UK, which was

assisting the campaign. “It indicates that Belize is prepared to put its people and environ-

ment first.”

5 Belize’s success has gained it the honour of being a champion state in the Common-

wealth Blue Charter Initiative. This is an agreement by all Commonwealth countries

which tries to solve ocean-related problems and was adopted at the Commonwealth

Meeting in London, April 2018. Action groups were then formed in order to achieve a

sustainable approach to ocean economic development and protection. In recognition of its

efforts, Belize was chosen to head the action group on coral reef protection and resto-

ration, alongside Australia and Mauritius. Other action groups are concerned with plastic

pollution, climate change and sustainable aquaculture.

6 “The gains are impressive but also fragile,” says a representative of the Wildlife Con-

servation Society, whose scientific research has played a leading role in conservation

efforts. “Our actions have been moving faster than the legislation. Now we need laws to

support our progress. Everyone is waiting for a new sustainable fisheries law which will

close loopholes by making enforcement easier. Enforcement is our weak point because it

is extremely difficult to stop illegal fishing. We tried confiscating boats but that wasn’t

effective. We need stiffer penalties.”

¹United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization

² World Wide Fund for Nature

Task 1

Read the text “Tiny Belize – a world leader in protecting the ocean” above.

Match the headings (A–H) with the paragraphs (1–6). Write the letters in the boxes below. Use each letter only once. There are two headings you do not need.

One heading (H) is already matched.

A	Replanting its underwater landscape
B	An award-winning effort
C	Achieving international respect
D	Further steps required
E	Protecting the shore from erosion
F	A tropical country with a British heritage
G	Patrolling the sea
H	~~Resistance to economic development~~

1	2	3	4	5	6
			H

5 Punkte

Task 2

Answer the questions using information from the text above.

Short answers are enough. There is an example (0) at the beginning.

(0) Who is the head of state of Belize? the British queen or king

(1) Why is human contact dangerous for the coral?

________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

(2) Where were the coral replacements cultivated?

________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

(3) What do you need to fish in the marine reserves legally?

________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

(4) Who or what causes the pollution of the coral reefs?

________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

(5) In which city was the Blue Charter Initiative founded?

________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

(6) Which penalty wasn’t effective enough?

________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

6 Punkte

Task 3

Give the line(s) of the sentence in the text above where you find the following information. There is an example (0) at the beginning.

	line(s)
(0) The travel industry generates a lot of income.	4–5
(1) Sea life has been recovering for the last ten years.
(2) Only a few staff are available to police a huge area.
(3) Pollution might have environmental and financial consequences for other countries.
(4) More task groups deal with other aspects of conservation.
(5) Conservation efforts have overtaken the law-making process.

5 Punkte

Task 4

The following words have various meanings. Which of the meanings below is the one used in the text above? Write the correct number in the box.

There is an example (0) at the beginning.

(0) CLAIM (line 6)

1	ask for something because it belongs to you
2	say that you have achieved something
3	right to have something
4	at a greater distance

(1) PRESERVE (line 7)

1	keep something the same
2	sweet food made from fruit, sugar, and water
3	area where wild animals and plants are protected
4	add substances to something so that it stays in good condition

(2) STOCK (line 20)

1	liquid made by boiling meat or vegetables
2	group of the same species that live in the same geographic area
3	value of a company, or a share in its value
4	have something available for people to buy

(3) SPOT (line 22)

1	see or notice something or someone
2	red mark on your skin
3	small, round mark
4	place

(4) HEAD (line 45)

1	part of your body above your neck
2	person in charge of a school
3	hit a ball with your head
4	lead an organisation

4 Punkte

20 Punkte

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Task 1

1	2	3	4	5	6
F	A	G	H	C	D

Task 2

(1) Why is human contact dangerous for the coral? (because) it is fragile / (because) it kills it

(2) Where were the coral replacements cultivated? (in) sea nurseries

(3) What do you need to fish in the marine reserves legally? (a) licence

(4) Who or what causes the pollution of the coral reefs? (the) oil industry

(5) In which city was the Blue Charter Initiative founded? (in) London

(6) Which penalty wasn’t effective enough? confiscating boats

Task 3

	line(s)
(0) The travel industry generates a lot of income.	4–5
(1) Sea life has been recovering for the last ten years.	15–18
(2) Only a few staff are available to police a huge area.	27–28
(3) Pollution might have environmental and financial consequences for other countries.	35–36
(4) More task groups deal with other aspects of conservation.	46–47
(5) Conservation efforts have overtaken the law-making process.	50

Task 4

(0) CLAIM (line 6)

1	ask for something because it belongs to you
2	say that you have achieved something
3	right to have something
4	at a greater distance

(1) PRESERVE (line 7)

1	keep something the same
2	sweet food made from fruit, sugar, and water
3	area where wild animals and plants are protected
4	add substances to something so that it stays in good condition

(2) STOCK (line 20)

1	liquid made by boiling meat or vegetables
2	group of the same species that live in the same geographic area
3	value of a company, or a share in its value
4	have something available for people to buy

(3) SPOT (line 22)

1	see or notice something or someone
2	red mark on your skin
3	small, round mark
4	place

(4) HEAD (line 45)

1	part of your body above your neck
2	person in charge of a school
3	hit a ball with your head
4	lead an organisation

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