A young Queensland woman is aiming to pay for her dream wedding by collecting and recycling more than 800,000 plastic bottles and cans. Leonie Starr, who lives on the Sunshine Coast, had been quoted $81,000 for her dream wedding in Vanuatu to her fiancé, Matthew Porter. Mr Porter, 28, proposed to Ms Starr, also 28, on March 14, while the pair were on a cruise in Vanuatu.
The couple, who have been together nearly two years, were told the $81,000 quote includes accommodation for 35 guests for six nights, all meals and the wedding itself. And Ms Starr believes she has found a way to pay for it without breaking the bank.
Queensland’s state government introduced a container refund scheme on November 1. It gives residents the chance to collect and recycle in exchange for 10 cents for each bottle or can recycled at one of more than 230 container refund points in Queensland. Drink containers are said to be the second most littered item in the state with close to three billion used each year, but one person’s trash could be Ms Starr’s treasure.
Ms Starr has always recycled, but it is said that she has ramped it up in preparation for her wedding. “When I tell people about it, the first thing that they do is to laugh and then they realize I’m serious,” she said. The 28-year-old said people from work and her neighbourhood had helped her but she needed to be collecting 2,200 bottles a day to reach her goal.
She added the experience has also opened her eyes into how many drink containers go to waste. “It’s amazing to see how much we actually throw away as a community,” Ms Starr said. She has also reached out on Facebook for help — you can follow her progress here. She aims to have her wedding in March 2020.

   本时文由奇速英语国际教育研究院提供，未经书面授权，禁止复制和任何商业用途， 版权所有，侵权必究！（作者投稿及时文阅读定制请联系微信：18980471698）

1.Why did Ms Starr decide to collect and recycle plastic bottles and cans?

A Because she wanted to protect the environment in local area.

B Because she planned to set up a factory to deal with the waste.

C Because the local government called on people to recycle litter.

D Because she was ready to collect a sum of money for her wedding.

解析：选D。细节理解题。根据文章第一段第一句A young Queensland woman is aiming to pay for her dream wedding by collecting and recycling more than 800,000 plastic bottles and cans.可知， Starr想通过回收塑料瓶和易拉罐来筹集婚礼资金，故选D。

2.The cost of $81,000 will be used in some parts of wedding except ________.

A what to eat

B where to live

C whom to invite

D the wedding itself

解析：选C。细节理解题。根据文章第二段第一句The couple, who have been together nearly two years, were told the $81,000 quote includes accommodation for 35 guests for six nights, all meals and the wedding itself.可知，婚礼费用包括为35名客人提供6个晚上的住宿费、餐饮费和婚礼本身的费用，故选C。

3.What does the underlined part “a container refund scheme” mean?

A A garbage for money project.

B The community garbage collection.

C The container environmental protection recycling plan.

D People’s participation in environmental protection programmes.

解析：选A。词义猜测题。根据文章第三段第二句It gives residents the chance to collect and recycle in exchange for 10 cents for each bottle or can recycled at one of more than 230 container refund points in Queensland.可知，昆士兰州州政府推出集装箱退款计划是鼓励人们回收废品来换取现金，故推测a container refund scheme是指垃圾换钱计划，故选A。

4.How did the people feel about Ms Starr’s idea at first?

A It was amazing.

B It was profitable.

C It was ridiculous.

D It was thoughtful.

解析：选C。观点态度题。根据文章第四段第二句“When I tell people about it, the first thing that they do is to laugh and then they realize I’m serious,” she said.可知，当 Starr告诉人们关于这件事，他们做的第一件事就是笑，觉得很荒诞，故选C。

5.What can we infer from the passage?

A Queensland’s state government hopes to improve residents' life.

B Both Mr Porter and Ms Starr love the career of environmental protection.

C It is a tough job for Mr Porter and Ms Starr to achieve the goal within 2020.

D Ms Starr’s workmates and neighbours helped her with the wedding preparation.

解析：选C。推理判断题。根据文章第四段最后一句The 28-year-old said people from work and her neighbourhood had helped her but she needed to be collecting 2,200 bottles a day to reach her goal.和第五段第三句She has also reached out on Facebook for help — you can follow her progress here.可知，除了情侣二人的努力，他们的邻居工友也在帮忙筹集废品。此外，Starr还在社交媒体脸书上创建了一个页面求助，由此推断对于Porter 和 Starr来说，要实现2020年的结婚目标并非易事，故选C。