WILD LIFE IN NATIONAL ECONOMY 2 g 



misuses the portion of the natural resources committed to 

 his care. If he cuts away the timber on his land or allows 

 his cattle and sheep to over-graze a certain area and serious 

 erosion occurs, national wealth is wasted and ultimately the 

 nation pays the bill. If an individual destroys cover useful 

 to wild life in a feeding area, the nation as a whole has lost 

 something of value and ultimately must repair the damage 

 done. Repair, however, is a negative policy. Prevention is 

 cheaper and more efficient. Instead of spending money to 

 replace cover on wild-life feeding grounds, rather pay the 

 individual to maintain the cover in the first place. That 

 payment can well take the form of a tax abatement. 



The third method is outright purchase. Under eminent 

 domain proceedings the national and state governments are 

 endowed with the authority to take private property for a 

 public purpose upon payment of just compensation. This is 

 a method that should be used with caution, for eminent 

 domain proceedings imply sale against the will of the owner 

 and many times cause ill feeling. In addition, eminent do- 

 main involving as it does court action, increases the cost 

 of the purchase. Therefore, whenever it is possible to 

 acquire sufficient quantities of suitable land through volun- 

 tary purchase to meet the needs of the government it should 

 be done. 



The size of existing federal or state reservations may be 

 increased or new ones created by purchasing additional areas, 

 but the acquisition of scattered holdings not contiguous to 

 existing reservations promptly raises the question of how 

 the land is to be administered. For this reason the govern- 

 ment should make no attempt to acquire all areas that are 

 submarginal for agricultural use but only those which it has 

 the facilities to administer for other purposes. 



These three methods: zoning, tax abatement, and pur- 

 chase are the means by which a national land plan can be 

 put into effect. The first appeals to the local community 



