Santa Cruz Sentinel
Published August 29, 2004

There’s more to be done for California’s wild things

By Doug Scott

Sept. 3 marks the 40th anniversary of the Wilderness Act, which protects some of America’s most treasured expanses of rivers and redwoods, coastlines and canyons in their natural state, unspoiled by the exploits of humanity. These lands were preserved and protected as our natural heritage, ensuring that future generations could experience the "tonic of wildness," as Henry David Thoreau described it. California’s John Muir Wilderness was one of the first areas given protection under the Act.

As we approach this historic anniversary, Americans are celebrating this landmark American conservation law that has empowered citizens and lawmakers alike to protect some of our nation’s most cherished wild places.

While much has been accomplished over the past 40 years, much remains to be done. For example, legislation currently pending before Congress will designate a portion of California’s North Coast as wilderness. The bill has received broad bipartisan and local support and is now on track to pass Congress in the same year we celebrate the Wilderness Act’s legacy.

There are other icons of wilderness through the Golden State — all a result of this landmark legislation:

Trinity Alps Wilderness, one of the largest protected wilderness areas in California outside of the Sierra Nevada, features deep, glacier-carved lakes, ancient forests and sheer canyons.

Lassen Volcanic National Park Wilderness, home to numerous geological phenomena including mud pots, hot springs and sulfurous vents, includes Lassen Peak towering above at 10,457 feet.

Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks and Wilderness, the highest of the high Sierra, includes deep canyons and majestic, giant trees.

Phillip Burton Wilderness, a coastal wild land with secluded beaches, tide pools, cliffs and dunes, provides the opportunity to see whales and other marine life.

California’s natural bounty can be found in these and other protected natural places, but many wild areas remain that deserve to be included in the National Wilderness preservation System. Only 2.5 percent of U.S. land outside of Alaska has permanent wilderness designation, while 7.5 million acres of wilderness in the Golden State remain without legal protection.

In California:

Only 14 percent of the state’s forests classified as old growth remain, with significant reserves of unprotected forest now at risk.

99 percent of native grasslands, 91 percent of wetlands and 89 percent of riparian areas have been lost.

Less than 2 percent of the approximately 194,000 miles of rivers, streams and creeks are protected under National "wild and scenic" designation.

We have an opportunity today to preserve some of our last untouched lands. Like other efforts across the country, including the Wilderness Act itself, that have garnered strong and consistent bipartisan support, the Northern California Coastal Wild Heritage Wilderness Act, sponsored by U.S. Rep. Mike Thompson, D-Calif., and Sens. Diane Feinstein and Barbara Boxer, will protect sources of clean water, ancient forests and natural places for our children and grandchildren to experience the great outdoors. The bill’s sponsors undertook a four-year inclusive process addressing local concerns. As a result, it is supported by a broad range of stakeholders, including local landowners, timber mills, businesses, hunters, anglers, federal agencies and elected officials from both sides of the aisle. The legislation would preserve nearly 300,000 acres of wilderness, and protect 21 miles of the Black Butte River in the 1st Congressional District of California.

While we have much to celebrate on this 40th anniversary, we can’t forget that once our wild land is gone, it’s gone forever. Californians and all Americans must continue to strike the right balance to ensure that we protect and preserve what belongs, after all, to future generations who will treasure the wildness we bequeath to them more than we can possibly imagine. The value of wilderness — for our families, our spirits and our natural resources, including clean water — cannot be measured in dollars and cents.

As thousands of people head for remote and wild places before summer ends, we all can speak up to advocate preserving these Northern California areas and others across the state and nation, as a wildly generous legacy for the future.

Doug Scott, policy director of the Campaign for America’s Wilderness, is former associate executive director of the Sierra Club, which presented him its John Muir Award in 1997. His new book, "The Enduring Wilderness: Protecting Our Natural Heritage Through The Wilderness Act," has just been published. He works closely with the California Wild Heritage Campaign, a broad-based coalition working to ensure the permanent protection of California’s remaining wild public lands and rivers.

© Copyright 2004 by Santa Cruz Sentinel