December 8, 2004
The California Wilderness Legacy Project was formed in 2003 to address a growing need to educate both wilderness visitors and the general public in the protection and stewardship of our state and federal wilderness areas.
Increasing visitor use and declining agency wilderness budgets have made it essential that those who value wilderness have a greater understanding of the elements that contribute to its preservation, as well as the need to play a greater role in wilderness protection. There is also a need to better inform citizens of the value and benefits of expanding our National Wilderness Preservation System.
In 1964 when the Wilderness Act was passed by Congress, crowds and overuse were not a problem in most of the new wilderness areas. Yet many felt that wilderness was not supposed to be managed at all and that tourism activities contradicted the intent of the Wilderness Act. It was advocated by some that we should just draw a circle around wilderness on a map and forget it. Even today, when the subject of managing wilderness is discussed, a frequently voiced opinion is that we should "just leave it alone."
Beginning in the early 1970s, there have been significant increases in the level of wilderness visitation. The popularity of areas such as the Desolation Wilderness have led to permit systems that limit the number of visitors in order to help prevent the degradation of wilderness qualities. Closer to home, areas such as Canyon Creek in the Trinity Alps Wilderness are experiencing increases in use that make solitude difficult to find and impacts to the wilderness more evident and widespread.
One of the misconceptions about wilderness management is that it's somehow about manipulating the naturalness and wildness of wilderness. In fact, wilderness management is really about people management. Wilderness management and stewardship are almost always concerned with managi ng human activity to prevent or minimize impacts to the naturalness and wildness of wilderness. Visitors have likely seen at least a few of these impacts on their own wilderness journeys. Problems include non-system trails threading through meadows; vegetation trampled, thereby causing soil erosion; campfire scars and fire rings dotting popular overnight areas; firewood either unavailable or at a premium, and living trees damaged in the quest for firewood; streams and lakes polluted with food waste, soap and shampoo, and improperly disposed-of human waste and litter. Applying the "broken window theory" of urban decay to wilderness, tolerating these conditions in our wilderness areas can lead to their acceptance as the norm and initiate a cycle that results in the steady deterioration of wilderness resources.
While it is important to employ "Leave No Trace" practices when traveling and camping in wilderness, visitors should also begin to proactively engage in the efforts necessary to restore or naturalize areas that have been impacted by improper or excessive human use.
To help address all of these challenges, the California Wilderness Legacy Project developed a workshop designed to educate wilderness visitors and the public in the essentials of wilderness protection and rehabilitation.
"Thinking like a Mountain: A Wilderness Stewardship Workshop" uses the 1964 Wilderness Act as a source of inspiration and guidance, focusing on management issues and actions, and the development of personal wilderness values and ethics. It utilizes an interactive approach that includes videos, PowerPoint presentations, demonstrations, and discussion. Topics include:
History of the 1964 Wilderness Act.
A review of wildlands protection prior the passage of the 1964 Wilderness Act is followed by the video presentation "Wild by Law: The Rise of Environmentalism and the Creation of the Wilderness Act" (58 min). "Wild by Law" is the Academy Award-nominated story of the Wilderness Act of 1964 and three men responsible for its passage: Aldo Leopold, Bob Marshall, and Howard Zahniser.
Leave No Trace Practices and Wilderness Ethics
A video presentation of "Soft Paths: How to enjoy the wilderness without harming it" (30 min) is followed by a review and discussion of LNT principles and wilderness ethics. The "Soft Paths" video uses narration and spectacular visuals to convey effective minimum-impact backcountry travel and camping techniques.
Principles of Wilderness Stewardship
Following a review of the stewardship direction provided by the 1964 Wilderness Act, the PowerPoint presentation "Managing Wilderness for Wildness and Naturalness" reviews ten key principles of wilderness management and stewardship. Agency interpretations of the Wilderness Act and the concepts of both the "minimum tool" and the "minimum requirement" are covered.
Managing Human Impacts in Wilderness
Examples of common human impacts present in northern California wilderness areas are illustrated in a PowerPoint presentation. Effective methods of resource protection are explored, along with "hands-on" rehabilitation techniques and tools that are appropriate for use in wilderness.
This workshop can be used as a springboard for involvement in local wilderness stewardship projects and to promote citizen constituencies that support northern California wilderness areas.
Under development is an educational PowerPoint presentation entitled "Why Wilderness Matters" that presents to the audience the benefits of preserving suitable state and federal lands as wilderness. Its message is tailored to target a rural/conservative audience. Obtaining the congressional support necessary for the passage of wilderness legislation requires broad-based local support that includes non-traditional supporters of wilderness. To encourage support from rural areas, this presentation seeks to dispel the myths and misinformation that surround wilderness and reframe the perception of wilderness to emphasize its harmony with traditional values.
For more information please contact:
Gordon Johnson
California Wilderness Legacy Project
P.O. Box 781
Palo Cedro, CA 96073
(530) 242-1912
gjohnson@ridgeline.net
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TOC for Forest & River News, Fall 2004