[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 35, Number 41 (Monday, October 18, 1999)]
[Page 2063]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Proclamation 7241--National Forest Products Week, 1999

October 15, 1999

By the President of the United States

of America

A Proclamation

    From our earliest days as a Nation, America's forests have played a 
vital role in fostering our country's economic strength and enhancing 
the quality of our lives. American Indians and European settlers alike 
found in our forests the fuel and material for shelter to sustain their 
families and communities. From those same forests came timber for our 
fleets of sailing ships and the ties for our railroads that span the 
continent. Whether working in lumber mills or paper mills, for furniture 
manufacturers or the building industry, generations of Americans have 
earned their livelihood from the bounty of our forests.
    Forests bring more, however, to our lives than economic prosperity. 
They provide invaluable habitat for a variety of plants and animals, 
help to keep our air and water clean, and promote soil stability. They 
also renew our spirits by offering us a place to experience the beauty, 
peace, and diversity of the natural world.
    As our Nation has grown and developed, so too have our demands on 
our forests. We can be grateful that, despite decades of exploitation, 
forests still comprise as much as one-third of our country's land area 
today. Thanks to innovative management techniques, individual and 
corporate commitment to recycling, and close cooperation between 
Federal, State, and private land owners, we are succeeding in sustaining 
the health and productivity of these precious natural resources. Through 
continued wise stewardship, we can ensure that future generations of 
Americans will have the same opportunities to share the beauty and 
bounty of our forests as we enjoy today.
    To recognize the importance of our forests in ensuring the long-term 
welfare of our Nation, the Congress, by Public Law 86-753 (36 U.S.C. 
123), has designated the week beginning on the third Sunday in October 
of each year as ``National Forest Products Week'' and has authorized and 
requested the President to issue a proclamation in observance of this 
week.
    Now, Therefore, I, William J. Clinton, President of the United 
States of America, do hereby proclaim October 17 through October 23, 
1999, as National Forest Products Week. I call upon all Americans to 
observe this week with appropriate ceremonies and activities.
    In Witness Whereof,  I have hereunto set my hand this fifteenth day 
of October, in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and ninety-nine, 
and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred 
and twenty-fourth.
                                            William J. Clinton

[Filed with the Office of the Federal Register, 11:04 a.m., October 18, 
1999]

Note: This proclamation will be published in the Federal Register on 
October 19.