Wilderness

Wilderness enriches the lives of Alaskans and millions of Americans and provides cultural, spiritual, symbolic, wildlife, ecological, scenic, and recreational values. Visionary Alaskans were influential in the passage of the 1964 Wilderness Act which established the National Wilderness Preservation System. The Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act of 1980 designated millions of acres of wilderness as a protective layer in national parks, refuges, and national forests while also recognizing the realities of Alaskan life.