that its implementation will place a consider- 

 able burden on the various agencies as they at- 

 tempt to meet its requirements. But there is 

 little room for equivocation in one respect. 

 The Forest Service must interpret its manage- 

 ment function as preserving and enhancing 

 the environmental values and amenities to the 

 greatest extent possible (fig. 9). The NEPA 

 gives broader meaning to such phrases as 

 "destruction and depredation" and "without 

 impairment of the productivity of the land," 

 contained in earlier legislation. 



The Mandate and the Goal 



Where, then, do we stand in our search for 

 goals and priorities to guide the policy formu- 

 lation and management of the National Forest 

 System? Two conclusions are indicated. 



Maximize Total Value 



First, the goal specified to the Forest Serv- 

 ice is to maximize the total value of the Na- 



tional Forests. Although this goal is nowhere 

 spelled out, the sum total of the legislation re- 

 viewed implies it. Maximization, for example, 

 is not specifically identified, but nevertheless 

 is called for. Thus Pinchot ordered that "all 

 land is to be devoted to its most productive 

 use." Further, his call for "the greatest good 

 of the greatest number in the long run" im- 

 plies maximization, if anything. The Mc- 

 Sweeney-McNary Act told investigators " to 

 determine and promulgate the economic con- 

 siderations which should underlie the establish- 

 ment of sound policies. . . ." The MU-SY Act 

 calls on the agency to make the most judicious 

 use of the land. (Other aspects of the goal will 

 be specifically indentified in a following sec- 

 tion.) The Forest Service, in 'seeking to thus 

 maximize total value, must evaluate as com- 

 pletely as possible the environmental effects of 

 any actions it takes with respect to the various 

 resources in their realm of management. These 

 resources are implied in the early legislation 

 and finally specifically identified in the 



■■■■■■■■■■ni 



Figure 9. — The Forest Service mandate requires the preservation and enhancement of environ- 

 mental values and amenities, including such panoramic vistas as this one of Little Redfish 

 Lake on the Sawtooth National Forest in Idaho. 



33 



