Question

conrad is preparing a debate speech about how landfills are not sustainable, which he will use as his opening argument in an upcoming competition. what is the best introductory sentence for his argument?

climate change shows us that burning trash is not a long-term solution to our trash problem.
the institute of the earth reports that american are not aware of their local landfills.
you may not know that the average american produces seven pounds of trash per day.
these days, people throw far too much trash away instead of mindfully recycling.

Explanation:

Analyze the prompt and thesis

The speaker (Conrad) is preparing a debate speech arguing that "landfills are not sustainable." The introductory sentence must directly set up this specific argument.

Evaluate the options

• Option 1 focuses on "burning trash" and "climate change," which deviates from the specific topic of landfills.
• Option 2 focuses on "awareness of local landfills," which addresses public knowledge rather than the sustainability of landfills.
• Option 3 provides a shocking statistic about individual trash production ("seven pounds of trash per day"), which directly introduces the massive volume of waste that ends up in landfills, highlighting why they are unsustainable.
• Option 4 focuses on "recycling," which is a solution rather than an introduction to the problem of landfill sustainability.

Select the best introductory hook

Option 3 serves as the strongest hook because it uses a concrete, attention-grabbing statistic about waste production to directly introduce the unsustainable scale of trash heading to landfills.

Answer:

• (A) Climate change shows us that burning trash is not a long-term solution to our trash problem.
• (B) The Institute of the Earth reports that American are not aware of their local landfills.
• (C) You may not know that the average American produces seven pounds of trash per day. (Correct answer)
• (D) These days, people throw far too much trash away instead of mindfully recycling.