A Mandate To Protect America's Wilderness

Surveys of public opinion taken over the past four years by commercial polling firms and the media--and by the federal government itself—consistently find that the American people treasure the heritage of wilderness on their public lands.

The American people want to see more of their federal lands preserved as wilderness—consistently and by wide margins.

This report is based on a comprehensive review of public opinion polls concerning wilderness taken in 1999, 2000, 2001 and 2002. In this first review of its kind, we sought to include all credible polling touching on wilderness. The support for preserving wilderness—and more of it—is highly consistent through them all. The findings of polls by commercial firms and the media are confirmed by academic surveys and, most notably, in intensive polling done by the U.S. government.