Question

use the passage to anwer the question; a student is developing a counterclaim to this argument. Which counterclaim is the most fair and effective? A) solar, wind, and geothermal sources of encergy are far better then biomass because they produce more renewable energy with less effort and expense B) healthy ecosystems are forever destroyed when forests are cut down, which must be done in order to produce biomass from wood. C) biomass is nothing new, in fact, before oil and gas became major energy sources, a large amount of the fuel used in the united states came fro burning wood. D) most biomass is produced by burning wood, and since wood is a less energy- dense fuel, it creates more carbon emissions than coal does when producing electricity

Answer 1

The most fair and effective counterclaim to the argument in the passage is B) healthy ecosystems are forever destroyed when forests are cut down, which must be done in order to produce biomass from wood.

This counterclaim effectively challenges the argument about biomass by highlighting the environmental impact of sourcing biomass from forests, which poses a significant concern in the overall sustainability of biomass as an energy source. It addresses a critical aspect of the argument—ecological balance—providing a strong environmental rationale against biomass use.