Passage Summary: Even though salt-water crops don't grow as well and need more water, the massive savings from using cheap seawater instead of expensive well water should make the project profitable.

Conclusion: Seawater-based agriculture for animal feed is likely to be cost-effective in desert regions near sea level.

Reasoning: Although salt-tolerant plants require more water and produce lower yields, the cost of pumping seawater is significantly lower than the cost of extracting freshwater from deep wells.

Analysis: The argument relies on a cost-benefit trade-off: the savings in pumping costs must be greater than the losses incurred from lower yields and higher water volume requirements. To strengthen this, look for an answer that reinforces the 'savings' side of the equation or minimizes the 'cost' side. For example, if the cost of pumping freshwater is the primary expense in desert farming, the argument's conclusion becomes much more plausible.