October 2010 LSAT - Section 5 - Question 17

Near many cities, contamination of lakes and rivers from pollutants in rainwater runoff exceeds that from industrial ...

#JW October 5, 2019

B v D

How do you determine that B is in correct? How is this not a piece of evidence (B) and it is a premise (D)? I understand that these are synonyms but where is the difference?

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#JW October 5, 2019

Additionally, is it relevant at all that the conclusion does not say rainwater and simply says water?

BenMingov October 7, 2019

Hi Jwebb, thanks for the question!

B is saying that the statement is evidence that rainwater runoff is a more serious issue than pollution from industrial discharge.

There are two issues with this statement. Firstly, the stimulus only speaks about water pollution, and B make a blanket statement about rainwater runoff being a more serious issue in general. Secondly, we do not know that just because it contributes to more water pollution that it is a more serious problem. Perhaps a given amount of chemical waste from industrial discharge is more harmful than even 10x the amount of rainwater runoff.

D is accurate. It says that it is a premise for the conclusion. Which it is.

As for the issue of the conclusion saying water rather than rainwater, I see how this can often be an issue when they switch terms. But in this case, rainwater is water nonetheless.

Hope this helps!