Read the following article from a website.
Large factories in Canada pay a carbon price only on the emissions above a benchmark for their industry, and plants that beat the benchmark earn credits they can sell. Ottawa is now deciding how quickly those benchmarks should tighten after 2030. The question matters in Hamilton, where about nine thousand people work in steel, and a public hearing on the federal review filled a room at the city’s convention centre on Monday. Federal officials expect to release a draft schedule early in the new year.
Callista Strome, a climate policy analyst, wants the benchmarks to tighten by a fixed amount every year. “Relief that never shrinks stops being relief and becomes a subsidy,” she said. “Companies plan their investments years ahead. If they know exactly how fast the rules will change, they will buy electric furnaces sooner.” Strome says facility reports already show which plants lead their sector and which lag behind.
Oswin Tennant, an executive at a Hamilton steel company, warns that a steep schedule could push production overseas. “Nobody here is against cleaner steel,” he said. “But if our costs rise faster than our competitors’ costs abroad, customers will simply buy their steel somewhere else. The same steel would be made with more pollution, and Hamilton would lose the jobs.” Tennant wants the pace tied to how long customers take to sign new supply contracts, usually three to five years.
Zinaida Szeto, an economist who studies inflation, sees a separate risk. “If relief is cut suddenly, prices for building materials could climb before households see any rebate,” she explained. “That kind of shock can turn voters against climate policy for a decade.” Szeto would rather see the benchmarks tighten slowly at first and faster later. Bartek Sobczak, a union representative for steelworkers, accepts a declining benchmark on one condition. “Put the money from carbon charges into retraining and new equipment here, and my members will back it,” Sobczak said. “Send it to Ottawa’s general budget, and they will not,” he added.
Using the drop-down menu (▾), choose the best option according to the information given on the website.
Oswin Tennant warns that a steep schedule would lead to 2..
Paragraph four mainly presents 3..
The readers this article is most likely written for are 4..
Most likely, Bartek Sobczak feels that 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: how fast carbon rules for heavy industry should tighten
Why this is correct: Ottawa is deciding how quickly the benchmarks for large factories should tighten. Every speaker gives a view on the pace.
Passage Reference: Ottawa is now deciding how quickly those benchmarks should tighten after 2030.
Tips: Ask what all four speakers are giving their opinion on, and check your choice against each of them in turn.
Why the other options are wrong:
- a plan to close a steel plant in Hamilton: No plant is closing. Tennant only warns that jobs could be lost.
- a new rebate for households on energy bills: Rebates appear only in Szeto’s warning. No new rebate is proposed.
- a dispute over a convention centre’s cost: The convention centre is only where the hearing took place.
Correct Answer: local mills losing work to dirtier plants overseas
Passage Reference: But if our costs rise faster than our competitors’ costs abroad, customers will simply buy their steel somewhere else. The same steel would be made with more pollution, and Hamilton would lose the jobs.
Why this is correct: Tennant warns that customers would buy their steel from abroad. He says the same steel would be made with more pollution, and Hamilton would lose the jobs.
Tips: Stay with Tennant’s quotes. Choose the result he describes himself, and set aside results that other people in the article describe.
Why the other options are wrong:
- local plants buying electric furnaces sooner: Strome expects firms to buy electric furnaces sooner. Tennant does not predict this.
- voters turning against climate policy: Szeto warns that voters could turn against climate policy. Tennant does not say this.
- clean plants selling more of their credits: The reporter explains that clean plants earn credits. Nobody predicts more credit sales.
Correct Answer: an economist’s price warning and a union’s condition
Passage Reference: Zinaida Szeto, an economist who studies inflation, sees a separate risk. ... Bartek Sobczak, a union representative for steelworkers, accepts a declining benchmark on one condition.
Why this is correct: “Paragraph four” quotes Szeto, who warns that prices could climb if relief is cut suddenly. It then gives Sobczak’s one condition for backing the change.
Tips: Look again at the lines in “Paragraph four”. Decide what they add to the article, then match that to one option.
Why the other options are wrong:
- a steel executive’s call to tie the pace to contracts: Tennant wants the pace tied to supply contracts. He is quoted before “Paragraph four”.
- an analyst’s case for a fixed yearly cut: Strome wants a fixed yearly tightening. Her words come before “Paragraph four”.
- the cost of running the public hearing: Nobody gives a cost for the hearing. We learn only where it was held.
Correct Answer: people who live in the city and nearby
Passage Reference: The question matters in Hamilton
Why this is correct: The reporter says the question matters in Hamilton and reports a hearing held in the city. Local people would want to read it.
Tips: Ask who would care most about the news in this report. Check each choice against what the whole text covers.
Why the other options are wrong:
- engineers who design electric furnaces: Strome mentions electric furnaces, but the article does not explain how to build them.
- tourists planning a trip to Ontario: This report is about carbon rules, not places to visit.
- students getting ready for a chemistry test: It reports a policy debate and does not teach any science.
Correct Answer: the carbon charges should help local workers
Passage Reference: Put the money from carbon charges into retraining and new equipment here, and my members will back it
Why this is correct: Sobczak wants carbon money spent on retraining and new equipment in Hamilton. So he most likely feels the charges should help local workers.
Tips: Use the reporter’s sentence about Sobczak and his quotes. Choose what those lines suggest about him, and leave out views that belong to others.
Why the other options are wrong:
- the benchmarks should stay the same forever: Sobczak accepts a declining benchmark, so he does not want the rules frozen.
- the change should start slowly and speed up later: Szeto wants a slow start and a faster pace later. Sobczak sets a different condition.
- the money should go into Ottawa’s budget: Sobczak says his members will not back the plan if the money goes to Ottawa’s general budget.
Correct Answer: Monday
Passage Reference: a public hearing on the federal review filled a room at the city’s convention centre on Monday
Why this is correct: The public hearing on the federal review was held at the convention centre on Monday.
Tips: You need a day of the week. Find when the public hearing took place.
Why the other options are wrong:
- Wednesday: Wednesday is not mentioned in the article.
- Friday: Friday is not mentioned in the article.
- Saturday: Saturday is not mentioned in the article.
Correct Answer: nine thousand
Passage Reference: about nine thousand people work in steel
Why this is correct: About nine thousand people in Hamilton work in steel.
Tips: Here you need a number of workers. Find what the article says about jobs in the city.
Why the other options are wrong:
- four thousand: Four thousand is not in the article. The number is bigger.
- six thousand: Six thousand is not in the article.
- twelve thousand: Twelve thousand is not in the article. The number is smaller.
Correct Answer: three to five years
Passage Reference: usually three to five years
Why this is correct: Tennant says customers usually take three to five years to sign new supply contracts.
Tips: The commenter means the steel executive. Find the period he wants the pace tied to.
Why the other options are wrong:
- six months: Six months is not in the article.
- one to two years: This is shorter than the period Tennant gives.
- ten years: Ten years is not in the article. Tennant gives a shorter period.
Correct Answer: building materials
Passage Reference: prices for building materials could climb before households see any rebate
Why this is correct: Szeto says prices for building materials could climb before households see any rebate.
Tips: The commenter is quoting the economist who studies prices. Find her sentence about a sudden cut, and take the exact phrase she uses for what would get more expensive.
Why the other options are wrong:
- home heating: Szeto does not mention heating.
- new cars: Cars are not mentioned in the article.
- household goods: Szeto names one kind of goods, and it is not general household goods.
Correct Answer: early in the new year
Passage Reference: Federal officials expect to release a draft schedule early in the new year.
Why this is correct: The article says federal officials expect to release a draft schedule early in the new year.
Tips: You need a time. Find what the article says about the federal officials’ next step.
Why the other options are wrong:
- just before Christmas: The article gives a later time than this.
- late next summer: Summer is not mentioned in the article.
- sometime in the fall: The fall is not mentioned in the article.
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