The Wilderness Act of 1964 (Pub.L. 88-577) was written by Howard Zahniser of The Wilderness Society. Public law is a theory of law governing the relationship between Individuals ( Citizens companies) and the State. Howard Clinton Zahniser (1906-1964 was an American environmental activist It created the legal definition of wilderness in the United States, and protected some 9 million acres (36,000 km²) of federal land. Wilderness is generally defined as a Natural environment on Earth that has not been significantly modified by Human activity The United States of America —commonly referred to as the The result of a long effort to protect federal wilderness, the Wilderness Act was signed into law by President Lyndon B. Johnson on September 3, 1964. The US National Wilderness Preservation System protects federally managed land areas that are of a pristine condition The President of the United States is the Head of state and Head of government of the United States and is the highest political official in United States by Events 36 BC - In the Battle of Naulochus, Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa, Admiral of Octavian, defeats Sextus Pompeius Year 1964 ( MCMLXIV) was a Leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display full calendar of the 1964 Gregorian calendar.
The Wilderness Act is well known for its succinct and poetic definition of wilderness:
. . . an area where the earth and its community of life are untrammeled by man, where man himself is a visitor who does not remain.
When Congress passed and President Lyndon Johnson signed the Wilderness Act on September 3, 1964, it created the National Wilderness Preservation System. Events 36 BC - In the Battle of Naulochus, Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa, Admiral of Octavian, defeats Sextus Pompeius Year 1964 ( MCMLXIV) was a Leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display full calendar of the 1964 Gregorian calendar. The US National Wilderness Preservation System protects federally managed land areas that are of a pristine condition The initial statutory wilderness areas, designated in the Act, comprised 9. 1 million acres (37,000 km²) of national forest wilderness areas in the United States of America previously protected by administrative orders. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the
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Statistics
Today, the Wilderness System comprises over 106 million acres (429,000 km²) involving federal lands administered by four agencies:
| The National Wilderness Preservation System: Area Administered by each Federal Agency (July 2004)[1] | ||
|---|---|---|
| Agency | Wilderness area | Agency land designated wilderness |
| National Park Service | 43,616,250 acres (176,508 km²) | 56% |
| U. S. Forest Service | 34,867,591 acres (141,104 km²) | 18% |
| U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service | 20,699,108 acres (83,766 km²) | 22% |
| Bureau of Land Management | 6,512,227 acres (26,354 km²) | 2% |
| Total | 107,436,608 acres (427,733 km²) | 17% |
Legal framework
The most important thing about the Wilderness Act is that when Congress designates each wilderness area, it includes a very specific boundary line—in statutory law. Once a wilderness area has been added to the System, its protection and boundary can only be altered by another act of Congress. That places a heavy burden on anyone who, all through the future, may propose some change.
The basics of the program set out in the Wilderness Act are straightforward:
- The lands protected as wilderness are areas of our public lands. In all modern States some land is held by central or local Governments This is called public land.
- Wilderness designation is a protective overlay Congress applies to selected portions of national forests, parks, wildlife refuges, and other public lands. "National forest" redirects here for the National Forest in England see National Forest England; for those in Brazil see List of Brazilian National Forests A wildlife refuge, also called a wildlife sanctuary, may be a naturally-occurring sanctuary such as an Island, that provides protection for Species from
- Within wilderness areas, we strive to restrain human influences so that ecosystems [the Wilderness Act, however, makes no specific mention of ecosystems] can change over time in their own way, free, as much as possible, from human manipulation. An ecosystem is a natural unit consisting of all plants animals and micro-organisms( Biotic factors in an area functioning together with all of the non-living physical ( In these areas, as the Wilderness Act puts it, “the earth and its community of life are untrammeled by man”—untrammeled meaning the forces of nature operate unrestrained and unaltered.
- Wilderness areas serve multiple uses. But the law limits uses to those consistent with the Wilderness Act mandate that each wilderness area be administered to preserve the “wilderness character of the area. ” For example, these areas protect watersheds and clean-water supplies vital to downstream municipalities and agriculture, as well as habitats supporting diverse wildlife, including endangered species, while logging and oil and gas drilling are prohibited. A drainage basin is an extent of Land where Water from Rain or Snow melt drains downhill into a body of water such as a River, A habitat (which is Latin for "it inhabits" is an Ecological or environmental area that is inhabited by a particular Species. An endangered species is a population of an organism which is at risk of becoming Extinct because it is either few in numbers or threatened by changing environmental or predation
- Along with many other uses and values for the American people, wilderness areas are popular for diverse kinds of outdoor recreation—but without motorized or mechanical vehicles or equipment. Wilderness is the haven of quiet beyond the end of the road, the wild sanctuary we meet on its own terms by leaving the machinery of twenty-first-century life behind. The wild popularity of wilderness recreation shows how hungry Americans are for just such sanctuaries.
Future legislation
Congress considers additional proposals every year, some recommended by federal agencies and many proposed by grassroots conservation and sportsmen’s organizations.
Congressional bills are pending to designate new wilderness areas in Colorado, Washington State, California, Virginia, Idaho, West Virginia and New Hampshire. Grassroots coalitions are working with local congressional delegations on legislative proposals for additional wilderness areas, including Vermont, southern Arizona, national grasslands in South Dakota, Rocky Mountain peaks of Montana, Colorado and Wyoming. The U. S. Forest Service has recommended new wilderness designations, which citizen groups may propose to expand.
References
- This article is adapted from Doug Scott (August 15, 2004). Events 778 - The Battle of Roncevaux Pass, at which Roland is killed "MMIV" redirects here For the Modest Mouse album see " Baron von Bullshit Rides Again " The Enduring Wilderness: Protecting Our Natural Heritage through the Wilderness Act. Fulcrum Publishing. ISBN 1555915272.
- ^ Table from The Enduring Wilderness: Protecting Our Natural Heritage through the Wilderness Act (Fulcrum Publishing, 2004). Wilderness area by agency from www. wilderness. net. For consistency, all data used for percentage calculation are from Federal Land Management Agencies: Background on Land and Resource Management (Washington, D. C. : Congressional Research Service, RL30867, February 2001)
See also
External links
- Full text of the Wilderness Act
- Campaign for America's Wilderness (political advocacy)
- Protect California's Remaining Wilderness (political advocacy)
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