No other period of American history has witnessed as keen 

 an interest in outdoor recreation as we are now experiencing. 

 Outdoor activities are no longer considered as mere luxury; 

 rather, they are gaining acceptance as an integral part of the 

 nation's health and well-being. So keen is the interest that an 

 exhaustive program of national scope has been undertaken in 

 order to assess recreation possibilities and to predict needs until 

 the year 2,000. By that time it is estimated that outdoor recreation 

 will have tripled over what it is today. 



There is a great deal of concern for the future among con- 

 servation leaders. One of the more serious problems is that of 

 assuring permanent access to recreational areas and, for that 

 matter, assuring permanence of recreational areas themselves. 

 It is known, for example that water is the focal point of outdoor 

 recreation. Still, the amount of good quality water is dwindling 

 every year with little assurance that the loss will not continue. 

 Fish and game departments are understandably concerned over 

 this loss, lor nation-wide fishing ranks seventh place in all out- 

 door recreation. With the loss of quality v/ater that will support 

 game fish, coming generations would be deprived of iheir rightful 

 heritage. 



By the turn of the century three-fourths of our people will be 

 living in urban areas. By 1970 some 215 million Americans will 

 be looking for places to go and for things to do outdoors. The 

 challenge to fish and wildlife agencies is clearcut— they must not 

 only maintain present standards of hunting and fishing but must 

 do all they can to better them in order to accommodate a growing 

 America. 



W. J. EVERIN, Director 



Montana Fish & Game Department 



