THE WHITE HOUSE

                        Office of the Press Secretary
  ______________________________________________________
  For Immediate Release                 October 13, 1999


                         October 13, 1999


  MEMORANDUM FOR THE SECRETARY OF AGRICULTURE

  SUBJECT:          Protection of Forest "Roadless" Areas


  At the start of this century, President Theodore Roosevelt dedicated this
  Nation to the conservation of natural resources -- our land, our water,
  our wildlife, and all the other precious gifts nature had bestowed upon
  us.  One of America's great central tasks, he declared, is "leaving this
  land even a better land for our descendants than it is for us."

  In pursuit of that goal, President Roosevelt established new protections
  for millions upon millions of acres across America.  His remarkable
  legacy includes 5 national parks, 18 national monuments, and dozens of
  wildlife refuges.  Among his most notable conservation achievements were
  the consolidation of 65 million acres of Federal forest reserves into the
  National Forest System, and the creation of the United States Forest
  Service to ensure wise stewardship of these lands for future generations.
  In this effort, he was guided by Gifford Pinchot, the first Chief of the
  Forest Service and a founder of America's conservation movement.

  Today, the National Forest System has grown to 192 million acres of
  forests and grasslands in 46 States and territories.  These lands provide
  a broad array of benefits to the American people.  They support rural
  industries, sustain fish and wild-life, generate drinking water for 60
  million Americans, and provide important recreation opportunities to an
  increasingly urban population.

  Over the years, unfortunately, our Nation has not always honored
  President Roosevelt's vision.  Too often, we have favored resource
  extraction over conservation, degrading our forests and the critical
  natural values they sustain.  As the consequences of these actions have
  become more apparent, the American people have expressed growing concern
  and have called on us to restore balance to their forests.

  My Administration has made significant strides in improving the
  management of our Federal forestlands.  Beginning with the adoption of a
  comprehensive, science-based forest plan for the Pacific Northwest, we
  have sought to strengthen protections for wildlife, water quality, and
  other vital ecological values, while ensuring a steady, sustainable
  supply of timber and other commodities to support stable rural economies.
  The new forest planning regulation proposed last month represents another
  major step in that direction.

  It is time now, I believe, to address our next challenge -- the fate of
  those lands within the National Forest System that remain largely
  untouched by human intervention.  A principal defining characteristic of
  these lands is that they do not have, and in most cases never have had,
  roads across them.  We know from earlier inventories that there are more
  than 40 million acres of "roadless" area within the National Forest
  System, generally in parcels of 5,000 acres or more.  A temporary
  moratorium on road building in most of these areas has allowed us time to
  assess their ecological, economic, and social values and to evaluate
  long-term options for their management.

  In weighing the future of these lands, we are presented with a unique
  historic opportunity.  From the Appalachian Mountains to the Sierra
  Nevada, these are some of the last, best unpro-tected wildlands in
  America.  They are vital havens for wildlife -- indeed, some are
  absolutely critical to the survival of endangered species. They are a
  source of clean, fresh water for countless communities.  They offer
  unparalleled opportunities for hikers, campers, hunters, anglers, and
  others to experience unspoiled nature.  In short, these lands bestow upon
  us unique and irreplaceable benefits.  They are a treasured inheritance ?
  enduring remnants of an untrammeled wilderness that once stretched from
  ocean to ocean.

  Accordingly, I have determined that it is in the best interest of our
  Nation, and of future generations, to provide strong and lasting
  protection for these forests, and I am directing you to initiate
  administrative proceedings to that end.

  Specifically, I direct the Forest Service to develop, and propose for
  public comment, regulations to provide appro-priate long-term protection
  for most or all of these currently inventoried "roadless" areas, and to
  determine whether such protection is warranted for any smaller "roadless"
  areas not yet inventoried.  The public, and all interested parties,
  should have the opportunity to review and comment on the proposed
  regulations.  In the final regulations, the nature and degree of
  protections afforded should reflect the best available science and a
  careful consideration of the full range of ecological, economic, and
  social values inherent in these lands.

  I commend you, along with the Undersecretary for Natural Resources and
  the Environment, Jim Lyons, the Chief of the Forest Service, Michael
  Dombeck, and the entire Forest Service for your leadership in
  strengthening and modernizing the management of our Federal forests --
  lands held by us in trust for all Americans and for future generations.
  With the new effort we launch today, we can feel confident that we have
  helped to fulfill and extend the conservation legacy of Theodore
  Roosevelt and Gifford Pinchot, and to ensure that the 21st century is
  indeed a new century for America's forests.


                              WILLIAM J. CLINTON

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