IELTS Reading Multiple Choice Question Practice

Eco-friendly toilet fails to impress

An eco-friendly toilet built in front of the Central Zoo in Jawalakhel (Kathmandu), which
converts human waste into fertilizer, has remained unutilized for the past few months due to
reluctance of visitors to use the facility. On Tuesday afternoon, the one and only eco-friendly
toilet in the country was found locked.

Swedish environmental solutions company EcoLoo AB had donated the eco-friendly toilet to the
Solid Waste Management Technical Support Centre of the Home Ministry for its trial in Nepal.
After being handed to the Lalitpur Sub-Metropolitan City (LSMC), it was installed in front of
the Central Zoo three months ago.

“As the LSMC Office cannot operate the toilet on its own, the responsibility was handed over to
a private organization,” LSMC’s Environmental Engineer Pradeep Amatya said. He, however,
said he was unaware of the fact that the toilet was unused and out of order.

Nepal Pollution Control and Environment Management Center is the private contractor that has
been hired to operate the eco-friendly loo. The Center’s President Devi Prasad Acharya said that
the reluctance of the public to use the waterless eco-friendly toilet led to its current situation.

“There is toilet paper in the eco-friendly latrine to clean oneself, but no water. As many Nepalis
do not use toilet paper, they are reluctant to use the facility,” Acharya said. “When operational,
people used the toilet for urination only.”

The eco-friendly toilet uses bacteria to decompose human excreta in a mostly-automated and
odor-free method, with fertilizer as the end product. However, the process is hindered if the
waste becomes highly liquefied. Therefore, using water in the toilet or only using it for urination
beats the purpose.

Choose the correct letter A, B, C or D.

Write the correct letter in box on your answer sheet.
According to the text, what was the main issue with the eco-friendly toilet?
A Private contractor defaulted on the agreement.
B The city decided to lock it away.
C The public was disinclined to use it.
D It did not work as expected during the trial phase.

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