Irrigation accounts for one-half of the Nation's consumption of 

 fresh water. By 1975 daily use of water is expected to nearly double, 

 an increase which would be equivalent to the daily flow of over 13 

 Colorado Rivers. Inevitably, western National Forests will continue 

 their indispensable role as regulators of the kind and amount of fresh 

 water available to western people. 



Similarly, in recreation the National Forests are of increasing im- 

 portance because of more leisure time, greater mobility of the average 

 family, increased accessibility of the National Forests, and the rela- 

 tively low cost of a National Forest vacation. 



The National Forests are the largest public forest system where everyone is welcome to hunt, 



fish, and observe wildlife. 



In the West, over one-fifth of the sheep and one-eighth of the cattle 

 graze National Forest and Grassland ranges for a portion of the year. 

 Over one-third of all big game in the Nation is found on the National 

 Forests along with 81 thousand miles of fishing streams and nearly 

 3 million acres of natural lakes and impounded waters. 



NATIONAL FOREST PROGRESS 



The "National Forests" in 1905 were largely undeveloped, remote, 

 back-country areas. There were few roads or other facilities for pro- 

 tection and management. For the most part, the forest boundaries 

 Avere not marked or even surveyed. Today the resources and develop- 

 ments on the National Forests and National Grasslands represent a 

 substantial investment which plays a major part in the Nation's 

 economy. 



In Fiscal Year 1960, National Forest timber sales reached an all- 

 time high of 12.2 billion board feet. Receipts from the harvest of this 



