Public Law 90-542, 90th Congress, S. 119

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Public Law 90 -542 90th Congress, S. 119 October 2, 1968 20 act To provide for u Natloaal Wild and Senile Rivers System, and for ether 11urlwiies• Be, it enrmted by the Senate and 11ouxe of lee resentatives of the United .S'tatea of America in !,'ongrem aaaennbled, That (a) this Act wild Soenio, may he cited as the "Wild and Scenic Rivers Act ". and Rivers Act. (b) It is ]hereby declared to be the policy of the [Jnit.ed States that certain selected rivers of the Nation which, with their immediate environments, possess outstandingly remarkable scenic recreational, eologic, fish and wildlife, historic, cultural, or other sun values, ilal slutll be preserved in free - flowing condition, and that, they and their illimediate cuvironlneias shall Ile protected for the benefit and enjoy - lllellt of present alld flltllre. gellera(iolls. Tile Congress deelares that the established nat.ic» utl J)olicy of clam and other construction at appro- priate sections of the rivers of the United States needs to Ile conl- plemented by It ))olicy that would preserve other selected rivers or sections thereof in their free - flowing condition to protect, the water• quality of sucll rivers and to fulfill other vital national conservation pill-posits. (c) The purpose of this Act. Is t0 Illlplelllellt this policy by Illstlllit- 1119 it national wild and scenic rivers system,, by designat.in ► the initial components of that System, and by prescIibing the methods by which and standards according to which additional components may be added to the system from time to time. Sxc. 2. (a) The national wild and scenic rivers system shall comprise rivers (i) that are authorized for inclusion therein by Act of Congress, National wild and soenio or (ii) that tare designated as wild, scenic or recreational rivers by Ill• rivers system. pursliallt to all act Of the legislature of the, State or States throe Th which they flow, that are to be perilutneully achll ill ist.ered its wild scenic or recreational rivers by an agency or political subdivision of the State or States concerned without expense to the United States, that are found by the Secretary of the Interior, upon application of the ('governor of the State or the Governors the States of conc erned, M' it person of persons tilerelllllo dilly appoillied by Milli or Illvill, I( lueet the criteria established in this Act, will such (•ritcl•ia suJ a2 ';TAT xir M t;'i'A'I'. Tic- luentiu•y thereto as Ile 11 - lay prescribe, lout that area appi-wed by i1u for inclusion in the system, including, upon application oft I le Governor of the State concerned, the Allagash Wilderness Waterway, Maine, and that segment of the Ivolf Diver, Wisconsin, which flows through Langlade County. (b) A wild, scenic or recreational river area eligible to be included in the system is a free - flowing stream and the related adjacent land Eligibility for inolusion. area that possesses one or more of the values referred to in sectioll 1, subsection (b) of this Act. Every wild, scenic or recreatiomd river in its free- tlowilig condition, or upon restoration to this condition, shall be considered eligible for inclusion in the national wild and scenic rivers system and, if included, shall be classified, designated, and administered as one of the following: (1) Wild river areas- -Those rivers or sections of rivers that are free of impoundments and generally inaccessible except by trail, with watersheds or shorelines essentially primitive and waters unpolluted. These represent vestiges of primitive America. (2) Scenic river areas —Those rivers or sections of rivers that are free of impoundments, with shorelines or watersheds still largely primitive and shorelines largely undeveloped, but acces- sib le in places by roads. (8) Recreational river areas —Those rivers or sections of rivers that are readily accessible by road or railroad, that may have some 20- 277(432) 0 - 68