The Power of Wilderness: Why Protecting Wildlands is Crucial to American Freedom and Identity

Strategic Insights -

As Americans head into summer, millions of them will be visiting state and national parks, seeking to explore the wide range of outdoor recreational opportunities across the nation. A significant portion of these visitors will flock to the nation's wilderness areas - 110 million acres, mostly in the West, that are protected by the strictest federal conservation rules. The Wilderness Act of 1964 described these areas as places that evoke mystery and wonder, where the earth and its community of life are untrammeled by man, where man himself is a visitor who does not remain. These wild landscapes present nature in its rawest form, and are found in national parks, conservation land overseen by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, national forests, and U.S. Fish and Wildlife refuges.

Key Takeaways:

  • The Wilderness Act of 1964 described wilderness areas as places that evoke mystery and wonder, where the earth and its community of life are untrammeled by man, where man himself is a visitor who does not remain.
  • There are 110 million acres of wilderness areas in the U.S., mostly in the West, protected by the strictest federal conservation rules.
  • Wilderness areas are found in national parks, conservation land overseen by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, national forests, and U.S. Fish and Wildlife refuges.
  • The Wilderness Act requires the federal government to protect these areas "for the permanent good of the whole people."
  • The U.S. House of Representatives has begun to consider a proposal to allow the sale of federal lands in six counties in Nevada and Utah, five of which contain wilderness areas.
  • The proposal, introduced by U.S. Rep. Mark Amodei, is a departure from the standard process of federal land exchanges that accommodate development in some places but protect wilderness in others.

Statistics:

  • 110 million acres of wilderness areas in the U.S.
  • 5 of the 6 counties in Nevada and Utah that contain wilderness areas are affected by the proposal to sell federal lands.
  • The Wilderness Act was passed in 1964, protecting the nation's wild landscapes for the permanent good of the whole people.
  • The number of visitors to state and national parks has been increasing annually, with visitor numbers reaching historic highs.

Sources:

  • The Wilderness Act of 1964, 16 U.S.C. 11, 111 Stat. 3220
  • The Conversation -- USA -- By Leisl Carr Childers, Associate Professor of History, Colorado State University
  • Wallace Stegner's Wilderness Letter, June 17, 1962
  • David E. Pesonen's letter to Wallace Stegner, 1958
  • The Outdoor Recreation Resources Review Commission, 1958
  • Wallace Stegner's essay "The Best Idea We Ever Had: An Overview," published in Wilderness magazine in spring 1983