U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's National Wildlife Refuge System Program Description Program Mission. The National Wildlife Refuge System, administered through the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service within the Department of Interior, includes the nation's largest system of lands managed for the benefit of wildlife.
Refuges are first for wildlife - both above and below water.
But, they are also for today's Americans and for the future generations to enjoy and treasure in their full and natural splendor. TThe refuge system is home to over 530 refuges, in every state of the nation and many of its territories. Most of these refuges are included in the Executive Order 13158 inventory list for marine protected areas. Legal authorities for the management of these lands and waters, and the species that depend upon them, reside primarily in the Refuge System Administration Act of 1966 and the National Wildlife Refuge System Improvement Act of 1997. The Endangered Species Act also guides the establishment and management of many Refuges - as do hundreds of Executive Orders, Secretarial Decrees, and additional legislative authorities.