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"It is hereby declared to be the policy
of the United States that certain selected rivers of the Nation, with
their immediate environments, possess outstandingly remarkable scenic,
recreational, geologic, fish and wildlife, historic, cultural, or other
similar values, shall be preserved in free flowing condition, and that
they and their immediate environments shall be protected for the benefit
and enjoyment of present and future generations."  
Wild
and Scenic Rivers
The Wild and Scenic Rivers Act, Public Law 90-542,
October 2, 1968, provides for the establishment of a system of rivers
to be preserved as free-flowing streams accessible for public use and
enjoyment. Federally managed components of the system are designated by
an Act of Congress. Usually Congress first authorizes a detailed study
to determine the qualification of a river area for the system. Rivers
and streams that are in state-protected systems may become units of the
National System if the state’s Governor petitions for such inclusion.
The Secretary of the Interior may then designate the river, if it is appropriate,
as a unit of the system.
Components of the system, which may include only a
portion of a river, are classified as wild, scenic or recreational rivers.
They are classified according to the degree of development on the river,
shorelines and adjacent lands. Thus a wild river shows little evidence
of human activity, the river is free of dams, and it is generally inaccessible
except by trail. A scenic river is one with relatively primitive shorelines
but accessible in places by road. A recreational river has more development,
is accessible, and may have been dammed or diverted in the past. Once
a river is designated a component of the Wild and Scenic Rivers System,
the objective is to preserve or enhance the features that qualified the
river for inclusion within the system.
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to River Management
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