I think the answer is II and III but I'm not entirely sure.
The town council votes to construct an energy plant on the bank of a large river. It uses river water in its cooling tanks and releases the wastewater back into the river. How might this activity affect the local watershed?
I. The energy plant will likely flood the area during heavy rainfall.
II. The energy plant will likely pollute the water flowing in front of it on the riverbank
III. The energy plant will stop all water flowing through the watershed.
II only
I and III
II and III
I, II, and III
To determine the correct option that explains how this activity might affect the local watershed, we need to carefully consider each statement individually.
I. The statement "The energy plant will likely flood the area during heavy rainfall" suggests that the construction of the energy plant may contribute to increased flooding during periods of heavy rainfall. However, the statement does not directly address the impact on the local watershed caused by the plant's operation. Therefore, we can eliminate option I.
II. The statement "The energy plant will likely pollute the water flowing in front of it on the riverbank" suggests that the energy plant may introduce pollutants into the water that flows near its location on the riverbank. This pollution could have adverse effects on the local watershed. Therefore, option II is a possible answer.
III. The statement "The energy plant will stop all water flowing through the watershed" suggests that the energy plant would completely halt the movement of water in the entire watershed. However, this statement seems unlikely and overly exaggerated. It is more reasonable to assume that the plant would only affect the water in the immediate vicinity of the riverbank. Therefore, we can eliminate option III.
Combining the information from statements II and III, it can be concluded that the construction and operation of the energy plant may lead to the polluting of the water flowing in front of it on the riverbank (statement II) but it is unlikely to completely stop all water flowing through the watershed (statement III).
Hence, the correct answer is II only – the energy plant will likely pollute the water flowing in front of it on the riverbank.