LSAT Explanation PT 32, S4, Q7: Figorian Wildlife Commission: The development of

LSAT Question Stem

Which one of the following is an assumption on which the argument advanced by the Figorian Wildlife Commission depends? 

Logical Reasoning Question Type

This is a Necessary Assumption question. 

Correct Answer

The correct answer to this question is B. 

LSAT Question Complete Explanation

Let's first break down the argument from the Figorian Wildlife Commission (FWC) and identify its structure. The FWC's argument can be summarized as follows:

Premise 1: Development of wetlands in industrialized nations for residential and commercial uses has endangered many species.

Premise 2: To protect wildlife, we must regulate such development in Figoria.

Conclusion: Future wetland development must be offset by the construction of replacement wetland habitats, which would cause no net reduction of wetlands and pose no threat to the species that inhabit them.

Now, let's create an "Evaluate" question about the argument: "Will the species indigenous to natural wetland habitats survive in specially constructed replacement wetlands?"

The question type for this problem is Necessary Assumption, which asks us to identify an assumption that the FWC's argument depends on.

Let's go through each answer choice:

a) More species have been endangered by the development of wetlands than have been endangered by any other type of development.

- This answer choice is not necessary for the FWC's argument. The argument focuses on the threat to species from wetland development, not how it compares to other types of development.

b) The species indigenous to natural wetland habitats will survive in specially constructed replacement wetlands.

- This answer choice is the correct one. The FWC's argument assumes that the replacement wetlands will be just as suitable for the species as the original wetlands. If this assumption were false, the conclusion that there would be no threat to the species would be undermined.

c) In nations that are primarily agricultural, wetland development does not need to be regulated.

- This answer choice is not relevant to the FWC's argument, which focuses on Figoria, an industrialized nation.

d) Figorian regulation of development has in the past protected and preserved wildlife.

- While this statement may be true, it is not necessary for the FWC's argument. The argument is about a proposed new regulation and its possible consequences, not past regulations.

e) The species that inhabit Figorian wetlands are among the most severely threatened of the designated endangered species.

- This answer choice is not necessary for the FWC's argument. The argument is concerned with whether the proposed regulation will eliminate the existing threat altogether, regardless of how severe it is.

In conclusion, the correct answer is B, as it is the necessary assumption that the FWC's argument depends on for their conclusion to hold true.