The Long Journey of Plastic Through the Ocean: Reading Answers & Explanations
IELTS Reading practice test · 14 questionsAcademicmedium
Haven't taken this test yet?
Looking at the answers first spoils the practice — you only get one honest first attempt at a passage. Take the test with the 20-minute timer, get an instant score and estimated band, then come back here to study every answer.
About this passage
The passage opens: “Every year a great quantity of plastic waste finds its way from the land into the sea, and in my view this steady flow represents one of the most serious and least excusable environmental failures of our age. Much of the plastic that reaches the ocean began its life on land, dropped as litter, blown from waste sites…”
- Passage length: about 768 words
- Questions: 14
- Question types: Yes / No / Not Given, Multiple Choice, Short Answer
“The Long Journey of Plastic Through the Ocean” is an original IELTS-style practice passage written by IELTS-Bank. It is not taken from an official IELTS or Cambridge test, so these answers only apply to our version.
Answer key at a glance
The Long Journey of Plastic Through the Ocean answers with explanations
Questions 1–6: Yes / No / Not Given
Do the following statements agree with the views/claims of the writer? Write YES if the statement agrees with the views of the writer, NO if it contradicts, or NOT GIVEN if it is impossible to say what the writer thinks.
- 1
The flow of plastic into the sea is one of the most serious environmental failures of the age.
Show answerHide answer
Answer: YES
Why: The writer's view here agrees with the statement, so the answer is YES.
Evidence · Paragraph 1 “…in my view this steady flow represents one of the most serious and least excusable environmental failures of our age.”
- 2
Microplastics are the most alarming form the plastic problem takes.
Show answerHide answer
Answer: YES
Why: The writer's view here agrees with the statement, so the answer is YES.
Evidence · Paragraph 2 “These tiny fragments are known as microplastics, and I would argue that they are the most alarming form the problem takes, precisely because they are so difficult to see and almost impossible to remove.”
- 3
The image of a solid floating island of rubbish has helped the public understand the problem.
Show answerHide answer
Answer: NO
Why: The writer's view here contradicts the statement, so the answer is NO.
Evidence · Paragraph 3 “I believe the persistence of the floating-island myth has actually hindered public understanding of what really needs to be done.”
- 4
Society should wait for complete scientific certainty before acting to reduce plastic at its source.
Show answerHide answer
Answer: NO
Why: The writer's view here contradicts the statement, so the answer is NO.
Evidence · Paragraph 5 “I am not persuaded that we can afford to wait for complete certainty before acting; the precautionary case for reducing plastic at its source already seems to me overwhelming.”
- 5
Cleaning plastic out of the ocean alone can never be a sufficient response to the problem.
Show answerHide answer
Answer: YES
Why: The writer's view here agrees with the statement, so the answer is YES.
Evidence · Paragraph 6 “I am convinced that efforts focused only on removal, however well intentioned, can never be enough.”
- 6
Governments spend too little money on ocean cleanup machinery.
Show answerHide answer
Answer: NOT GIVEN
Why: The statement claims that governments spend too little on ocean cleanup machinery, but the passage never confirms or denies this, focusing instead on the difficulty of cleanup and the need to reduce plastic at its source.
Closest related text · Paragraph 6 “Cleaning up plastic once it has entered the ocean is enormously difficult, and I am convinced that efforts focused only on removal, however well intentioned, can never be enough.”
Question 7: Multiple Choice
Choose the correct letter, A, B, C or D.
- A. They act as conveyor belts carrying rubbish to the coast
- B. They break plastic down into harmless substances
- C. They trap most plastic before it reaches the sea
- D. They reflect sunlight away from floating plastic
- 7
According to the passage, what role do rivers play in ocean plastic pollution?
Show answerHide answer
Answer: A — They act as conveyor belts carrying rubbish to the coast
Why: This is the part of the passage that supports A — They act as conveyor belts carrying rubbish to the coast.
Evidence · Paragraph 1 “Rivers act as vast conveyor belts, gathering rubbish from towns and cities far inland and delivering it to the coast.”
Question 8: Multiple Choice
Choose the correct letter, A, B, C or D.
- A. A solid island of rubbish
- B. A thin soup of small fragments spread through the water
- C. Large floating sheets of packaging
- D. Material that quickly sinks to the seabed
- 8
How does the passage describe most of the plastic found in the calm centres of gyres?
Show answerHide answer
Answer: B — A thin soup of small fragments spread through the water
Why: This is the part of the passage that supports B — A thin soup of small fragments spread through the water.
Evidence · Paragraph 3 “In reality most of the plastic in these zones is a thin soup of small fragments spread through the water, which is one reason the problem is far harder to clean up than many people imagine.”
Question 9: Multiple Choice
Choose the correct letter, A, B, C or D.
- A. Because it is wrapped in packaging material
- B. Because it contains natural food for marine animals
- C. Because its surface can attract and hold harmful chemicals from the water
- D. Because it dissolves quickly in seawater
- 9
Why does the writer describe a plastic fragment as a tiny package of pollutants?
Show answerHide answer
Answer: C — Because its surface can attract and hold harmful chemicals from the water
Why: This is the part of the passage that supports C — Because its surface can attract and hold harmful chemicals from the water.
Evidence · Paragraph 5 “Their surfaces can attract and hold certain harmful chemicals from the surrounding water, so that a fragment becomes a tiny package of pollutants.”
Question 10: Multiple Choice
Choose the correct letter, A, B, C or D.
- A. Building larger machines to scoop plastic from the surface
- B. Waiting for plastic to break down naturally
- C. Moving cleanup efforts to the deepest ocean trenches
- D. Stopping the plastic from reaching the sea in the first place
- 10
What does the writer identify as the far more effective response to ocean plastic?
Show answerHide answer
Answer: D — Stopping the plastic from reaching the sea in the first place
Why: This is the part of the passage that supports D — Stopping the plastic from reaching the sea in the first place.
Evidence · Paragraph 6 “The far more effective response, in my judgement, is to stop the plastic from reaching the sea in the first place.”
Questions 11–14: Short Answer
Answer the questions below. Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from the passage for each answer.
- 11
What quality of plastic does the writer say becomes a curse once it is discarded?(max 3 words)
Show answerHide answer
Answer: durability (also accepted: its durability)
Why: The answer “durability” is taken from this sentence — copy the word(s) exactly as they appear. It fits the 3-word limit.
Evidence · Paragraph 2 “What makes plastic so troubling is its stubborn durability.”
- 12
What are the great circular systems of ocean currents called?(max 2 words)
Show answerHide answer
Answer: gyres
Why: The answer “gyres” is taken from this sentence — copy the word(s) exactly as they appear. It fits the 2-word limit.
Evidence · Paragraph 3 “The great circular systems of currents that turn slowly across each ocean basin, known as gyres, tend to draw floating material towards their calm centres.”
- 13
In which extreme location has plastic been found in the bodies of creatures?(max 3 words)
Show answerHide answer
Answer: deepest ocean trenches (also accepted: ocean trenches / the deepest ocean trenches)
Why: The answer “deepest ocean trenches” is taken from this sentence — copy the word(s) exactly as they appear. It fits the 3-word limit.
Evidence · Paragraph 4 “…plastic has now been found in the bodies of creatures living even in the deepest ocean trenches, far from any obvious source of pollution.”
- 14
Reducing the amount of what kind of plastic would help cut the flow at its source?(max 3 words)
Show answerHide answer
Answer: single-use plastic (also accepted: single-use / unnecessary single-use plastic)
Why: The answer “single-use plastic” is taken from this sentence — copy the word(s) exactly as they appear. It fits the 3-word limit.
Evidence · Paragraph 7 “…a reduction in the amount of unnecessary single-use plastic that is produced”
Estimated band score for this test
Your raw score out of 14 scaled to the 40-question IELTS Reading (Academic) conversion table. This is the same estimate the practice page shows after you submit. A single passage is a small sample, so treat it as a guide.
| Correct answers | Estimated band |
|---|---|
| 14 / 14 | 9.0 |
| 13 / 14 | 8.5 |
| 12 / 14 | 7.5 |
| 11 / 14 | 7.0 |
| 10 / 14 | 6.5 |
| 8–9 / 14 | 6.0 |
| 7 / 14 | 5.5 |
| 6 / 14 | 5.0 |
| 5 / 14 | 4.5 |
| 4 / 14 | 4.0 |
| 3 / 14 | 3.5 |
| 2 / 14 | 3.0 |
| 1 / 14 | 2.0 |
| 0 / 14 | 0.0 |
Full-test score? Use the IELTS band calculator.
Tips for the question types in this test
Yes / No / Not Given
- Identify the claim in the statement and, crucially, whose opinion it represents — these passages often quote several people, so track who is speaking.
- Scan the passage for opinion signals: verbs like "argues", "believes", "suggests", "claims", and phrases such as "in the author’s view".
Common trap: Treating a reported opinion (someone else’s view mentioned by the writer) as the writer’s own conclusion.
Full Yes / No / Not Given strategyMultiple Choice
- Read the question stem carefully before the options so you know exactly what is being asked.
- Because multiple-choice questions follow passage order, locate the relevant section and read it in full — the answer usually depends on more than one sentence.
Common trap: Distractors that use exact words from the passage but distort the meaning.
Full Multiple Choice strategyShort Answer
- Read the instructions and note the exact word limit; going over it means zero marks even if the meaning is right.
- Turn each question into a set of keywords and predict what kind of answer it needs (a person, a date, a place, a noun).
Common trap: Exceeding the word limit (writing four words when only three are allowed).
Full Short Answer strategyPractise “The Long Journey of Plastic Through the Ocean” under exam conditions
Free, auto-marked, with the 20-minute timer and an instant band estimate.
Take this test first (timed)More IELTS Reading tests with answers
Community Allotment Gardens: A Members' Guide
easy
Coral Reefs Under Pressure
medium
Cycling Safety on Shared Paths
easy
Esperanto and the Universal Language Dream
medium
Finding the Way Across the Pacific
medium
From Bean to Bar: The Making of Chocolate
medium