LANDSCAPE ACTION PROGRAM 477 



want initiative but they also want Federal dollars. I would not like 

 to see proposals to amend the Fund Act, at least not until we have 

 had a year or two of experience. 



The role of the Recreation Advisory Council with respect to nat- 

 ural beauty needs to be clarified because of the close relationship 

 between natural beauty and outdoor recreation. 



We have heard a good bit in this conference about the Advisory 

 Council, the Bureau of Outdoor Recreation, and its location in 

 the Department of the Interior. As administrator of the Fund Act, 

 as Director of the Bureau, and as chief staff aide to the Council, I 

 have given considerable thought to these matters in the last several 

 years. 



I want to say flat out that I disagree with any proposal to divorce 

 the Bureau of Outdoor Recreation from the Department of the In- 

 terior. We have been helped, not hindered, by being in Interior 

 the prime function of which is conservation of natural resources. We 

 have had the strength of the Secretary of the Interior behind us. 

 Also, if the Bureau of Outdoor Recreation were to become purely a 

 staff agency to the Advisory Council, the operating muscle to im- 

 plement natural beauty and recreation, that is now available through 

 the Land and Water Conservation Fund Act, would be lost to this 

 Bureau. 



A directive from the Congress or the Recreation Advisory Council 

 to include natural beauty in the nationwide outdoor recreation 

 plan that is being prepared under the organic act of the Bureau 

 of Outdoor Recreation would be effective because other Federal 

 programs must be carried out in conformance with that plan after 

 its submission to the Congress in 1968. Here is another example of 

 muscle already available. 



There are many other things that could be recommended, such 

 as education both general and professional demonstration areas, 

 advisory groups, and financial inducements other than matching 

 grants, such as loans, tax relief, and insurance aids. 



Policy with respect to regulatory agencies is unclear. License re- 

 quirements of the Federal Power Commission might well include 

 natural beauty specifically. Local zoning could be an effective in- 

 strument to accomplish landscaping, and to control billboards and 

 other unsightly features. Other types of regulation could moderate 

 pollution, both air and water. 



Finally, there needs to be crystallization of public opinion. 



