Dear The Birmingham News Editors,
I am writing you today to inform you of how we must conserve the natural resources located in the Bridger Teton National Forest. If you are not aware of what the Bridger Teton National Forest is, it is a “3.4 million acre stretch of public land located in western Wyoming.” (University of Phoenix, 2007) For the most part, “It has remained virtually untouched by the population and is the largest piece of public land in the lower 48 states.” (University of Phoenix, 2007) The area has been designated as a national forest and which “potentially allows for a variety of different activities to occur within its borders, including recreation, fishing, hunting, mining, and logging.” (University of Phoenix, 2007)
I personally believe that there are natural resources within the forest’s borders which can be used to benefit our country’s economy. Resources that are present include oil that when properly drilled will not destroy the local environment and will lower our dependency on foreign oil. In addition, tapping this oil deposit will help to lower our oil costs at home, create jobs, benefit the local and national economies, and help to bring attention to the beauty provided by the forest.
In the end, our dependency on foreign oil will be reduced, thousands of potential jobs will be created, tourism will be increased, and both the local and national economies will see great benefits. I also want to remind you that in addition to these benefits, there will be the added bonus of attention to and funding for conservation programs focused on the Bridger Teton National Forest. The oil companies will have to give us a written guarantee that the land where drilling will take place will hardly see the effects of a carbon imprint. These companies will replant trees when they are done and help to see that the forests natural beauty is conserved during and long after the drilling processes.
Please consider publishing an article informing your readers of the benefits we would see from harvesting the natural resources within the Bridger Teton National Forest while conserving its natural beauty.
Sincerely,
Michael Holifield

Dear The Birmingham News editors,
I am writing you today to inform you of how we must fight to preserve the wildlife, natural resources, and beauty located within the boundaries of the Bridger Teton National Forest. If you are not aware of what the Bridger Teton National Forest is, it is a “3.4 million acre stretch of public land located in western Wyoming.” (University of Phoenix, 2007) For the most part, “It has remained virtually untouched by human presence and is the largest piece of public land in the lower 48 states.” (University of Phoenix, 2007) The area has been designated as a national forest and which “potentially allows for a variety of different activities to occur within its borders, including recreation, fishing, hunting, mining, and logging.” (University of Phoenix, 2007)
If we follow the “Four Steps for Risk Assessment” listed in the text book Visualizing Environmental Science (Berg, Hager, & Hassenzahl, 2011) we can easily see how drilling oil and harvesting the forest’s natural resources will damage the local environment.
The first step is “Hazard Identification” and it is easy to see the many hazards that come with drilling oil in a forest. The easiest hazard to identify is the heavy-duty machinery and vehicles which are necessary for drilling oil. Thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of trees will be trampled and cut down to make room for the machinery and drilling equipment. There are countless species of wildlife which all depend on these trees for survival. In addition, countless species of plants will be destroyed and trampled into the soil. If that isn’t bad enough, the local environment will suffocate under the thick cloud of pollution that these machines generate.
The second step is “Dose-response Assessment” which we have already begun. The