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<br />0- \~\;!" .\ <br />......-.... - <br /> <br />CHAPTER I <br />NTRODUCTION <br /> <br />On October 2, 1968, Congress passed the Wild and Scenic Rivers <br />Act (Publ ic Law 90-542). This act created a national policy of <br />. preserving certain outstanding rivers or river segments for the <br />enjoyment of present and future generations. To implement this <br />policy, Congress established the National Wild and Scenic Rivers <br />System and designated all or portions of eight rivers as initial <br />components of that system. There are now 27 rivers or river <br />segments in the national system. <br /> <br />Other rivers mentioned in the original act, and in subsequent <br />amendments to it have been or are being studied. The amendment <br />of January 3, 1975, P. L. 93-621, designated 29 additional rivers for <br />study, 12 of which are located in Colorado. Among these potential <br />additions is the 29-mile (46-km) segment of the Gunnison River from <br />the upstream (southern) boundary of Black Canyon of the <br />Gunnison National Monument to its confluence with the North Fork <br />(figure 1-1). The legislation required that a report on the river's <br />suitability for inclusion in the national system be submitted to the <br />President for transmittal to Congress no later than October 2, 1979. <br /> <br />LEGISLATIVE MANDATES <br /> <br />I <br />I <br />. <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />Procedures and criteria for determining the eligibility and <br />classification of a river which may qualify as part of the national <br />system are outlined in the act and in joint guidelines issued in <br />February 1970 by the Departments of the Interior and Agriculture. <br />The information presented in chapters II and III of this report was <br />used to determine the eligibility of the Gunnison River; a discussion <br />of its eligibility and classification is presented in chapter I V. <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />1 <br />