Local environmental issues (AQA GCSE Spanish): Revision Notes
Local environmental issues
Learning to discuss environmental problems in your local area is essential for GCSE Spanish. This topic combines important vocabulary about the environment with useful grammar structures for expressing ongoing actions and concerns. Understanding how to talk about local environmental issues will help you express your views on pollution, green spaces, and community problems in Spanish-speaking contexts.
Key vocabulary
The vocabulary for environmental issues covers several key areas: natural spaces, pollution sources, transportation, and waste management. These terms form the foundation for discussing environmental concerns in your local area.
| Spanish | English | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| el medio ambiente | environment | el tráfico | traffic |
| la falta | lack | el coche | car |
| el río | river | la carretera | road |
| el espacio verde | green space | la basura | rubbish, litter |
| el ruido | noise | limpiar | to clean |
| el aire | air | recoger | to collect, pick up |
| el jardín | garden | sucio/a | dirty |
| el bosque | wood, forest | la naturaleza | nature |
| el parque | park | la industria | industry |
When learning environmental vocabulary, try grouping words by theme: Nature (el bosque, el parque, la naturaleza), Pollution (el ruido, el aire, sucio/a), Transport (el tráfico, el coche, la carretera), and Waste (la basura, limpiar, recoger). This thematic approach helps with retention and makes the vocabulary more practical to use.
Grammar focus: Seguir + present participle
This construction is fundamental for expressing ongoing environmental problems and concerns. It allows you to talk about actions that continue to happen, which is particularly relevant when discussing persistent environmental issues.
Using seguir + present participle - This is the equivalent of the English 'to carry on ...ing', 'to continue to ...', 'to keep on ...ing' or 'to still be ...ing'. Use seguir in the present tense and add the present participle.
Formation:
- Use the present tense of seguir (sigo, sigues, sigue, seguimos, seguís, siguen)
- Add the present participle (-ando for -ar verbs, -iendo for -er/-ir verbs)
Worked Example: Using seguir + present participle
Basic structure: Seguir (conjugated) + present participle
- Seguimos destruyendo los bosques. - We keep on destroying the forests.
- La industria sigue causando contaminación. - Industry continues to cause pollution.
- Los coches siguen produciendo demasiado ruido. - Cars keep on producing too much noise.
Useful phrases for discussing environmental issues
When talking about local environmental problems, these phrases help you express your concerns clearly and provide flexible frameworks for discussing various issues in your community.
Key phrases for introducing environmental topics:
- En mi región, tenemos un problema con... - In my area, we have a problem with...
- En mi barrio, lo peor es... - In my neighbourhood, the worst thing is...
- La falta de espacios verdes - The lack of green spaces
- Hay demasiado tráfico - There's too much traffic
- No hay suficientes parques - There aren't enough parks
These phrases work as sentence starters that you can combine with any environmental vocabulary to create natural-sounding responses.
Example sentences with translations
Understanding how to construct sentences about environmental issues requires practice with both simple present tense descriptions and the more complex seguir construction.
Present tense descriptions:
- En mi pueblo no hay suficientes jardines públicos. - In my town there aren't enough public gardens.
- Los coches producen mucha contaminación del aire. - Cars produce a lot of air pollution.
- La basura en las calles es un problema grave. - Litter in the streets is a serious problem.
Using seguir + present participle:
- Seguimos tirando basura en el río. - We keep on throwing rubbish in the river.
- La gente sigue usando demasiados coches. - People continue to use too many cars.
- Las fábricas siguen contaminando el medio ambiente. - Factories keep on polluting the environment.
Grammar and pronunciation tips
Mastering the pronunciation and grammar rules for environmental vocabulary will help you communicate more effectively about these important topics.
Pronunciation guidance:
- "Verde" (green) - pronounce the 'v' like a soft 'b': "BEHR-deh"
- "Medio ambiente" - stress on "ME-dio am-BIEN-teh"
- "Seguir" - the 'g' before 'u' is silent: "seh-GEER"
Grammar reminders:
- Remember that seguir is an irregular verb - it changes 'e' to 'i' in some forms
- Present participles ending in -iendo change to -yendo when the stem ends in a vowel
- Always use the present tense of seguir, even when talking about future continuing actions
Translation practice
Practice is essential for mastering environmental vocabulary and grammar structures. These exercises combine vocabulary recognition with grammar application.
Translation Practice Exercise
Spanish to English:
- En mi barrio, la falta de espacios verdes es un problema serio.
- Seguimos destruyendo la naturaleza con demasiado tráfico.
English to Spanish: 3. In my region, we have a problem with air pollution. 4. People keep on throwing litter in the parks.
Answers:
- In my neighbourhood, the lack of green spaces is a serious problem.
- We keep on destroying nature with too much traffic.
- En mi región, tenemos un problema con la contaminación del aire.
- La gente sigue tirando basura en los parques.
Key Points to Remember:
- Use seguir + present participle to express ongoing environmental problems
- Learn vocabulary in thematic groups (nature, pollution, transport, waste) for better retention
- Practice using flexible phrases like "En mi región..." to introduce environmental topics
- Present participles end in -ando (for -ar verbs) or -iendo (for -er/-ir verbs)
- Environmental issues are often discussed using present tense for current problems and seguir construction for ongoing concerns