Preserving the Great Outdoors

More than two decades ago a national outdoor-recreation review commission chaired by Laurance S. Rockefeller spawned some of the nation’s most innovative and important resource programs. They included the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System, the Land and Water Conservation Fund and the National Trails System.

Today a new commission has the opportunity to push the concept of outdoor recreation and conservation into the 21st Century if it has the proper leadership, imagination and daring.

The leadership potential certainly is there. The chairman of the new President’s Commission on Americans Outdoors is Tennessee’s Gov. Lamar Alexander, who has solid environmental credentials and a demonstrated ability to be creative and innovative. Unfortunately, the rest of the 12-member commission--with a few exceptions such as Rep. Morris K. Udall (D-Ariz.)--is not as distinguished as it could be.

In making the appointments, President Reagan passed over the major environmental groups that have battled in the past five years to maintain the integrity of the national park system and American wilderness areas. There are no prominent scientists or naturalists. Thus there is a danger that the commission will lack the proper zeal for the primary need of protecting and caring for the parklands and wildlands that we have now.

The commission faces the challenge of preserving the best of our natural resources for coming generations while making the outdoors accessible to as many Americans as possible for a variety of recreation activities. Recreation has become a major American industry since the Rockefeller commission conducted its studies, and the Alexander commission is certain to be flooded with ideas for money-making ventures. There will be pressure to raise park entrance and camping fees to help offset expenses.

Those who can afford to pay for the limited special parkland benefits available--a night at Yosemite’s Ahwanee Hotel, for example--should do so. But it is important that the nation not erect an economic fence around its parks, with the less-fortunate Americans forced to stand outside. The nation’s park system is one of the most grandly democratic ideals ever put into force.

The commission will have to deal with many inherent conflicts. These can be overcome if it refuses to put limits on its imagination and political will. The immense good that can come from proper care and expansion of our outdoor recreation and park system cannot be measured in dollars.