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Congress enacted the Wilderness Act in 1964. This act created the National Wilderness
Preservation System, reserved to Congress the authority to designate wilderness areas, and
directed the Secretaries of Agriculture and of the Interior to review certain lands for their
wilderness potential. The act also designated 54 wilderness areas with 9 million acres of federal
land. Congress began expanding the Wilderness System in 1968, and today, there are 709
wilderness areas, totaling more than 107 million acres, in 44 states. Numerous bills to designate
additional areas and to expand existing ones are introduced and considered in every Congress.
The Wilderness Act defined wilderness as an area of generally undisturbed federal land, but did
not establish criteria or standards to determine whether an area should be designated, because of
differing perceptions of wilderness and because of the varying purposes of wilderness. In general,
wilderness areas are undeveloped, and commercial activities, motorized access, and roads,
structures, and facilities are generally prohibited in wilderness areas. However, in response to
conflicting demands, Congress has granted both general exemptions and specific exceptions to
the general standards and prohibitions.
The federal government owns about 29% of the land in the United States, although the proportion
in each state varies widely. Four federal agencies—the Bureau of Land Management, National
Park Service, and Fish and Wildlife Service in the Department of the Interior and the Forest
Service in the Department of Agriculture—manage most of the federal lands. These agencies
manage the 107 million acres of designated wilderness, as well as many other lands. They are
also protecting lands as possible additions to the Wilderness System, and are reviewing the
wilderness potential of additional lands.
In total, more than 17% of all federal land, and nearly 5% of all land in the United States, has
been designated as wilderness. Alaska, because of its size and relatively pristine condition,
dominates wilderness statistics—more than 53% of designated wilderness is in Alaska. In total,
nearly 16% of all land (federal, state, private, and other) in Alaska has been designated as
wilderness. In contrast, 3% of all land in the United States outside Alaska has been designated as
wilderness.
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History of Wilderness ...................................................................................................................... 1
What Is Wilderness? ........................................................................................................................ 4
Prohibited and Permitted Uses ........................................................................................................ 5
Data on Wilderness Designations as of February 29, 2008 ............................................................ 6
Agency Land Data..................................................................................................................... 7
Wilderness Statistics.................................................................................................................. 9
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Table 1. Additions to the National Wilderness Preservation System............................................... 2
Table 2. Total Area Managed by Federal Land Management Agencies .......................................... 8
Table 3. Federal Designated Wilderness Acreage, by State and by Agency...................................11
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Author Contact Information .......................................................................................................... 14
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n 1964, the Wilderness Act established a national system of congressionally designated areas
to be preserved in a wilderness condition. The National Wilderness Preservation System was
I created with 9 million acres of Forest Service lands. Congress has since expanded the
Wilderness System to more than 107 million acres (see Table 1) among some 623 million acres
of land managed by the federal land management agencies—the Forest Service (FS) in the
Department of Agriculture, and the National Park Service (NPS), Fish and Wildlife Service
(FWS), and Bureau of Land Management (BLM) in the Department of the Interior. (See Table 2.)
Federal agencies, Members of Congress, and interest groups have recommended more lands for
inclusion in the System. Furthermore, at the direction of Congress, agencies have studied, or are
studying, the wilderness potential of their lands. This report provides a brief history of
wilderness, describes what wilderness is, identifies permitted and prohibited uses in wilderness
areas, and provides data on wilderness designations as of February 29, 2008.
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The federal government acquired 1.8 billion acres of land through purchases, treaties, and other
agreements. Initial federal policy was generally to transfer ownership to states and private
ownership, but Congress has also provided for reserving certain lands for federal purposes, and
over time has reserved or withdrawn increasing acreage for national parks, national forests,
wildlife refuges, etc.1 The general policy of federal lands disposal was changed to a general
policy of retaining the remaining lands in the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976.2
Beginning in 1897, management of the national forests emphasized conservation—protecting and
developing the lands. It did not take long for some FS leaders to recognize the need to preserve
some areas in a natural state. Acting at its own discretion, and at the behest of an employee named
Aldo Leopold, the FS created the first wilderness area in the Gila National Forest (NM) in 1924.
In the succeeding decades, the agency’s system of wilderness, wild, and primitive areas grew to
14.6 million acres. However, in the 1950s, increasing timber harvests and recreation use of the
national forests led to public concerns about the permanence of this purely administrative system.
The FS had relied on its administrative authority in making these designations; there was no law
guaranteeing the future of wilderness.
In response to these concerns, Congress enacted the Wilderness Act3 in 1964. The act defines
wilderness, and prohibits or restricts certain activities in wilderness areas, while permitting other
activities to occur. The act also reserves to Congress the authority to designate areas as part of the
National Wilderness Preservation System.
The Wilderness System was initially endowed with the 9.1 million acres of national forest lands
that had been identified administratively as wilderness areas or wild areas. The Wilderness Act
also directed the Agriculture Secretary to review the agency’s 5.5 million acres of primitive areas,
and the Secretary of the Interior to evaluate the wilderness potential of National Park System and
National Wildlife Refuge System lands. The Secretaries were to report their recommendations to
the President and to Congress within 10 years (i.e., by 1974). Separate recommendations were
1 See CRS Report RL34267, Federal Land Ownership: Constitutional Authority and the History of Acquisition,
Disposal, and Retention, by Kristina Alexander and Ross W. Gorte.
2 FLPMA, Act of October 21, 1976; P.L. 94-579. 43 U.S.C. §§ 1701, et seq.
3 Act of September 3, 1964; P.L. 88-577. 16 U.S.C. §§ 1131-1136.
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made for each area; many areas recommended for wilderness have been designated, although
some of the recommendations are still pending. FLPMA directed the Secretary of the Interior to
conduct a similar review of the public lands administered by the BLM within 15 years (i.e., by
1991). The BLM submitted its recommendations to the President, and presidential
recommendations have been submitted to Congress.
The 90th Congress began expanding the Wilderness System in 1968, as shown in Table 1. Five
laws were enacted, creating five new wilderness areas with 792,750 acres in four states.
Wilderness designations generally increased in each succeeding Congress, rising to a peak of 60.8
million acres designated during the 96th Congress (1979-1980). The largest was 56.4 million acres
of wilderness designated in the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act.4
In 1977, the FS began a review (RARE II)5 of 62 million acres of national forest roadless areas,
as an acceleration of part of the land management planning process mandated by the Forest and
Rangeland Renewable Resources Planning Act of 1974 and the National Forest Management Act
of 1976.6 The RARE II Final Environmental Statement was issued in January 1979,
recommending more than 15 million acres (24.3% of the study area) for addition to the
Wilderness System. In addition, nearly 11 million acres (17.4%) were to be studied further in the
ongoing FS planning process under NFMA. The remaining 36 million acres (58.3% of the RARE
II area) were to be available for other uses—such as logging, energy and mineral developments,
and motorized recreation—which might be incompatible with preserving wilderness
characteristics. In April 1979, President Jimmy Carter presented the recommendations to
Congress with minor changes.
Table 1. Additions to the National Wilderness Preservation System
Number of
Number of
Number of Areas New
Acres
Congress
Lawsa
States
(Additions)
Designatedb
88th 1
13 54
(
0)
9,125,721
89th
0
0
0 ( 0)
0
90th
5
4
5 ( 1)
792,750
91st 3
13 25
(
0) 303,612
92nd
9
7
8 ( 1)
913,337
93rd 4
22 35
(
0)
1,271,535
94th 8
23 35
(
0)
2,428,327
95th 7
18 28
(
5)
4,680,519
96th 7
10 71
(11)
60,753,605
97th
6
6
7 ( 0)
83,309
98th 21
21 177
(49)
8,530,657
4 ANILCA, Act of December 2, 1980; P.L. 96-487.
5 The first Roadless Area Review and Evaluation (RARE) was begun under the agency’s administrative authority in
1970, but was abandoned in 1972 because of a lawsuit asserting the review had been restricted in ways that violated the
National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA, Act of January 1, 1970; P.L. 91-190; 42 U.S.C. §§ 4321-4347).
6 Respectively: RPA, Act of August 17, 1974; P.L. 93-378; and NFMA, Act of October 22, 1976; P.L. 94-588. 16
U.S.C. §§ 1600-1614, et al.
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Number of
Number of
Number of Areas New
Acres
Congress
Lawsa
States
(Additions)
Designatedb
99th 5
5 11
(
2) 99,153
100th 7
8 22
(
4) 1,422,730
101st 5
5 68
(
3)
3,501,160
102nd
2
2
6 ( 4)
426,290
103rd 2
2 79
(14)
8,272,871
104th
2
2
1 ( 2)
29,970
105th
1
1
0 ( 1)
160
106th 8
7 18
(
1) 1,081,465
107th 5
5 18
(13) 529,590
108th 2
2 15
(
0) 801,784
109th
6
7
25 (11)
1,030,748
110th
1
1
1 (0)
106,000
Total 117
44 709 (122)
107,549,325
a. Excludes laws with minor boundary and acreage adjustments (less than 10 acres of net change).
b. This total differs from the total of the column because of acreage revisions.
In 1980, the state of California successfully challenged the FS RARE II recommendations for 44
areas allocated to nonwilderness uses, with the court decision substantially upheld on appeal in
1982.7 The Reagan Administration responded in 1983 by directing a re-evaluation of all RARE II
recommendations, except in states with wilderness laws containing certain provisions known as
release language.8 Tensions between the Administration and Congress, and among interest
groups, led to a particularly intense debate during the 98th Congress (1983-1984). A compromise
version of release language, achieved in May 1984, led the 98th Congress to enact 21 wilderness
laws designating 8.5 million acres of wilderness in 21 states—more laws and more acres (outside
of Alaska) than any Congress since the Wilderness System was created.
Since the Wilderness Act created the National Wilderness Preservation System in 1964, Congress
has enacted 115 additional laws designating new wilderness areas or adding to existing ones, as
shown in Table 1. The Wilderness System now contains 709 wilderness areas with more than 107
million acres in 44 states, managed by the four federal land management agencies, as shown in
Table 3. The agencies have recommended additional lands be added to the Wilderness System;
these lands are generally managed to protect their wilderness character while Congress considers
adding them to the Wilderness System. Additional lands are being studied by the agencies, to
determine if they should be added to the System. However, data on lands recommended and being
reviewed for wilderness potential are not available.
7 California v. Bergland, 483 F. Supp. 465 (E.D.Cal. 1980), aff’d in part, rev’d in part, 690 F.2d 753 (9th Cir. 1982).
8 Release language provides direction on the timing of future wilderness review and of the management of areas not
designated as wilderness until the next review. For a history of the debate over release language provisions, see out-of-
print CRS Report 93-280 ENR, Wilderness Legislation: History of Release Language, 1979-1992, by Ross W. Gorte
and Pamela Baldwin (available from the author).
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Questions and discussions persist over the protection and management of areas that some believe
should be designated as wilderness and others believe should be available for development. The
Clinton Administration moved to protect many of the remaining national forest areas that could
be designated as wilderness, initially in January 1998 with a temporary moratorium on road
construction in roadless areas, and finally with a rule that prohibited most road construction and
many other activities in inventoried roadless areas (i.e., the remaining undesignated RARE II
areas). The Clinton rule was enjoined twice, and the Bush Administration promulgated a new rule
that has also been enjoined. The status of roadless area protection rules continues to be disputed.9
Questions also persist over BLM wilderness study areas (WSAs). These WSAs are the areas the
BLM studied as potential wilderness under § 603 of FLPMA. Under § 603(b), the BLM is
required to protect the wilderness characteristics of all WSAs (including areas not recommended
for wilderness) “until Congress determines otherwise.” Congress has designated some BLM
WSAs as wilderness (included in Table 3), and generally in the same statutes, Congress has
released the BLM from the requirement to protect the wilderness characteristics of certain other
areas. However, release language in BLM wilderness statutes has generally been more
controversial than for national forest areas.10
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The Wilderness Act defines wilderness as an area of generally undisturbed federal land.
Specifically, §2(c) states:
A wilderness, in contrast with those areas where man and his 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.... 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.
This definition provides some general guidelines for determining which areas should, or should
not, be designated wilderness, but there are no specific criteria in the law. The phrases
“untrammeled by man,” “retaining its primeval character,” and “man’s work substantially
unnoticeable” are far from precise. Even the numerical standard—5,000 acres—is not absolute;
smaller areas can be designated, if they can be protected, and the smallest wilderness area—
Wisconsin Islands Wilderness in the Green Bay National Wildlife Refuge—is only 2 acres.
9 For more background information on and the current status of these rules, see CRS Report RL30647, National Forest
System Roadless Area Initiatives, by Kristina Alexander and Ross W. Gorte.
10 See CRS Report RS21917, Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Wilderness Review Issues, by Ross W. Gorte and
Pamela Baldwin.
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One reason for the imprecise criteria for wilderness is differing perceptions of what constitutes
wilderness. To some, a “wilderness” is an area where there is absolutely no sign of human
presence: no traffic can be heard (including aircraft); no roads, structures, or litter can be seen. To
others, sleeping in a van or camper in a 400-site campground in Yellowstone National Park is a
“wilderness experience.” Complicating these differing perceptions is the wide-ranging ability to
“get away from it all” in various areas; in a densely wooded area, “getting away” might be
measured in yards, while in mountainous or desert terrain, human developments can sometimes
be seen for miles.
In an attempt to accommodate these contrasting views of wilderness, the Wilderness Act provided
certain exemptions and delayed implementation of restrictions for wilderness areas, as will be
discussed below. At times, Congress has also responded to the conflicting demands of various
interest groups by allowing additional exemptions for certain uses (especially for existing
activities) in particular wilderness designations. Ultimately, “wilderness areas” are whatever
Congress designates as wilderness, regardless of developments or activities which some might
argue conflict with the definition of wilderness.
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In general, the Wilderness Act prohibits commercial activities, motorized access, and roads,
structures, and facilities in wilderness areas. Specifically, §4(c) states:
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.
This section prohibits most commercial resource exploitation (such as timber harvesting) and
motorized entry (via cars, trucks, off-road vehicles, aircraft, or motorboats) except in
emergencies. However, §4(d) provides numerous exceptions, including (a) possible continued use
of motorboats and aircraft; (b) fire, insect, and disease control measures; (c) mineral prospecting
conducted “in a manner compatible with the preservation of the wilderness environment;” (d)
water projects; (e) continued livestock grazing; and (f) commercial recreation activities.
In addition to these exemptions, the Wilderness Act extended the mining and mineral leasing laws
for wilderness areas in national forests for 20 years, through 1983. New mining claims and
mineral leases were permitted for many wilderness areas, and exploration and development were
authorized “subject, however, to such reasonable regulations governing ingress and egress as may
be prescribed by the Secretary of Agriculture.”11 Despite this authority, no permits for on-site
11 Most lands in the National Park System and the National Wildlife Refuge System have been withdrawn from access
under the mining and mineral leasing laws, while extensive BLM wilderness designations were apparently not
contemplated until FLPMA was enacted in 1976. Thus, the Wilderness Act addressed mining and mineral leasing only
in the national forests.
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exploration were considered until James Watt became the Secretary of the Interior in 1981.12
Litigation halted a drilling application in Montana that year, and Congress enacted a moratorium
on wilderness area leasing and exploration in the Department of the Interior appropriations laws
for FY1983 and FY1984 (P.L. 97-394 and P.L. 98-146, respectively). However, mineral rights
existing on or before December 31, 1983 (or before the area was designated), remain valid, and
can be developed if the right-holder chooses, under “reasonable regulations” determined by the
Secretary of Agriculture, and some mineral exploration has occurred in designated wilderness
areas under such regulations.13
The Wilderness Act also directs that the act not alter existing federal-state relationships with
respect to state water laws or state fish and wildlife responsibilities. Specifically, §4(d) (as
codified at 16 U.S.C. §1133) states:
(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.
However, the extent and nature of federal water rights that might arise from wilderness
designations continue to be an important issue for Congress.14
Finally, as noted above, Congress has also enacted numerous exemptions to the Wilderness Act’s
standard prohibitions on activities and developments.15 These exemptions typically apply to one
or a few areas and typically authorize a particular activity (that might not be permitted under the
Wilderness Act’s management guidance) to be allowed to continue in the area at the level or
intensity that occurred prior to the area’s designation as wilderness.
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The following tables present data on the federal lands managed by the four principal federal
land management agencies and on the acreage designated as wilderness and recommended by the
agencies for wilderness. The data were gathered from several agency sources, as described below.
This section describes the agency land data shown in Table 2 and the wilderness data shown in
Table 3.
12 Although national forests are managed by the FS in the Department of Agriculture, mining claims and mineral leases
on most federal lands, including the national forests, are administered by the BLM in the Department of the Interior.
13 Olen Paul Mathews, Amy Haak, and Kathryn Toffenetti, “Mining and Wilderness: Incompatible Uses or Justifiable
Compromise?” Environment, v. 27 (April 1985): 12-17, 30-36.
14 For a more thorough discussion of this issue, see out-of-print CRS Report 89-11 A, Wilderness Areas and Federal
Water Rights, by Pamela Baldwin (available from the author of this report, Ross W. Gorte).
15 See CRS Report RL33827, Wilderness Laws: Permitted and Prohibited Uses, by Ross W. Gorte.
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Table 2 shows the area managed by the four major federal land management agencies.16 The data
are not directly comparable across agencies, however, because of differences in accounting
practices. The agency data also differ from the data maintained by the U.S. General Services
Administration (GSA).17 Differences occur in part because official ownership status often differs
from managerial responsibility; for example, the FS administers 462,678 acres in Oregon that are
officially BLM lands. Another complication is partial ownership, such as split estates, with the
federal government owning only the surface (or the subsurface), and another owner for the
subsurface (or surface) rights; similarly, some lands are managed by the federal government
under easements and long-term leases, without federal ownership. Thus, the agency acreage
statistics in Table 2 may overstate actual federal land ownership.
The data in Table 2 are from agency sources; agency data (rather than GSA data) were used
because they most closely match the agency wilderness data. The acreage shown in Table 2 is
generally limited to the lands owned by the federal government (i.e., excluding easements and
long-term leases) and administered by the agency or for which the agency has primary
management responsibility. The following list identifies the land area data source for each of the
agencies.
U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, Forest Service, Land Areas Report—as of Sept 30, 2007, at
http://www.fs.fed.us/land/staff/lar/2007/TABLE_4.htm.
U.S. Dept. of the Interior, National Park Service, National Park System Listing of Acreage by
State as of 12/31/2007; personal communication with Mike Walsh, NPS Land Resources
Division, Washington, DC, on March 7, 2008.
U.S. Dept. of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service, Division of Realty, Annual Report of
Lands Under Control of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service as of September 30, 2006, Table
2—Summary by States, Associated Governments and Possessions, at http://www.fws.gov/
realty/pdf_files/2006LandsReport.pdf.
U.S. Dept. of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management, Public Land Statistics 2005, at
http://www.blm.gov/natacq/pls05/pls1-4_05.pdf.18
16 Other federal agencies, such as the Department of Defense, administer some federal land, but land and resource
management is not their primary mission.
17 U.S. General Services Administration, Office of Governmentwide Policy, Overview of the United States
Government’s Owned and Leased Real Property: Federal Real Property Profile as of September 30, 2004, at
http://www.gsa.gov/gsa/cm_attachments/GSA_DOCUMENT/Annual%20Report%20%20FY2004%20Final_R2M-
n11_0Z5RDZ-i34k-pR.pdf.
18 Public Land Statistics 2006 is available, but BLM-administered acreage by state is rounded off to the nearest 100,000
acres.
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Table 2. Total Area Managed by Federal Land Management Agencies
(in acres)
Fish &
Bureau of
USDA Forest National Park
Wildlife
Land
4-Agency
Service
Service
Service
Management
Total
Alabama 668,947
16,715
31,904
111,369
828,935
Alaska 21,972,605
51,084,827
76,607,085
85,553,261
235,217,778
Arizona 11,262,527
2,618,735
1,678,394
12,229,583
27,789,239
Arkansas 2,598,417
98,404
367,151
295,185
3,359,157
California 20,802,641
7,560,432
286,772
15,208,002
43,857,847
Colorado 14,519,030
609,625
137,094
8,362,619
23,628,368
Connecticut 24
5,719
956 0
6,699
Delaware
0 0 25,220
0 25,220
Florida 1,160,324
2,436,995
277,287
26,899
3,901,505
Georgia 866,024
39,645
480,889 0
1,386,558
Hawaii
1 353,661 298,596
0 652,258
Idaho 20,466,617
507,425
48,507
11,995,125
33,017,674
Illinois 297,077
12
83,530
224
380,843
Indiana 201,467
10,516
14,045 0
226,028
Iowa
0 2,708 68,349
378 71,435
Kansas 108,175
461
29,509 0
138,145
Kentucky 814,045
94,382
10,359 0
918,786
Louisiana 604,373
14,536
550,407
321,734
1,491,050
Maine 53,042
66,768
61,166
0
180,976
Maryland
0 39,508 45,658
0 85,166
Massachusetts
0 32,946 21,829
0 54,775
Michigan 2,872,833
631,716
113,998
74,807
3,693,354
Minnesota 2,840,746
139,509
470,331
146,658
3,597,244
Mississippi 1,174,079
103,698
207,865 56,212
1,541,854
Missouri 1,491,811
54,338
59,797
2,094
1,608,040
Montana 16,962,737
1,214,184
629,725
7,959,097
26,765,743
Nebraska
352,289 5,650 173,104 6,354 537,397
Nevada 5,853,963
774,509
2,333,819
47,847,657
56,809,948
New Hampshire
734,798
8,362
21,309
0
764,469
New Jersey
0
35,216
70,207
0
105,423
New Mexico
9,413,211
376,528
326,664
13,371,737
23,488,140
New
York
16,211 33,475 27,241
0 76,927
North Carolina
1,255,167
362,741
418,309
0
2,036,217
North Dakota
1,111,177
71,252
482,676
58,837
1,723,942
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Fish &
Bureau of
USDA Forest
National Park
Wildlife
Land
4-Agency
Service
Service
Service
Management
Total
Ohio 238,984
19,403
8,483
0
266,870
Oklahoma
400,768 10,008 105,612 2,136 518,524
Oregon 15,667,657
192,015
562,923
16,135,459
32,558,054
Pennsylvania 513,428
48,427
10,026
0
571,881
Rhode
Island
0 5 2,299
0 2,304
South
Carolina 629,565 30,131 124,279
0 783,975
South Dakota
2,016,889
141,317
204,450
274,450
2,637,106
Tennessee 707,387
352,962
51,214 0
1,111,563
Texas 755,365
1,191,216
513,462
11,833
2,471,876
Utah 8,200,161
2,097,106
107,263
22,869,246
33,273,776
Vermont 398,529
8,830
33,233 0
440,592
Virginia 1,664,306
306,884
130,254 805
2,102,249
Washington 9,282,376
1,832,279
148,360 403,316
11,666,331
West Virginia
1,043,028
63,802
19,399
0
1,126,229
Wisconsin 1,530,686
61,742
198,257
159,982
1,950,667
Wyoming 9,241,187
2,343,697
70,674
18,362,513
30,018,071
Territories/Other 28,149 21,995 1,720,584
0 1,770,728
U.S. Total
192,794,673 78,127,018 90,474,521 261,848,120 623,244,332
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The wilderness statistics presented in Table 3 are the current acreage estimates by the agencies.
Acreages are estimates, since few (if any) of the areas have been precisely surveyed. Table 3 is
the acreage for areas that have been designated by Congress. In addition, the agencies have
recommended areas for addition to the National Wilderness Preservation System, and continue to
review the wilderness potential of other lands under their jurisdiction, both of congressionally
designated wilderness study areas and under congressionally directed land management planning
efforts. However, statistics on acreage in pending recommendations and being studied,
particularly in the planning efforts, are unavailable.
For the FS, the same report as for general land statistics (listed above) provides wilderness data,
at http://www.fs.fed.us/land/staff/lar/2007/TABLE_9.htm. The BLM’s Public Land Statistics,
2006 shows designated wilderness, at http://www.blm.gov/pgdata/etc/medialib/blm/wo/
Business_and_Fiscal_Resources/2006_pls.PAR.36087.File.dat/Part_5.pdf. NPS data on
designated wilderness areas are available on an NPS website, at http://wilderness.nps.gov/
maplocator.cfm. FWS designated wilderness data are in Table 8 of the agency’s general lands
report, listed above. The data have been updated to reflect wilderness designations enacted since
the agencies’ tables or lists were prepared.
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As of February 29, 2008, Congress had designated 107.4 million acres of federal land in units of
the National Wilderness Preservation System, as shown in Table 3. Nearly 54% of this land—
57.6 million acres—is in Alaska, and includes most of the wilderness areas managed by the NPS
(76%) and by the FWS (90%). About a third of the Wilderness System is managed by the FS, but
84% of FS wilderness area is outside Alaska. Wilderness areas have been designated in 44 states
plus Puerto Rico; only Connecticut, Delaware, Iowa, Kansas, Maryland, and Rhode Island have
no federal lands designated as wilderness.
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Table 3. Federal Designated Wilderness Acreage, by State and by Agency
(in acres and percentage of agency/federal land)
U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Bureau of Land
Share of
USDA Forest Service National Park Service
Service
Management
Total Designated Area
NWPS
Alabama 41,367 6.2% 0 0.0% 0 0.0% 0 0.0%
41,367 5.0% 0.04%
Alaska 5,789,288 26.3%
33,079,611 64.8%
18,691,495 24.4% 0 0.0%
57,560,394 24.5% 53.52%
Arizona 1,345,008 11.9%
444,055 17.0%
1,343,444 80.0%
1,396,466 11.4%
4,528,973 16.3% 4.21%
Arkansas 116,578
4.5% 34,933
35.5% 2,144
0.6%
0
0.0% 153,655
4.6%
0.14%
California 4,707,195 22.6%
5,997,045 79.3% 9,172
3.2%
3,595,250 23.6%
14,308,662 32.6% 13.30%
Colorado
3,147,420 21.7%
60,466 9.9%
2,560 1.9%
139,524 1.7%
3,349,970 14.2% 3.11%
Connecticut 0 0.0% 0 0.0% 0 0.0% 0 n.r. 0 0.0% 0.00%
Delaware
0 n.r. 0 n.r. 0 0.0% 0 n.r. 0 0.0% 0.00%
Florida 74,495 6.4%
1,296,500 53.2%
51,252 18.5% 0 0.0%
1,422,247 36.5% 1.32%
Georgia 114,537 13.2%
8,840 22.3%
362,107 75.3% 0 n.r.
485,484 35.0% 0.45%
Hawaii
0 0.0%
155,509 44.0% 0 0.0% 0 n.r.
155,509 23.8% 0.14%
Idaho 3,961,709 19.4%
43,243 8.5% 0 0.0%
802 0.01%
4,005,754 12.1% 3.72%
Illinois 28,732 9.7% 0 0.0%
4,050 4.8% 0 0.0%
32,782 8.6% 0.03%
Indiana 12,945 6.4% 0 0.0% 0 0.0% 0 n.r.
12,945 5.7% 0.01%
Iowa
0 n.r. 0 0.0% 0 0.0% 0 0.0% 0 0.0% 0.00%
Kansas
0 0.0% 0 0.0% 0 0.0% 0 n.r. 0 0.0% 0.00%
Kentucky 18,132 2.2% 0 0.0% 0 0.0% 0 n.r.
18,132 2.0% 0.02%
Louisiana 8,679 1.4% 0 0.0%
8,346 1.5% 0 0.0%
17,025 1.1% 0.02%
Maine 12,000
22.6%
0 0.0%
7,392
12.1% 0 n.r.
19,392 10.7% 0.02%
Maryland 0 n.r. 0 0.0% 0 0.0% 0 n.r. 0 0.0% 0.00%
Massachusetts 0 n.r. 0 0.0%
3,244 14.9% 0 n.r.
3,244 5.9% 0.003%
Michigan 92,650 3.2%
132,018 20.9%
25,310 22.2% 0 0.0%
249,978 6.8% 0.23%
Minnesota
810,088 28.5% 0 0.0%
6,180 1.3% 0 0.0%
816,268 22.7% 0.76%
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U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Bureau of Land
Share of
USDA Forest Service National Park Service
Service
Management
Total Designated Area
NWPS
Mississippi 6,046 0.5%
4,080 4.0% 0 0.0% 0 0.0%
10,126 0.7% 0.01%
Missouri 63,423 4.3% 0 0.0%
7,730 12.9% 0 0.0%
71,153 4.4% 0.07%
Montana
3,372,503 19.9% 0 0.0%
64,535 10.2%
6,000 0.1%
3,443,038 12.9% 3.20%
Nebraska 7,794 2.2% 0 0.0%
4,635 2.7% 0 0.0%
12,429 2.3% 0.01%
Nevada
1,105,124
18.9% 309,539
40.0%
0
0.0% 2,036,779
4.3% 3,451,442
6.1%
3.21%
New
137,432 18.7% 0 0.0% 0 0.0% 0 n.r.
137,432 18.0% 0.13%
Hampshire
New
Jersey
0
n.r.
0
0.0% 10,341
14.7%
0
n.r. 10,341
9.8%
0.01%
New
Mexico
1,388,262 14.7%
56,392 15.0%
39,908 12.2%
150,579 1.1%
1,635,141 7.0% 1.52%
New
York 0 0.0%
1,363 4.1% 0 0.0% 0 n.r.
1,363 1.8% 0.001%
North
102,634 8.2% 0 0.0%
8,785 2.1% 0 n.r.
111,419 5.5% 0.10%
Carolina
North
0
0.0% 29,920 42.0% 9,732
2.0%
0
0.0% 39,652
2.3%
0.04%
Dakota
Ohio
0 0.0% 0 0.0%
77 0.9% 0 n.r.
77 0.03% 0.0001%
Oklahoma
14,543 3.6% 0 0.0%
8,570 8.1% 0 0.0%
23,113 4.5% 0.02%
Oregon
2,086,504 13.3% 0 0.0%
940 0.2%
186,723 1.2%
2,274,167 7.0% 2.11%
Pennsylvania
9,031 1.8% 0 0.0% 0 0.0% 0 n.r.
9,031 1.6% 0.01%
Rhode
Island 0 n.r. 0 0.0% 0 0.0% 0 n.r. 0 0.0% 0.00%
South
16,671 2.6%
15,010 49.5%
29,000 23.3% 0 n.r.
60,681 7.7% 0.06%
Carolina
South Dakota
13,426
0.7%
64,144
45.4%
0
0.0%
0
0.0%
77,570
2.9%
0.07%
Tennessee
66,349 9.4% 0 0.0% 0 0.0% 0 n.r.
66,349 6.0% 0.06%
Texas 38,483 5.1%
46,850 3.9% 0 0.0% 0 n.r.
85,333 3.5% 0.08%
Utah 772,894 9.4% 0 0.0% 0 0.0%
129,120 0.6%
902,014 2.7% 0.84%
Vermont
101,073 25.4% 0 0.0% 0 0.0% 0 n.r.
101,073 22.9% 0.09%
Virginia 97,635 5.9%
79,579 25.9% 0 0.0% 0 n.r.
177,214 8.4% 0.16%
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U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Bureau of Land
Share of
USDA Forest Service National Park Service
Service
Management
Total Designated Area
NWPS
Washington 2,675,391
28.8%
1,739,763
95.0%
839
0.6%
7,140
1.8% 4,423,133
37.9%
4.11%
West
Virginia
80,852 7.8% 0 0.0% 0 0.0% 0 n.r.
80,852 7.2% 0.08%
Wisconsin 44,108 2.9%
33,500 54.3% 29 0.01% 0 0.0%
77,637 4.0% 0.07%
Wyoming
3,111,232 33.7% 0 0.0% 0 0.0% 0 0.0%
3,111,232 10.4% 2.89%
Territories
10,000 35.5% 0 0.0% 0 0.0% 0 n.r.
10,000 0.6% 0.01%
U.S.
Total
35,566,766 18.4%
43,632,360 55.8%
20,701,816 22.9%
7,648,383 2.9%
107,549,325 17.2% 100.0%
Share of
33.1%
40.6%
19.2%
7.1%
100.0%
NWPS
Notes: n.r. = not relevant; the agency owns no land within the state.
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Ross W. Gorte
Specialist in Natural Resources Policy
rgorte@crs.loc.gov, 7-7266
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