Cause and Effect:\nI) The trout fish is becoming endangered due to excessive fishing and loss of suitable habitat.\nII) Environmental activism is witnessing a steady rise.

Introduction / Context:
We evaluate whether conservation concerns (trout becoming endangered) could reasonably spur increased environmental activism, or vice versa. The test favors the minimal, text-aligned causal flow that explains both observations without speculation.

Given Data / Assumptions:

• I asserts a concrete ecological degradation (overfishing, habitat loss) endangering trout.
• II reports a rise in environmental activism.
• No other drivers of activism are cited.

Concept / Approach:
Publicized ecological harms commonly trigger activism (awareness campaigns, petitions, NGO mobilization). Thus it is reasonable that I (threat status of trout) functions as a cause contributing to II (more activism). The reverse (activism causing endangerment) is not sensible.

Step-by-Step Solution:
1) I → II: The deteriorating status of trout provides a motivating reason for activists to intensify efforts → plausible and text-congruent.2) II → I: Activism does not cause endangerment; if anything, it would mitigate it → implausible.3) Independent or independent effects: Possible in real life, but the simplest and most coherent reading is that I helps produce II.

Verification / Alternative check:
In typical reasoning questions, visible environmental damage often precedes and fuels activism, matching the expected causal direction.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:
They either invert causality or ignore the natural stimulus-response relationship between ecological decline and civic action.

Common Pitfalls:
Assuming causality must be exclusive; even if activism has many triggers, I is sufficient as one cause for the observed rise.

Final Answer:
If statement I is the cause and statement II is its effect