Water resources in Australia: listening answers and explanations
A geography lecturer talks about aridity, Australia's most challenging natural problem. The lecture covers how dry the continent is, why rain is lost, how underground water is stored and used, and what the country's dams are for.
Seven single-answer questions (31-37) follow the lecture in order: rainfall, evaporation, soil, underground lakes, springs and the share of supply. The signpost 'So most of the consumption of water...comes from water which is kept above ground' leads into the dams and the choose-three block (38-40).
Answer key and self-check
Type what you wrote and hit mark. Hide the key first if you haven't done the part yet. Every question number jumps to its explanation.
How to attack this block: A fact-heavy lecture with lots of comparisons and percentages. For each question, pin down which country or figure is being compared: Australia is compared with Antarctica, Africa, Europe and North America, and 87%, 60%, 48% and 18% all appear.
Question 31
Answer: CEarly on, after 'As I have said, Australia is a dry continent'
Which continent is the driest?
Australia is a dry continent, second only to Antarctica in its lack of rainfall
Question says → You hear
The driest continentsecond only to Antarctica in its lack of rainfall
Why: 'Second only to Antarctica' means Antarctica has even less rain. The driest is Antarctica, C.
The trap: A, Australia: it's described as dry and the whole talk is about it, but it's second. B, Africa, is later said to be less dry than Australia.
Question 32
Answer: BWhen the lecturer gives the evaporation percentages
How does Australia's evaporation compare with Africa's?
approximately 87% of Australia's rainfall is lost through evaporation, compared with just over 60% in Europe and Africa
Question says → You hear
higher than Africa87% … compared with just over 60% in Europe and Africa
Why: 87% is much more than Africa's just over 60%, so Australia's rate is higher: B. The lecturer adds that Africa is 'not in comparison with Australia' as dry.
The trap: A, lower than Africa: we usually think of Africa as hotter and drier, and the lecturer plays on exactly that idea before rejecting it.
Question 33
Answer: CWhen the lecturer talks about standing water drying up
Why does rain barely get into the soil?
some rainfall barely penetrates the soil. The reason for this is that the moisture is absorbed by thirsty plants.
Question says → You hear
plants use it upthe moisture is absorbed by thirsty plants
Why: 'The reason for this' gives the answer: plants absorb the moisture. That means plants use it up, C.
The trap: B, the soil is too hot: hot sunshine and winds are mentioned earlier, but as causes of evaporation, not of rain not penetrating.
Question 34
Answer: BRight after the thirsty plants
What can water do in sandy soils?
Some parts of Australia are dry because rainwater seeps quickly through sandy soils and into the rock below.
Question says → You hear
seep down to rockseeps quickly through sandy soils and into the rock below
Why: Rainwater seeps through sandy soil into the rock below. B uses the same verb, seep.
The trap: A, evaporate quickly: evaporation is the big theme of the talk, but in sandy soil the water goes down, not up.
Question 35
Answer: BAfter the lecturer explains underground lakes
What is underground water mainly pumped up for?
most of the water is too salty to be used for human consumption or for the irrigation of crops. However, most inland farmers do rely on this water for watering their animals
Question says → You hear
animals to drinkwatering their animals
Why: The water is too salty for people or crops, but most inland farmers use it for their animals. B.
The trap: C, watering crops: irrigation is mentioned twice, but as something the water is too salty for and only used for 'to a lesser extent'.
Question 36
Answer: CWhen the lecturer describes water bubbling to the surface
Where are the natural springs found?
Water from these underground reservoirs bubbles to the surface as springs in some parts of the country, and these rare sources of permanent water
Question says → You hear
in a few areas of Australiain some parts of the country … these rare sources
Why: Springs appear in 'some parts' and are called 'rare', so they're found in a few areas: C.
The trap: A, unexplored parts: early explorers are mentioned, because they used the springs, which means the springs were in places that were being explored.
Question 37
Answer: AWhen the lecturer says 'Remarkably'
What share of Australia's water comes from underground?
Remarkably, underground water sources in Australia supply about 18% of total water consumption.
Question says → You hear
Underground water suppliesunderground water sources in Australia supply about 18% of total water consumption
Why: Underground sources supply about 18% of total consumption. A.
The trap: B, 48%, is North America's evaporation figure from earlier. C, 80%, sounds like the 87% evaporation figure.
Multiple choice (choose THREE)
Questions 38-40
How to attack this block: The uses of dam water come as a neat list at the end: irrigation, flood control and electricity. Each is paraphrased in the options, and the two wrong options borrow ideas (animals, industry) from elsewhere in the talk.
Question 38-40
Answer: B and D and E (in either order)Near the end, when the lecturer turns to the more than 300 dams
Which three uses of dam water are mentioned?
the rural irrigation of crops … the regulation of flooding … the harnessing of the force of gravity for the generation of electricity
Question says → You hear
watering farmlandthe rural irrigation of crops
controlling flood waterthe regulation of flooding
producing hydro-electric powerthe harnessing of the force of gravity for the generation of electricity
Why: B: irrigating crops is watering farmland. D: regulating flooding is controlling flood water. E: using gravity to generate electricity is hydro-electric power.
The trap: A, water for livestock: watering animals was mentioned earlier, but for underground water, not dam water. C, industry, is never mentioned.
The lecture is about Australia's dryness, so people choose A. But Australia is 'second only to Antarctica in its lack of rainfall', which makes Antarctica the driest.
Watering animals comes up in the underground water section, not the dams section, so A is wrong for dam water.
Words from this recording worth keeping
aridity(Introduction)
extreme dryness of land or climate
searing(Evaporation)
extremely hot
evaporation(Evaporation)
water turning into vapour and disappearing
penetrates(Soil and plants)
goes into or through
seeps(Sandy soils)
flows slowly through small gaps
subterranean(Underground lakes)
under the ground
irrigation(Underground water and dams)
supplying water to crops
harnessing(Dams)
controlling something to use its power
Sit this test on Langujet, then come back
The full Cambridge 2 Test 3 listening paper with the real audio: all four parts, played once, marked the moment you finish. Already done it? Take it again and listen for the traps this page showed you.
Cambridge IELTS 2, Test 3, Listening Part 4. The recording, transcript and questions belong to Cambridge University Press and are not reproduced here. We quote short extracts of the transcript only as evidence for our own commentary, and the answers are published for self-marking. Get the book for the full material, or sit the test on Langujet.
