President lyndon johnson signs the wilderness act, designating the first 9 million acres of statutory wilderness. Digest of federal resource laws of interest to the u. Minimum criteria for wilderness united states fish and. It created the legal definition of wilderness in the united states, and protected 9. The act established a national wilderness preservation system nwps initially encompassing 54 wilderness areas cov. Wilderness act 1964 the wilderness act of 1964 established the national wilderness preservation system, an area of land that now encompasses over 95 million acres 38.
The culmination of his wilderness writing and political lobbying was the wilderness act of 1964. This includes provisions in the act that may seem to conflict with the prohibitions in section 4c. Gila wilderness became the first area recognized as wilderness in 1924, when usfs preserved the land through an administrative process following insistence by aldo leopold. Articles federal wild lands policy in the twentyfirst. Today, there are over 109 million acres of wilderness, an. Choose from 1 different sets of wilderness act of 1964 flashcards on quizlet.
After much debate and compromiseafter 66 drafts, 18 public hearings8 years, congress in 1964 passed the wilderness act and established the national wilderness preservation system. The wilderness act of 1964 after much debate and compromiseafter 66 drafts, 18 public hearings8 years, congress in 1964 passed the wilderness act and established the national wilderness preservation system in 1964, 9. The 1964 wilderness act, written by the wilderness societys howard zahniser created the national wilderness preservation system, which protects 111 million acres of wilderness areas from coast to coast. But controversy over increased logging and road building in unprotected roadless areas during the 1950s led to calls for permanent legislative designation of wilderness. The act defined wilderness as an area where the earth and its community of life are untrammeled by man, where man himself is a. Wilderness act of 1964 statement of policy it is hereby declared to be the policy of the congress to secure for the american people of present and future generations the benefits of an enduring resource of wilderness. People protecting wilderness for people celebrating 40 years of the wilderness act.
Learn wilderness act of 1964 with free interactive flashcards. The wilderness act of 1964 calls for the preservation of certain areas in their. The 1964 wilderness act contains a whole subsection, section 4d, addressing allowable activities that might seem contrary to the spirit and definition of wilderness outlined in section 2 and the prohibitions listed in section 4c. The secretary of agriculture shall within one year after september 3, 1964, file a map and legal description of each wilderness. The 1964 wilderness act defines wilderness as areas where the earth and its communities of life are left unchanged by people, where the primary forces of nature are in control, and where people themselves are visitors who do not remain. If this decision doesnt change, the forest service would fail to protect and preserve glacier peaks wilderness conditions consistent with the 1964 wilderness act. Designates 31 areas in colorado as wilderness and two areas as potential wilderness, totaling more than 740,000 acres. The signing of the wilderness act1 into law on september 3, 1964, marked the beginning of a new era for wilderness conserva tionists. As americas most visited wilderness area, the bwcaw includes more than 1,200 miles of canoe routes. Zahniser worked for the bureau of biological survey a precursor to the fish and wildlife service and the department of the interior, wrote for nature magazine, and eventually managed the wilderness society and edited its magazine, living wilderness.
Wilderness areas act 1975 and the alaska national interest lands conservation. Mechanical transport, a clause in the 1964 wildereness. Pdf the formulation and enactment of the wilderness act of 1964 is consistent with elite economic theory. Pdf the wilderness act of 1964 and the wilderness preservation. Boundary waters canoe area wilderness bwcaw designated by. Wilderness fellow a c o mmu n it y o f p r a c t ic e. Nathan stephenson and constance millar recently pointed to the wildness. The criteria are size, natural condition, and opportunities for solitude or primitive recreation. Because of this, these activities are sometimes referred to as nonconforming uses.
Durrant, jeffrey, struggle over utahs san rafael swell. Originally designated in the wilderness act of 1964, the boundary waters canoe area wilderness bwcaw is a 1,090,000acre federal wilderness area located within the superior national forest superior n. Wilderness act of 1964 flashcards and study sets quizlet. United sfates department of the interior office of thesolicitor washington, d. Boilerplate language in subsequent wilderness laws applies this provision by extension to all areas in the national wilderness preservation system. Boundary waters wilderness protection and pollution. Thus, attention has focused on undesignated wild lands, that is. However, the law that created any given wilderness may contain additional direction applicable to that wilderness. The following is a summary description of these criteria. Wilderness act of 1964 defines wilderness as untrammeled by man and retaining its primeval character. To establish a national wilderness preservation system for the. This act established the national wilderness preservation system and instructed federal land management agencies, including the national park service nps, to manage wilderness areas and preserve wilderness character. For and against like biodiversity, the idea of a wilderness that is worthy of being protected is a relatively recent one. Following passage of the wilderness act in 1964, the forest service initiated a.
The wilderness act was passed in 1964, signed into law by president lyndon b. Wilderness prohibits many activities, like use of motorized vehicles, that are permitted and encouraged in a national monument. Document resume borrie, william t roggenbuck, joseph w. The wilderness act and the problem of wildlife restoration. This commercial enterprise is explicitly allowed to continue in section 4d42 of the act. While writers such as john muir and bob marshall had long argued that there was a need to protect wilderness areas, it was not until the passage of the wilderness act in 1964 that federal policy makers took a significant step beyond the wise use philosophy of the progressive era. September 3, 1964, not less than twothirds within seven years after september 3, 1964, and the remaining areas within ten years after september 3, 1964. I believe, is perfected only when the claimant files a patent application and complies with all the requirements for obtaining a patent under the mining law, as. The latest versions of adobe reader do not support viewing pdf files within firefox on mac os and if you are using a modern intel mac. It later became the first congressionally designated wilderness area in. These wilderness areas are managed by the national park service, bureau of land management, us fish and wildlife service, and us forest service.
Interpreting the wilderness act of 1964 by gordon steinhoff. Bureau of land management blm issues two mineral leases covering nearly 5,000 acres of the superior national forest adjacent to the bwcaw for a term of 20 years. Still managed by usfs, the area is a popular destination for hikers and backpackers as it is one of the 26 wilderness areas located along the continental divide trail. The article is by howard zahniser, who is also the acts main author. Mindful of our increasing population, accompanied by expanding settlement and growing mechanization, congress passed the 1964 wilderness act in order to preserve and protect certain lands in their natural condition and thus secure for present and future generations the benefits of wilderness. The wilderness act of 1964 established the national wilderness preservation system, a national network of more than 400 federallydesignated wilderness areas.
The wilderness act was a landmark victory for the environmental movement. The wilderness act of 1964 established the national wilderness. Wilderness areas are administered for the use and enjoyment of the american people in such manner as will. Mindful of our increasing population, accompanied by expanding settlement and growing mechanization, congress passed the 1964 wilderness act in order to. The rules that apply to wilderness only apply inside that wilderness area, not beyond it or surrounding communities. Whereas, in 1964 the united states congress passed the wilderness act of 1964 by an overwhelmingly. Wilderness act, which was signed into law in 1964 by president johnson.
Wilderness watch recently objected to a forest service decision to allow permanent seismic monitoring stations in the glacier peak wilderness in washington state. Each recommendation of the president for designation as wilderness shall become effective only if so provided by an act of congress. This measure would commemorate the 50th anniversary of the wilderness act of 1964 and proclaim the significance of continuing to protect national wilderness areas. In 1976, with the passage of the federal land policy and management act flpma, congress made the bureau of. Fish and wildlife service wilderness act wilderness act of 1964 16 u. Using the power of the wilderness act, local citizen groups, federal. Created a nwps and established a process for adding new areas. Statutory provisions and prohibited and permitted uses congressional research service summary the 1964 wilderness act established a national wilderness preservation system of federal lands where the earth and its community of life are untrammeled by man, where man himself is a visitor who does not remain. They spoke of a nation whose people were growing flabby, who need the benefits of outdoor recreation. We are gathering on september 4th and 5th to celebrate wildernessornery old wilderness, scratchy, sweaty, and. Learning objectives students will be able to 1 explain why the wilderness act of 1964 was passed.
The wilderness act of 1964 was written by former society president howard zahniser and signed into law by president lyndon b. The special provision of grazing in the wilderness act of 1964. In so doing, wilderness programs should move beyond the goals of the wilderness act of 1964 to provide outstanding opportunities for solitude or a primitive and unconfined type of recreation. Articles federal wild lands policy in the twentyfirst century. In 1956 the executive director of the wilderness society, howard zahniser, proposed. In 2001, the usfs wilderness monitoring committee developed the first national framework for wilderness character monitoring wcm. Section 2c of the wilderness act defines wilderness as an area that. The wilderness act of 1964 it is certain that growing mechanization had nothing to do with human powered bicycling, while bicycling is certainly a manner for americans to use and enjoy. The result of a long effort to protect federal wilderness and to create a formal mechanism for designating wilderness, the wilderness act was signed into law. Agency responsibilities the 1964 wilderness act applies to all land management agencies in the department of agriculture and the department of interior.
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