Versus
Preservation
Letter to the Editor
NAME
SCI/275 Environmental Science
February 10, 2013
Instructor Name
Letter to the Editor
Dear Editor,
I am writing to you in regard to the Bridger -Teton National Forest. It is “the largest intact ecosystem in the lower 48 United States. Offering nearly 1.2 million acres of designated Wilderness, over 3,000 miles of road and trail and thousands of miles of unspoiled rivers and streams.” (USDA Forest Service) I am appealing to you as a conservationist. I believe that the natural resources of the forest can be of great help to us. As we experience this oil and gas crisis in the US, we are forced to import oil from foreign countries. Thus causing the cost of gas to skyrocket. If we are allowed to develop parts the forest for oil and gas, it will help to lower the cost of gas. “The oil and gas boom is also affecting the quality of life in small towns, causing spikes in the housing market.” (“Wyoming Outdoor Council” 2009-2013). These developments will help also to increase revenue for the US.
The forest will still hold value to all it’s wildlife and scenic vistas, because before any type of development for oil and gas will be done, there will be a risk assessment. A risk assessment is “the process of identifying, assessing, and reducing risks. This is done in four steps, as follows: The first is hazard identification. This process helps to identifying if exposure to substance can cause health problems. The next step would be dose-response assessment, this process helps to determine how much exposure will cause just how much health effects and to what extreme. The third step is exposure assessment. This step helps to determine, “how much, how long, and how often are individuals exposed to the substance.” (“John Wilye & Sons Inc.” 2000-2013). The final step is risk characterization. In this process “information about dose-response and exposures are combined to provide a detailed
References: John Wilye & Sons, Inc.. (2000-2013). Visualizing Environmental Science, 3e. Retrieved from http://edugen.wiley.com/edugen/student/main.uni USDA Forest Service (Copyright n.d) http://www.fs.usda.gov/main/btnf/about-forest Wyoming Outdoor Council (Copyright 2009-2013) http://www.wyomingoutdoorcouncil.org/html/what_we_do/public_lands/bridger_teton.shtml