Correct Answer: whether old mill dams should be removed to help fish
Passage Reference: The province has offered money to take some of them out so that fish can move upstream again
Why this is correct: The editorial explains that the province has offered money to remove some old mill dams so fish can move upstream. Every person in it gives a view on which dams should go.
Tips: The editors share some numbers of their own. Ask which issue those numbers set the stage for, then find the choice that names it.
Why the other options are wrong:
- how to build a new hydro plant for farms: Stroud already runs a small hydro plant, and no one proposes building a new one.
- why school tours of old mills are growing: Carrier mentions school tours as a reason to keep the dams, but no one says the tours are growing.
- whether trout fishing should be banned for a season: Trout come up only as fish that need cold water. No one suggests banning fishing.
Correct Answer: Anselm Carrier
Passage Reference: He would rather build a rock-lined channel around each dam so fish can pass while the old stone wall stays
Why this is correct: Anselm Carrier would rather build a rock-lined channel around each dam so fish can pass while the old stone wall stays. He wants to help fish and keep the dam.
Tips: Look for someone who suggests building something new beside a dam instead of taking it away. That person fits the question.
Why the other options are wrong:
- Demetra Salcedo: Demetra Salcedo argues for removing dams that fail inspection, so she does not want to keep them standing.
- Jiwoo Stroud: Jiwoo Stroud wants a scorecard so the worst barriers are removed first. She does not propose keeping the old walls.
- Lorcan Estrada: Lorcan Estrada agrees that dams failing inspection should go. The channel around the dam is Carrier’s idea.
Correct Answer: records of warmer water in pools above the dams
Passage Reference: temperature records show much warmer water in the pools above the weirs
Why this is correct: Salcedo wants failing dams removed because they harm fish. Records of warmer water in the pools above the dams support her position, because warm water is bad for trout.
Tips: Find Salcedo’s lines and put her main reason in plain words. Then pick the proof that fits that reason and no one else’s.
Why the other options are wrong:
- counts of school tours at the old mills: School tours are part of Carrier’s case for keeping the dams, not Salcedo’s case for removal.
- bills showing electricity prices climbing in July: Rising electricity prices relate to Stroud’s point that some dams still earn their keep, which argues for keeping a few of them.
- a survey of visitors who love the stone walls: Visitors who love the walls would support Carrier’s wish to keep them, not Salcedo’s argument.
Correct Answer: the most harmful barriers would be removed first
Passage Reference: so that the worst barriers go first and not simply the easiest ones
Why this is correct: Stroud wants a scorecard that ranks every dam by power and harm to fish. That way, the worst barriers go first and not simply the easiest ones.
Tips: Find Stroud’s lines about her ranking and read what it is for. Say that in plain words, then look at each choice.
Why the other options are wrong:
- the easiest dams would be taken out first: Stroud’s scorecard is meant to stop exactly this. She wants the worst barriers first, not the easiest ones.
- every turbine would be shut down this year: Stroud accepts retiring only the turbines that no longer pay their way, not every turbine.
- the stone walls would be rebuilt as museums: Museums are never mentioned. The scorecard ranks dams by power and harm to fish.
Correct Answer: back a ranked plan for deciding which dams go
Passage Reference: Stroud’s scorecard should come first, because it replaces argument with a ranked list ... Dams that fail inspection and rank high for harm should be removed
Why this is correct: The editorial wants Stroud’s scorecard first and then the removal of dams that fail inspection and rank high for harm. Its purpose is to back a ranked plan for deciding which dams go.
Tips: The editors name something they want made public soon. Ask which aim the whole editorial serves by asking for that.
Why the other options are wrong:
- defend every dam as a heritage site: The writers treat only some treasured dams as heritage worth keeping, so they do not defend every one as a heritage site.
- report on a fish study from the province: The province offers money, but the editorial does not report on a provincial fish study.
- demand that all fourteen dams come down: In the last paragraph, sound dams that towns treasure are kept with Carrier’s channel. So the writers do not want all fourteen removed.
Correct Answer: paying for a mud plan before any cutting
Passage Reference: Salcedo also insists that a plan for the mud trapped behind each dam be paid for before any cutting starts
Why this is correct: Salcedo insists that a plan for the mud trapped behind each dam be paid for before any cutting starts.
Tips: Salcedo makes more than one point. Find the one she presses as a demand, and compare it with each choice.
Why the other options are wrong:
- hiring divers to count trout each spring: Salcedo uses temperature records, and she never asks for divers to count trout.
- blasting the dams during the winter: Salcedo wants a mud plan paid for before any cutting, and she never mentions blasting in winter.
- closing the river to anglers for a year: No one suggests closing the river to anglers. Salcedo’s demand is a paid plan for the mud.
Correct Answer: power nearby farms in the summer
Passage Reference: a few of these dams still power small grids for nearby farms when summer electricity prices peak
Why this is correct: Stroud points out that a few of the dams still power small grids for nearby farms when summer electricity prices peak.
Tips: Check each speaker’s lines for a use of the dams in the present day. Compare what you find with each choice.
Why the other options are wrong:
- hold water for the town’s taps: Drinking water is never mentioned. Stroud says some dams still power farm grids.
- carry a road across the river: No dam in the editorial carries a road. The point is that some still make power for farms.
- hold back water for fire trucks: Fire trucks are never mentioned. Stroud talks about power for nearby farms.
Correct Answer: insurance costs are outpacing tourist money
Passage Reference: insurance on failing dams now climbs faster than the tourist money they bring in
Why this is correct: Estrada, the county engineer, notes that insurance on failing dams now climbs faster than the tourist money they bring in.
Tips: The comment names the county engineer, so go to his lines. Look for the fact he gives about the figures, not his request.
Why the other options are wrong:
- tourists rarely visit the old mills: Estrada does not say tourists stay away. He says the money they bring in grows more slowly than insurance.
- fish ladders are cheap to repair: Salcedo says fish ladders have not worked for years, and Estrada says nothing about repairing them cheaply.
- the dams could last another century: Estrada talks about failing dams, so he does not claim they could last another century.
Correct Answer: trail detours and water testing
Passage Reference: provided the county budgets for trail detours and water testing while each reservoir drains
Why this is correct: Estrada backs removal where a dam fails inspection, provided the county budgets for trail detours and water testing while each reservoir drains.
Tips: Estrada is the county engineer. He backs the work on one term, so find what he wants the county’s budget to cover.
Why the other options are wrong:
- a new bridge at each dam: Estrada does not ask for bridges. He asks for trail detours and water testing.
- free fishing licences for residents: Fishing licences are never mentioned. Estrada wants a budget for detours and water testing.
- a museum in each old mill: Museums are never mentioned. Estrada’s request is about detours and water testing during draining.
Correct Answer: has offered money for removals
Passage Reference: The province has offered money to take some of them out
Why this is correct: In the first paragraph, you can read that the province has offered money to take some of the dams out. That would let fish move upstream again.
Tips: The blank is about the province. Find where the editorial mentions it and read that part closely.
Why the other options are wrong:
- has banned new dams on every river: The writers never say the province has banned new dams. It has offered money for removals.
- owns every dam in the county: Nothing in the passage says who owns the dams. It says the province has offered money.
- plans to sell the old mills: No sale of mills is mentioned. The province’s offer is money to take dams out.
