Wilderness Act

WILDERNESS ACT
Public Law 88-577 (16 U.S. C. 1131-1136)
th
88 Congress, Second Session
September 3, 1964
AN ACT
To establish a National Wilderness Preservation System for the permanent good of
the whole people, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in
Congress assembled.
Short Title
Section 1. This Act may be cited as the "Wilderness Act."
WILDERNESS SYSTEM ESTABLISHED STATEMENT OF POLICY
Section 2.(a) In order to assure that an increasing population, accompanied by expanding
settlement and growing mechanization, does not occupy and modify all areas within the United
States and its possessions, leaving no lands designated for preservation and protection in their
natural condition, 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. For this purpose there is hereby established a National Wilderness Preservation
System to be composed of federally owned areas designated by Congress as ''wilderness
areas'', and these shall be administered for the use and enjoyment of the American people in
such manner as will leave them unimpaired for future use and enjoyment as wilderness, and
so as to provide for the protection of these areas, the preservation of their wilderness
character, and for the gathering and dissemination of information regarding their use and
enjoyment as wilderness; and no Federal lands shall be designated as ''wilderness areas''
except as provided for in this Act or by a subsequent Act.
(b) The inclusion of an area in the National Wilderness Preservation System notwithstanding,
the area shall continue to be managed by the Department and agency having jurisdiction
thereover immediately before its inclusion in the National Wilderness Preservation System
unless otherwise provided by Act of Congress. No appropriation shall be available for the
payment of expenses or salaries for the administration of the National Wilderness Preservation
System as a separate unit nor shall any appropriations be available for additional personnel
stated as being required solely for the purpose of managing or administering areas solely
because they are included within the National Wilderness Preservation System.
DEFINITION OF WILDERNESS
(c) A wilderness, in contrast with those areas where man and his own works dominate the
landscape, is hereby recognized as an area where the earth and its community of life are
untrammeled by man, where man himself is a visitor who does not remain. An area of
wilderness is further defined to mean in this Act an area of undeveloped Federal land
retaining its primeval character and influence, without permanent improvements or human
habitation, which is protected and managed so as to preserve its natural conditions and which
(1) generally appears to have been affected primarily by the forces of nature, with the imprint
of man's work substantially unnoticeable; (2) has outstanding opportunities for solitude or a
primitive and unconfined type of recreation; (3) has at least five thousand acres of land or is
of sufficient size as to make practicable its preservation and use in an unimpaired condition;
and (4) may also contain ecological, geological, or other features of scientific, educational,
scenic, or historical value.
NATIONAL WILDERNESS PRESERVATION SYSTEM - EXTENT OF SYSTEM
Section 3.(a) All areas within the national forests classified at least 30 days before
September 3, 1964 by the Secretary of Agriculture or the Chief of the Forest Service as
''wilderness'', ''wild'', or ''canoe'' are hereby designated as wilderness areas. The Secretary of
Agriculture shall -

(1) Within one year after September 3, 1964, file a map and legal description of each
wilderness area with the Interior and Insular Affairs Committees of the United States Senate
and the House of Representatives, and such descriptions shall have the same force and effect
as if included in this Act: Provided, however, That correction of clerical and typographical
errors in such legal descriptions and maps may be made.
(2) Maintain, available to the public, records pertaining to said wilderness areas, including
maps and legal descriptions, copies of regulations governing them, copies of public notices of,
and reports submitted to Congress regarding pending additions, eliminations, or modifications.
Maps, legal descriptions, and regulations pertaining to wilderness areas within their respective
jurisdictions also shall be available to the public in the offices of regional foresters, national
forest supervisors, and forest rangers.
Classification. (b) The Secretary of Agriculture shall, within ten years after September 3,
1964, review, as to its suitability or nonsuitability for preservation as wilderness, each area in
the national forests classified on September 3, 1964 by the Secretary of Agriculture or the
Chief of the Forest Service as ''primitive'' and report his findings to the President.
Presidential recommendation to Congress. The President shall advise the United States
Senate and House of Representatives of his recommendations with respect to the designation
as ''wilderness'' or other reclassification of each area on which review has been completed,
together with maps and a definition of boundaries. Such advice shall be given with respect to
not less than one-third of all the areas now classified as ''primitive'' within three years after
September 3, 1964, not less than two-thirds within seven years after September 3, 1964, and
the remaining areas within ten years after September 3, 1964.
Congressional approval. Each recommendation of the President for designation as
''wilderness'' shall become effective only if so provided by an Act of Congress. Areas classified
as ''primitive'' on September 3, 1964 shall continue to be administered under the rules and
regulations affecting such areas on September 3, 1964 until Congress has determined
otherwise. Any such area may be increased in size by the President at the time he submits his
recommendations to the Congress by not more than five thousand acres with no more than
one thousand two hundred and eighty acres of such increase in any one compact unit; if it is
proposed to increase the size of any such area by more than five thousand acres or by more
than one thousand two hundred and eighty acres in any one compact unit the increase in size
shall not become effective until acted upon by Congress. Nothing herein contained shall limit
the President in proposing, as part of his recommendations to Congress, the alteration of
existing boundaries of primitive areas or recommending the addition of any contiguous area of
national forest lands predominantly of wilderness value. Notwithstanding any other provisions
of this Act, the Secretary of Agriculture may complete his review and delete such area as
may be necessary, but not to exceed seven thousand acres, from the southern tip of the Gore
Range-Eagles Nest Primitive Area, Colorado, if the Secretary determines that such action is in
the public interest.
Report to President. (c) Within ten years after September 3, 1964 the Secretary of the
Interior shall review every roadless area of five thousand contiguous acres or more in the
national parks, monuments and other units of the national park system and every such area
of, and every roadless island within the national wildlife refuges and game ranges, under his
jurisdiction on September 3, 1964 and shall report to the President his recommendation as to
the suitability or nonsuitability of each such area or island for preservation as wilderness.
Presidential recommendation to Congress. The President shall advise the President of the
Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives of his recommendation with respect
to the designation as wilderness of each such area or island on which review has been
completed, together with a map thereof and a definition of its boundaries. Such advice shall be
given with respect to not less than one-third of the areas and islands to be reviewed under
this subsection within three years after September 3, 1964, not less than two-thirds within
seven years of September 3, 1964 and the remainder within ten years of September 3, 1964.
Congressional approval. A recommendation of the President for designation as wilderness
shall become effective only if so provided by an Act of Congress. Nothing contained herein
shall, by implication or otherwise, be construed to lessen the present statutory authority of the

Secretary of the Interior with respect to the maintenance of roadless areas within units of the
national park system.
Suitability. (d)(1) The Secretary of Agriculture and the Secretary of the Interior shall, prior
to submitting any recommendations to the President with respect to the suitability of any area
for preservation as wilderness –
Publication in Federal Register. (A) give such public notice of the proposed action as they
deem appropriate, including publication in the Federal Register and in a newspaper having
general circulation in the area or areas in the vicinity of the affected land;
Hearings. (B) hold a public hearing or hearings at a location or locations convenient to the
area affected. The hearings shall be announced through such means as the respective
Secretaries involved deem appropriate, including notices in the Federal Register and in
newspapers of general circulation in the area: Provided, That if the lands involved are located
in more than one State, at least one hearing shall be held in each State in which a portion of
the land lies;
(C) at least thirty days before the date of a hearing advise the Governor of each State and the
governing board of each county, or in Alaska the borough, in which the lands are located, and
Federal departments and agencies concerned, and invite such officials and Federal agencies to
submit their views on the proposed action at the hearing or by no later than thirty days
following the date of the hearing.
Any views submitted to the appropriate Secretary under the provisions of (1) of this
subsection with respect to any area shall be included with any recommendations to the
President and to Congress with respect to such area.
Proposed modification. (e) Any modification or adjustment of boundaries of any wilderness
area shall be recommended by the appropriate Secretary after public notice of such proposal
and public hearing or hearings as provided in subsection (d) of this section. The proposed
modification or adjustment shall then be recommended with map and description thereof to
the President. The President shall advise the United States Senate and the House of
Representatives of his recommendations with respect to such modification or adjustment and
such recommendations shall become effective only in the same manner as provided for in
subsections (b) and (c) of this section.
USE OF WILDERNESS AREAS
Section 4.(a) The purposes of this Act are hereby declared to be within and
supplemental to the purposes for which national forests and units of the national park and
national wildlife refuge systems are established and administered and (1) Nothing in this Act shall be deemed to be in interference with the purpose for which
national forests are established as set forth in the Act of June 4, 1897 (30 Stat. 11), and the
Multiple-Use Sustained-Yield Act of June 12, 1960 (74 Stat. 215) (16 U.S.C. 528-531).
(2) Nothing in this Act shall modify the restrictions and provisions of the Shipstead-Nolan
Act (Public Law 539, Seventy-first Congress, July 10, 1930; 46 Stat. 1020), the Thye–Blatnik
Act (Public Law 733, Eightieth Congress, June 22, 1948; 62 Stat. 568), and the HumphreyThye-Blatnik-Andresen Act (Public Law 607, Eighty-Fourth Congress, June 22, 1956; 70 Stat.
326), as applying to the Superior National Forest or the regulations of the Secretary of
Agriculture.
(3) Nothing in this Act shall modify the statutory authority under which units of the
national park system are created. Further, the designation of any area of any park,
monument, or other unit of the national park system as a wilderness area pursuant to this Act
shall in no manner lower the standards evolved for the use and preservation of such
park, monument, or other unit of the national park system in accordance with sections 1, 2, 3,
and 4 of this title, the statutory authority under which the area was created, or any other Act
of Congress which might pertain to or affect such area, including, but not limited to, the Act of
June 8, 1906 (34 Stat. 225; 16 U.S.C. 432 et seq.); section 3(2) of the Federal Power Act (16
U.S.C. 796(2)); and the Act of August 21, 1935 (49 Stat. 666; 16 U.S.C. 461 et seq.).
(b) Except as otherwise provided in this Act, each agency administering any area
designated as wilderness shall be responsible for preserving the wilderness character of the
area and shall so administer such area for such other purposes for which it may have been
established as also to preserve its wilderness character. Except as otherwise provided in this

Act, wilderness areas shall be devoted to the public purposes of recreational, scenic,
scientific, educational, conservation, and historical use.
PROHIBITION OF CERTAIN USES
(c) Except as specifically provided for in this Act, and subject to existing private rights,
there shall be no commercial enterprise and no permanent road within any wilderness area
designated by this Act and, except as necessary to meet minimum requirements for the
administration of the area for the purpose of this Act (including measures required in
emergencies involving the health and safety of persons within the area), there shall be no
temporary road, no use of motor vehicles, motorized equipment or motorboats, no landing of
aircraft, no other form of mechanical transport, and no structure or installation within any
such area.
SPECIAL PROVISIONS
(d) The following special provisions are hereby made:
(1) Within wilderness areas designated by this Act the use of aircraft or motorboats,
where these uses have already become established, may be permitted to continue subject to
such restrictions as the Secretary of Agriculture deems desirable. In addition, such measures
may be taken as may be necessary in the control of fire, insects, and diseases, subject to such
conditions as the Secretary deems desirable.
(2) Nothing in this Act shall prevent within national forest wilderness areas any activity,
including prospecting, for the purpose of gathering information about mineral or other
resources, if such activity is carried on in a manner compatible with the preservation of the
wilderness environment. Furthermore, in accordance with such program as the Secretary of
the Interior shall develop and conduct in consultation with the Secretary of Agriculture, such
areas shall be surveyed on a planned, recurring basis consistent with the concept of
wilderness preservation by the United States Geological Survey and the United States Bureau
of Mines to determine the mineral values, if any, that may be present; and the results of such
surveys shall be made available to the public and submitted to the President and Congress.
Mineral leases, claims, etc. (3) Not withstanding any other provisions of this Act, until
midnight December 31, 1983, the United States mining laws and all laws pertaining to mineral
leasing shall, to the extent as applicable prior to September 3, 1964, extend to those national
forest lands designated by this Act as "wilderness areas"; subject, however, to such
reasonable regulations governing ingress and egress as may be prescribed by the Secretary of
Agriculture consistent with the use of the land for mineral location and development and
exploration, drilling, and production, and use of land for transmission lines, waterlines,
telephone lines, or facilities necessary in exploring, drilling, producing, mining, and processing
operations, including where essential the use of mechanized ground or air equipment and
restoration as near as practicable of the surface of the land disturbed in performing
prospecting, location, and , in oil and gas leasing, discovery work, exploration, drilling, and
production, as soon as they have served their purpose. Mining locations lying within the
boundaries of said wilderness areas shall be held and used solely for mining or processing
operations and uses reasonably incident thereto; and hereafter, subject to valid existing
rights, all patents issued under the mining laws of the United States affecting national forest
lands designated by this Act as wilderness areas shall convey title to the mineral deposits
within the claim, together with the right to cut and use so much of the mature timber
therefrom as may be needed in the extraction, removal, and beneficiation of the mineral
deposits, if needed timber is not otherwise reasonably available, and if the timber is cut under
sound principles of forest management as defined by the national forest rules and regulations,
but each such patent shall reserve to the United States all title in or to the surface of the lands
and products thereof, and no use of the surface of the claim or the resources therefrom not
reasonably required for carrying on mining or prospecting shall be allowed except as otherwise
expressly provided in this Act: Provided, That, unless hereafter specifically authorized, no
patent within wilderness areas designated by this Act shall issue after December 31, 1983,
except for the valid claims existing on or before December 31, 1983. Mining claims located
after September 3, 1964, within the boundaries of wilderness areas designated by this Act
shall create no rights in excess of those rights which may be patented under the provisions of
this subsection. Mineral leases, permits, and licenses covering lands within national forest
wilderness areas designated by this Act shall contain such reasonable stipulations as may

be prescribed by the Secretary of Agriculture for the protection of the wilderness character of
the land consistent with the use of the land for the purposes for which they are leased,
permitted, or licensed. Subject to valid rights then existing, effective January 1, 1984, the
minerals in lands designated by this Act as wilderness areas are withdrawn from all forms of
appropriation under the mining laws and from disposition under all laws pertaining to mineral
leasing and all amendments thereto.
Water resources and grazing. (4) Within wilderness areas in the national forests
designated by this Act, (1) the President may, within a specific area and in accordance
with such regulations as he may deem desirable, authorize prospecting for water resources,
the establishment and maintenance of reservoirs, water-conservation works, power projects,
transmission lines, and other facilities needed in the public interest, including the road
construction and maintenance essential to development and use thereof, upon his
determination that such use or uses in the specific area will better serve the interests of the
United States and the people thereof than will its denial; and (2) the grazing of livestock,
where established prior to September 3, 1964, shall be permitted to continue subject to such
reasonable regulations as are deemed necessary by the Secretary of Agriculture.
(5) Other provisions of this Act to the contrary notwithstanding, the management of the
Boundary Waters Canoe Area, formerly designated as the Superior, Little Indian Sioux, and
Caribou Roadless Areas, in the Superior National Forest, Minnesota, shall be in accordance
with regulations established by the Secretary of Agriculture in accordance with the general
purpose of maintaining, without unnecessary restrictions on other uses, including that of
timber, the primitive character of the area, particularly in the vicinity of lakes, streams, and
portages: Provided, That nothing in this Act shall preclude the continuance within the area of
any already established use of motorboats.
(6) Commercial services may be performed within the wilderness areas designated by this Act
to the extent necessary for activities which are proper for realizing the recreational or
other wilderness purposes of the areas.
(7) Nothing in this Act shall constitute an express or implied claim or denial on the part of
the Federal Government as to exemption from State water laws.
(8) Nothing in this Act shall be construed as affecting the jurisdiction or responsibilities of
the several States with respect to wildlife and fish in the national forests.
STATE AND PRIVATE LANDS WITHIN WILDERNESS AREAS
Section 5.(a) In any case where State -owned or privately owned land is completely
surrounded by national forest lands within areas designated by this Act as wilderness,
such State or private owner shall be given such rights as may be necessary to assure
adequate access to such State -owned or privately owned land by such State or private owner
and their successors in interest, or the State -owned land or privately owned land shall be
exchanged for federally owned land in the same State of approximately equal value under
authorities available to the Secretary of Agriculture:
Transfers, restriction. Provided, however, That the United States shall not transfer to a
State or private owner any mineral interests unless the State or private owner relinquishes or
causes to be relinquished to the United States the mineral interest in the surrounded land.
(b) In any case where valid mining claims or other valid occupancies are wholly within a
designated national forest wilderness area, the Secretary of Agriculture shall, by reasonable
regulations consistent with the preservation of the area as wilderness, permit ingress and
egress to such surrounded areas by means which have been or are being customarily enjoyed
with respect to other such areas similarly situated.
Acquisition. (c) Subject to the appropriation of funds by Congress, the Secretary of
Agriculture is authorized to acquire privately owned land within the perimeter of any area
designated by this Act as wilderness if (1) the owner concurs in such acquisition or (2)
the acquisition is specifically authorized by Congress.
GIFTS, BEQUESTS, AND CONTRIBUTIONS
Section 6.(a) The Secretary of Agriculture may accept gifts or bequests of land within
wilderness areas designated by this Act for preservation as wilderness. The Secretary of
Agriculture may also accept gifts or bequests of land adjacent to wilderness areas designated
by this Act for preservation as wilderness if he has given sixty days advance notice
thereof to the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives. Land

accepted by the Secretary of Agriculture under this section shall be come part of the
wilderness area involved. Regulations with regard to any such land may be in accordance with
such agreements, consistent with the policy of this Act, as are made at the time of such
gift, or such conditions, consistent with such policy, as may be included in, and accepted with,
such bequest.
(b) Authorization to accept private contributions and gifts The Secretary of Agriculture or the
Secretary of the Interior is authorized to accept private contributions and gifts to be used to
further the purposes of this Act.
ANNUAL REPORTS
Section 7. At the opening of each session of Congress, the Secretaries of Agriculture and
Interior shall jointly report to the President for transmission to Congress on the status of the
wilderness system, including a list and descriptions of the areas in the system, regulations in
effect, and other pertinent information, together with any recommendations they may care to
make.
APPROVED SEPTEMBER 3, 1964.
Legislative History:
House Reports: No 1538 accompanying H.R. 9070 (Committee on Interior & Insular Affairs)
and No. 1829 (Committee of Conference).
Senate report: No. 109 (Committee on Interior & Insular Affairs). Congressional Record: Vol.
109 (1963):

• April 4, 8, considered in Senate.

• April 9, considered and passed Senate.
• Vol. 110 (1964): July 28, considered in House.

• July 30, considered and passed House, amended, in lieu of H.R. 9070
• August 20, House and Senate agreed to conference report.