PrepTest 154, Section 3, Question 22
In the absence of international statutes prohibiting nations(426 more words not shown)
Which one of the following(10 more words not shown)
- ABecause of their(19 more words not shown)
- BThe precautionary principle(13 more words not shown)
- CNations are rarely(21 more words not shown)
- DMost violations of(12 more words not shown)
- EEstablished norms of(12 more words not shown)
Reading the passage
For this open support question, keep the central gap in view. Nations repeatedly affirm environmental principles, but harmful pollution keeps crossing borders and attempts to remedy it are rare. The author uses that mismatch to challenge the principles' status as customary law. Check what each answer adds to those claims.
Working the answers
- A
The author doesn't assess whether international courts make fair or balanced decisions. Looking to customary law for guidance doesn't establish that the courts are well prepared to decide these cases.
- B
The precautionary principle concerns avoiding significant environmental risks to other nations. Nothing excludes a government's dealings with private industry from that responsibility. Silence about industry doesn't establish that it is outside the principle's concern.
- CCorrect
Harmful pollution continually crosses borders, while nations only rarely attempt to remedy the situation. That supports the claim that countries are rarely held legally accountable for violating these professed principles. The description is of frequent breaches with little response, not routine legal accountability.
- D
The author identifies a mismatch between professions and conduct, not disagreements about the meaning of customary law as the cause of most violations. We aren't given that causal explanation or that proportion.
- E
Ongoing cross-border pollution is evidence that nations aren't following their professed principles. It isn't evidence that principles addressing airborne pollutants have become outdated. The author questions whether they are genuine customs, not whether the environmental concern has expired.
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