Presidential Documents

Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 169 / Friday, September 3, 2021 / Presidential Documents 49901 

Proclamation 10248 of August 31, 2021 

National Wilderness Month, 2021 

By the President of the United States of America 

A Proclamation 

America’s public lands and waters, awe-inspiring landscapes, and cultural 

sites reflect a deep and abiding connection to our natural heritage. Our 

lands and waters are rich with diverse plant and animal life, and we are 

privileged to be able to enjoy irreplaceable national treasures that amaze 

us, inspire us, fill us with pride, support our lives and livelihoods, and 

belong to all of us in equal measure. 

During National Wilderness Month, we affirm that our Nation’s public lands 

and waters must be accessible to all Americans, we recognize that our 

lands and waters can revitalize the soul and solidify our respect for the 

natural wonders that surround us and the earth we share, and we recommit 

to their preservation and protection, today and for future generations. 

The Wilderness Act, signed into law by President Lyndon B. Johnson in 

1964, opened a new chapter in American conservation by creating the National Wilderness Preservation System. The primary goal of the act is to 

preserve the places ‘‘where the earth and its community of life are 

untrammeled.’’ Today, the National Wilderness Preservation System includes 

more than 800 wilderness areas spanning more than 111 million acres. 

These wilderness areas are located within national forests, parks, wildlife 

refuges, and conservation lands and waters. During the COVID–19 pandemic, 

many Americans turned to these areas for physical recreation, mental wellbeing, and inspiration, and our public lands and waters became places 

of healing and sanctuary. 

But our natural wonders are at risk. Now more than ever, we must come 

together to combat the climate crisis and unprecedented acceleration of 

species extinction, to protect and conserve our great outdoors before it 

is too late. Since taking office, I have recommitted the United States to 

the Paris Climate Agreement, pushed for stronger action to cut greenhouse 

gas pollution, and resolved to strengthen our resilience against rising temperatures. Additionally, my Administration’s historic ‘‘America the Beautiful’’ 

initiative sets a national conservation goal to invest in, conserve, connect, 

and restore at least 30 percent of the Nation’s lands and waters by 2030. 

These diverse landscapes and waterways are vital in so many ways: they 

provide homes to fish and wildlife, and hold resources that sustain our 

own lives, counteract the damaging impacts of climate change, and underpin 

our global economy. 

We also recognize that not all Americans have access to our public lands. 

My Administration is committed to ensuring that all peoples and communities have clean air and clean water, and receive the additional physical, 

spiritual, and economic benefits that our great wilderness provides. As the 

original stewards of these lands, Tribal Nations and Indigenous communities 

have a sacred connection and deep understanding of our Nation’s wilderness 

areas, and the history of America’s public lands has too often involved 

broken promises to the Native peoples who have lived on them since time 

immemorial. I am committed to working in partnership with Tribal, State, 

and local partners to find solutions to our most pressing conservation and 


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49902 Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 169 / Friday, September 3, 2021 / Presidential Documents 

stewardship challenges, and to honoring the special relationship of Tribes 

to their ancestral sacred lands. This work is urgent. 

During National Wilderness Month, let us strengthen our connection to 

the American wilderness areas, support their designation and protection, 

and work to preserve the stories they tell, the memories they create, and 

the heritage they reflect for all Americans for generations to come. 

NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., President of the United States 

of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution 

and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim September 2021 

as National Wilderness Month. I encourage all Americans to experience 

our Nation’s outdoor heritage, to recreate responsibly and to leave no trace, 

to celebrate the value of preserving an enduring resource of wilderness, 

and to strengthen our commitment to protecting these vital lands and waters 

now and for future generations. 

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this thirty-first day 

of August, in the year of our Lord two thousand twenty-one, and of the 

Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and fortysixth. 

[FR Doc. 2021–19329 

Filed 9–2–21; 11:15 am] 

Billing code 3295–F1–P 


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