    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1997, Book II)]
    [October 9, 1997]
    [Pages 1332-1333]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Statement on Signing the National Wildlife Refuge System Improvement Act
    of 1997
    October 9, 1997

        I am pleased to sign today H.R. 1420, the ``National Wildlife Refuge
    System Improvement Act of 1997.'' This Act will strengthen and improve
    our National Wildlife Refuge System as we enter the 21st century. It
    embodies the principle that whether they cast a line, pitch a decoy, or
    click a shutter, the 30 million Americans who annually visit and enjoy
    our refuges have one common and enduring interest--the conservation of
    fish, wildlife, and their habitat. That is what the National Wildlife
    Refuge System is about and that is what this Act will promote and
    ensure.
        The National Wildlife Refuge System is the world's greatest system
    of lands dedicated to the conservation of fish and wildlife. It is a
    system founded in faith; a belief that in a country as bountiful and
    diverse as ours, there ought to be special places that are set aside
    exclusively for the conservation of fish and wildlife resources. These
    special places are National Wildlife Refuges where the conservation
    needs of wildlife are paramount.
        Key provisions of H.R. 1420 mirror those of Executive Order 12996,
    Management and General Public Use of the National Wildlife Refuge
    System, which I signed in March 1996. These provisions include the
    mission statement for the Refuge System, the designation of priority
    public uses, and a requirement that the environmental health of the
    Refuge System be maintained.
        The bill maintains the crucial distinction clearly set forth in my
    Executive order between wildlife conservation as the dominant refuge
    goal and compatible wildlife-dependent recreation as a priority public
    use. Wildlife conservation is the purpose of the refuges. The
    opportunity for compatible recreational uses are the important benefits
    that flow from this purpose. This bill recognizes that the use of refuge
    lands and waters, to the extent that such use can be allowed, shall be
    reserved first to those recreational activities that depend and thrive
    on abundant populations of fish and wildlife.
        The bill also maintains the strict policy, first established by the
    National Wildlife Refuge System Administration Act of 1966, that all
    refuge

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    uses must be compatible with the primary purpose or purposes for which
    the refuge was established. It sets up a sensible, consistent, and
    public process for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's managers to
    follow in making compatibility determinations, and it adopts the Fish
    and Wildlife Service's longstanding regulatory standard for
    compatibility.
        The bill reiterates the specific categories of wildlife-dependent
    recreation found in Executive Order 12996 that are to be considered as
    the ``priority public uses'' for the refuge system: hunting, fishing,
    wildlife observation and photography, and environmental education and
    interpretation. Where compatible, refuge managers are to provide
    increased opportunities for these uses and enhance the attention they
    receive in refuge management and planning.
        Finally, H.R. 1420 maintains the historic Refuge System policy that
    refuges are ``closed until open.'' That is, in order to ensure that
    wildlife needs come first, existing refuge lands and waters are closed
    to public uses until they are specifically opened for such uses. Also as
    provided in Executive Order 12996, the bill establishes a new process
    for identifying compatible wildlife-dependent recreational activities
    prior to the acquisition of new refuge areas, thereby avoiding the
    temporary closure of ongoing compatible recreational activities.
        This bill is the result of extensive negotiations by my
    Administration, the Congress, and environmental and sportmen's groups.
    Starting from widely differing positions, they worked intensively to
    reach the compromise reflected in this legislation. The bill is proof
    that when there is a shared commitment to do what is right for our
    natural resources, partisan and ideological differences can be set aside
    and compromises can be negotiated for the benefit of the common good. It
    is clearly the most significant conservation legislation to emerge from
    this Congress to date. I hope and trust the process by which this bill
    was enacted will serve as a model for future congressional action on
    other environmental measures.

                                                          William J. Clinton

    The White House,

    October 9, 1997.

    Note: H.R. 1420, approved October 9, was assigned Public Law No. 105-57.