Correct Answer: how cities should limit night noise at ports without hurting trade
Passage Reference: Several of these cities are now considering limits on the loudest cargo work after dark. We support that goal
Why this is correct: The editorial supports limits on the loudest cargo work after dark. But it warns that a hasty curfew could harm trade. So it is about limiting noise without hurting trade.
Tips: Read the first paragraph for the idea being considered and the writers’ view of it. Then check that every later paragraph comes back to that idea.
Why the other options are wrong:
- why condo towers should no longer be built beside working piers: The writers say the people in the new towers deserve protection. They never argue that towers should stop being built beside piers.
- whether ports should stop handling perishable cargo at night: Perishable cargo appears only as an exception in Gill’s plan. The editorial does not ask ports to stop handling it at night.
- how shipping companies plan to add daytime berth space: Kozlov says there is little room to move work into daylight. No shipping company plan to add daytime berth space is described.
Correct Answer: A study linking overnight port noise to weaker attention in class
Passage Reference: surveys near harbours link late-night noise to poorer attention in school and more clinic visits for sleep problems
Why this is correct: Gill’s case is about health. She cites surveys that link late-night noise to poorer attention in school, so a study showing this would strengthen it.
Tips: First find the reason behind Gill’s case. Then pick the finding that would make that reason stronger.
Why the other options are wrong:
- A report showing grocery deliveries slowing after berth closures: A report on grocery deliveries slowing after berth closures would support Kozlov’s warning about a curfew, not Gill’s health case.
- A survey of shippers’ on-time records during winter storms: A survey of shippers’ on-time records in winter storms relates to Harrington’s and Haidari’s points about planning and audits, not to health.
- A test showing rubber-lined rails cost less than new cranes: A test comparing the cost of rubber-lined rails and cranes relates to Kozlov’s offer of quieter equipment. It has nothing to do with Gill’s evidence on sleep.
Correct Answer: Marco Kozlov
Passage Reference: “Close the loud berths overnight without adding daytime space, and you will see it on grocery shelves within a week,” he said
Why this is correct: Kozlov warns that closing the loud berths overnight would show up on grocery shelves within a week.
Tips: Read each speaker’s lines and ask what harm each one describes. Then match that harm to the words in the question.
Why the other options are wrong:
- Nora Gill: Nora Gill wants night limits for health reasons. She does not warn about food supply in stores.
- Oksana Harrington: Oksana Harrington is concerned with the order of decisions and seasonal waivers, not with grocery shelves.
- Yusuf Haidari: Yusuf Haidari asks for independent audits that both sides can trust. Haidari does not mention food in stores.
Correct Answer: ports would publish a trade-impact model before any permanent limit
Passage Reference: She wants ports to publish a model of the trade impact, along with clear rules for seasonal waivers, before any permanent limit takes effect
Why this is correct: Harrington wants ports to publish a trade-impact model and waiver rules before any permanent limit takes effect.
Tips: Read Harrington’s condition to the end and restate it simply. Then match it to a choice.
Why the other options are wrong:
- councils would fine terminals for each night of excess noise: Nobody in the editorial proposes fines for noisy nights. Harrington’s condition is a published model, not a penalty on terminals.
- shipping lines would pay residents for lost sleep: Nobody in the editorial proposes payments to residents. Harrington’s condition is a published trade-impact model.
- residents would approve each permanent limit in a city vote: Harrington asks ports to publish a model before any permanent limit. She never asks residents to approve limits in a city vote.
Correct Answer: supportive of limits yet cautious about rushing them
Passage Reference: We support that goal. Sleep is not a luxury
Why this is correct: In the first paragraph, the writers say they support limits on night noise. But they warn that a curfew written in haste could do more harm than good.
Tips: Tone comes from how the writers state their own view. Read the last three sentences of the first paragraph closely.
Why the other options are wrong:
- openly hostile to the shipping industry: The writers are not hostile to the shipping industry. They say the industry’s warning deserves attention and praise Kozlov’s offer.
- neutral, with no view of its own: The tone is not neutral. The writers state their own view and tell councils what to do first.
- resigned to the noise as the price of trade: The writers are not resigned to the noise. They say residents deserve protection and a plan that works.
Correct Answer: limits should be set separately for each pier
Passage Reference: She argues for decibel limits set pier by pier, with exceptions only for perishable cargo that cannot wait until morning
Why this is correct: Gill argues for decibel limits set pier by pier. That means each pier gets its own limit rather than one rule for everyone.
Tips: The comment names Gill, so go to her lines. Look at what she argues for after her survey evidence.
Why the other options are wrong:
- perishable cargo should face the strictest night limits: Gill makes perishable cargo an exception, so she would not give perishable cargo the strictest night limits.
- one decibel limit should cover the whole city: Gill wants limits set pier by pier, so she does not want one decibel limit to cover the whole city.
- noise complaints come mostly from the newest towers: Gill never says that noise complaints come mostly from the newest towers. Her evidence comes from surveys near harbours.
Correct Answer: how tides and rail schedules limit daytime work
Passage Reference: says tides and rail schedules already leave little room to move work into daylight
Why this is correct: Kozlov says tides and rail schedules leave little room to move work into daylight. So he points to how these limit daytime work.
Tips: The comment calls him the terminal manager, so find Kozlov’s lines. Match his main point to a choice in other words.
Why the other options are wrong:
- how union rules protect overtime pay: Kozlov never mentions union rules or overtime. He points to tides and rail schedules that leave little room for daytime work.
- how residents exaggerate the noise from cranes: No one in the editorial says residents exaggerate the noise from cranes. Kozlov does not say it either.
- how new towers were built too close to the piers: The new towers beside the old piers are mentioned by the editorial itself. Kozlov never complains about where towers were built.
Correct Answer: how harvest peaks and storms already force night work
Passage Reference: Harvest peaks and winter storms, she notes, already force night work that no one plans for
Why this is correct: Harrington notes that harvest peaks and winter storms already force night work that no one plans for.
Tips: The comment names Harrington, so go to her lines. Her last sentence holds this point, so match it in other words.
Why the other options are wrong:
- how a citywide limit would be simplest to enforce: Harrington never argues for one citywide limit. She wants a trade model and waiver rules before any permanent limit.
- how ferry traffic crowds the harbour: Harrington never mentions ferries. She notes that harvest peaks and winter storms already force night work.
- how residents have waited years for the ports to act: Residents waiting years for sleep is the editorial’s own point in its last paragraph, not a reminder from Harrington.
Correct Answer: outside auditors check both noise and on-time data
Passage Reference: unless independent auditors check both the noise readings and the ships’ on-time records
Why this is correct: Haidari writes that neither side will trust the result unless independent auditors check both the noise readings and the on-time records.
Tips: The comment names Haidari, so read Haidari’s one sentence. Notice the word “unless” and what follows it.
Why the other options are wrong:
- residents vote on each new decibel limit: Haidari wants independent audits, not a vote by residents on each new decibel limit.
- ports publish their own noise readings each month: Ports publishing their own noise readings each month is not independent checking, which is what Haidari asks for.
- shippers pay a fee for every resident complaint: A fee paid by shippers for every resident complaint is never mentioned in the editorial.
Correct Answer: the quieter equipment already on offer
Passage Reference: The first step should be the quieter equipment Kozlov has offered
Why this is correct: Look at the last paragraph. The first step should be the quieter equipment Kozlov has offered, and only then the model and the limits.
Tips: The last paragraph lists steps in order. Find the one called the first step.
Why the other options are wrong:
- a trial curfew at the loudest berths: The writers warn that a curfew written in haste could do more harm than good. Their first step is equipment, not a trial curfew at the loudest berths.
- a city fund to soundproof nearby homes: A city fund to soundproof nearby homes is never proposed. The first step is the quieter equipment already offered.
- a new daytime berth paid for by the province: A new daytime berth paid for by the province is never proposed. Kozlov only says there is little daytime room now.
