Parks Department director: If tourists continue to hike in Gualala Point Regional Park at the current rate, the fragile wetlands ecosystem in the park may be irreparably damaged. The Parks Department has a mandate to protect the ecosystems under its control from irreversible harm. Therefore, we have put forth a proposal to institute a new fee policy under which visitors to Gualala Point Regional Park will be charged a graduated fee based on the number of hours they spend in the park. This fee will induce visitors to spend less time in the park, thereby reducing the danger of irreparable damage to the wetlands ecosystem.

The director’s argument is most vulnerable to criticism on which of the following grounds?


A. It overlooks the possibility that only those visitors to Gualala Point Regional Park who do not hike there will find the fees generated by the new policy prohibitively expensive.

B. It fails to consider that the new fee policy will be unfair to lower-income and fixed-income Gualala Point Regional Park visitors.

C. It takes for granted that there is no way other than the new fee policy to reduce the danger of irreparable damage to the wetlands ecosystem in the park.

D. It fails to take into account that local residents who frequently visit Gualala Point Regional Park may be more adversely impacted by the new fee policy than tourists.

E. It overlooks the possibility that tourists who do not wish to pay the new fees may visit other parks under the Parks Department’s control instead.


OA A

Source: Princeton Review