Read the following article from a website.
Ottawa is studying a charge on the carbon in some imported goods, starting with steel, aluminum and fertilizer. Canadian factories already pay a carbon price at home, while many of their foreign competitors pay none. A committee of members of Parliament held hearings in Hamilton last week and will send its advice to the finance minister by the end of January. The idea has drawn support and warnings in almost equal measure.
Beatrix Pennington, an economist who studies carbon pricing, says the charge is about fairness. “Right now a mill in Hamilton that cleans up its furnace can lose an order to a dirtier mill overseas,” Pennington said. “That is backwards. The charge simply makes both of them pay the same price for the same pollution.” She wants rebates for any foreign producer that can prove its goods were made cleanly.
Lorne Petrakis, a trade lawyer in Ottawa, warns that the details matter more than the idea. “If we design this badly, our partners will answer with tariffs on Canadian beef and auto parts,” Petrakis said. “That is a real cost. Farmers and car workers would pay it.” He wants the charge to follow world trade rules and to start at a low rate. Nkechi Okoye, who represents steelworkers in Hamilton, says the risk of doing nothing is bigger. “No company will spend two hundred million dollars on a cleaner furnace if cheaper, dirtier steel can undercut it the next day,” Okoye said. “Our members are not asking for protection. They are asking for a fair race.” She wants the money the charge raises to go toward retraining workers at plants that switch to new equipment.
Harald Pedersen, who runs a fertilizer plant in Saskatchewan, supports the charge but fears a badly built formula. “My plant already pays a carbon price on every tonne we make,” Pedersen said. “If the formula ignores that, farmers will pay twice, once through my price and again through their own costs.” He asked the committee to give credit to producers who have already paid.
Using the drop-down menu (▾), choose the best option according to the information given on the website.
This article shows that 2..
Each of the people quoted seems to agree that 3..
At present, Harald Pedersen has a plant that 4..
According to Okoye, steelworkers 5..
The following is a comment by a visitor to the website page. Complete the comment by choosing the best option to fill in each blank.
AI explanationShows the answer. Tap to open.
Correct Answer: a possible charge on carbon in imported goods
Why this is correct: Ottawa is studying a charge on the carbon in some imported goods. Every speaker gives a view on this idea.
Passage Reference: Ottawa is studying a charge on the carbon in some imported goods
Tips: Ask what the hearings in Hamilton were held to discuss. The best choice names that idea, not one speaker’s wish.
Why the other options are wrong:
- a new steel mill planned for Hamilton: A mill in Hamilton is used as an example. Nobody plans a new mill.
- a ban on the sale of foreign fertilizer: Fertilizer would face a charge, not a ban.
- a new trade deal for Canadian beef: Beef comes up only in Petrakis’s warning about tariffs. No trade deal is discussed.
Correct Answer: the charge could help some Canadians while costing others
Passage Reference: If the formula ignores that, farmers will pay twice, once through my price and again through their own costs.
Why this is correct: Pennington and Okoye say the charge would help Canadian mills that clean up. Petrakis and Pedersen warn that farmers could end up paying more.
Tips: Weigh each option against what Pennington, Petrakis, Okoye and Pedersen say. Choose the one that the full range of quotes backs up.
Why the other options are wrong:
- the change would hurt every Canadian business: Not every business loses. Pennington and Okoye expect mills that clean up to do better.
- trade partners have already agreed to the plan: Petrakis warns that partners could answer with tariffs. Nobody says they have agreed.
- the plan would help factories now but hurt them later: No speaker makes this prediction about timing.
Correct Answer: some charge of this kind should go ahead
Passage Reference: The charge simply makes both of them pay the same price for the same pollution. ... He wants the charge to follow world trade rules and to start at a low rate. ... says the risk of doing nothing is bigger ... supports the charge but fears a badly built formula
Why this is correct: Pennington, Okoye and Pedersen back the charge. Petrakis wants it to follow trade rules and start at a low rate, so he accepts it too.
Tips: Check every option with Pennington, Petrakis, Okoye and Pedersen, one after another. Drop it as soon as one person would not accept it.
Why the other options are wrong:
- the charge should begin at a low rate: Only Petrakis asks for a low starting rate.
- producers who already pay should get credit: Only Pedersen asks for this credit.
- foreign producers should never be asked to pay: Nobody says this. The charge is meant to make foreign producers pay.
Correct Answer: already pays a price for its pollution
Passage Reference: My plant already pays a carbon price on every tonne we make
Why this is correct: Pedersen runs a fertilizer plant. He says it already pays a carbon price on every tonne it makes.
Tips: Read Pedersen’s own words about his plant. Keep the option they state, and drop anything they do not say.
Why the other options are wrong:
- buys most of its supplies from abroad: Pedersen does not say where his plant buys its supplies.
- has just switched to new equipment: New equipment comes up in Okoye’s part, not Pedersen’s.
- sells most of what it makes overseas: Pedersen talks about farmers paying his price. He says nothing about selling overseas.
Correct Answer: want a fair contest rather than protection
Passage Reference: Our members are not asking for protection.
Why this is correct: Okoye represents steelworkers. She says her members are not asking for protection. They are asking for a fair race.
Tips: Read every line Okoye speaks. Test the options against her words and strike out the ones she never says.
Why the other options are wrong:
- want higher wages before any change: Okoye does not mention wages.
- fear losing their jobs to the charge: Okoye supports the charge. She says the risk of doing nothing is bigger.
- want the charge to start slowly: Petrakis wants a low starting rate. Okoye does not ask for this.
Correct Answer: aluminum
Passage Reference: starting with steel, aluminum and fertilizer
Why this is correct: The charge would start with steel, aluminum and fertilizer.
Tips: The commenter names two of the three goods. Find the third one in the article.
Why the other options are wrong:
- cement: Cement is not one of the three goods the article names.
- lumber: The article does not mention lumber at all.
- glass: Glass is never named as a good the charge would cover.
Correct Answer: rebates
Passage Reference: She wants rebates for any foreign producer that can prove its goods were made cleanly.
Why this is correct: Pennington wants rebates for any foreign producer that can prove its goods were made cleanly.
Tips: The commenter means the economist. Find what she offers to foreign producers who can prove they are clean.
Why the other options are wrong:
- lower rates: Petrakis wants a low rate for the charge itself. Pennington does not offer lower rates to foreign producers.
- faster approval: Faster approval is not mentioned in the article.
- tax credits: Pennington asks for rebates. Credit comes up only in Pedersen’s request for producers who already pay.
Correct Answer: car workers
Passage Reference: Farmers and car workers would pay it.
Why this is correct: Petrakis says farmers and car workers would pay the real cost of a badly designed charge.
Tips: The commenter means the trade lawyer. Find the two groups he says would pay if the design is poor.
Why the other options are wrong:
- steelworkers: Steelworkers are Okoye’s members. Petrakis names farmers and car workers.
- dock workers: Dock workers are not mentioned in the article.
- truck drivers: Truck drivers are not mentioned in the article.
Correct Answer: retraining workers
Passage Reference: She wants the money the charge raises to go toward retraining workers at plants that switch to new equipment.
Why this is correct: Okoye wants the money the charge raises to go toward retraining workers at plants that switch equipment.
Tips: The commenter means the union representative. Find how she wants the money from the charge to be spent.
Why the other options are wrong:
- higher pensions: Okoye does not ask for pensions.
- safer equipment: Okoye does not talk about safety equipment.
- shorter shifts: Okoye does not talk about shifts.
Correct Answer: January
Passage Reference: will send its advice to the finance minister by the end of January
Why this is correct: The committee will send its advice to the finance minister by the end of January.
Tips: The commenter needs a month. Find when the committee will give its advice.
Why the other options are wrong:
- November: November is not mentioned in the article.
- December: December is not mentioned in the article.
- March: March is not mentioned in the article.
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