by
Budd Titlow
Fortunately for the ever-burgeoning masses of environmentalists and conservationists in the United States, President John Fitzgerald Kennedy (JFK) nominated Stewart L. Udall—another Past Environmental Hero—as Secretary of the Interior. With this ambitious Arizonan leading the way, it was suddenly “off to the races” for a host of conservation causes and the U.S. Environmental Movement. Early in his eight-year tenure as Interior Secretary, Udall initiated the first White House “Conference on Conservation” since the administration of President Theodore Roosevelt.
Born January 31, 1920 in the small community of St. Johns, Arizona, Stewart Udall was raised in a family with strong ties to the Mormon Church. In fact, he served as a Mormon missionary in Pennsylvania and New York before receiving his bachelor’s and law degrees from the University of Arizona where he was also one of the school’s first sports stars—a point guard on the basketball team.
As Secretary of the Interior in both the Kennedy and Lydon Baines Johnson (LBJ) Administrations, Udall crafted federal land acquisitions like a master landscape painter working with broad-brush strokes. His brilliant artistry resulted in the acquisition of 3.85 million acres of new holdings, including four new national parks—Canyonlands in Utah, Redwoods in California, North Cascades in Washington State, and Guadalupe Mountains in Texas.
Stewart Udall’s brilliant artistry resulted in the acquisition of 3.85 million acres of new holdings, including four new national parks—Canyonlands in Utah, Redwoods in California, North Cascades in Washington State, and Guadalupe Mountains in Texas.
Udall’s delicately etched canvases also included six new national monuments, nine new national recreation areas, twenty new historic sites, and fifty-six new national wildlife refuges.
Of all the federal lands that Udall dealt with, establishing the Nation’s first national seashores proved to be the most difficult. Because of the typically high cost of and demand for coastal property, Udall faced vehement opposition based on the assumption that taking coastal property out of private hands would prove disastrous for the local economies.
Still he held fast to his goals, eventually establishing a host of national seashores—including Cape Hatteras on the Outer Banks of North Carolina; Assateague Island, with its hundreds of wild horses, in Maryland and Virginia; Point Reyes in northern California; and Cape Cod in Massachusetts. And—lo and behold—instead of being financial money pits, each of these coastal recreational treasures became beacons for tourists and economic bonanzas for both state and municipal governments.
Udall also extended his political artisanship to the legislative side of the aisle. He helped secure passage of the Wilderness Act of 1964, as well as the Land and Water Conservation Fund Act (1965), the Water Quality Act (1965), the Solid Waste Disposal Act (1965), the Endangered Species Preservation Act (1966), the National Historic Preservation Act (1966), and the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act (1968).
Throughout his career, Udall left a monumental legacy as a guardian of America’s natural beauty. In his best-selling 1963 book, The Quiet Crisis, he warned of the dangers of pollution and threats to America’s natural resources, calling for a nationwide “land conscience” to conserve our nation’s wild places. Udall’s stated goal in The Quiet Crisis was “to outline the land and people story of our continent.” Elaborating further, he wrote: “We cannot afford an America where expedience tramples upon esthetics and development decisions are made with an eye only on the present.”
Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi, had this to say about Stewart Udall after his passing in 2010, “Mr. Udall was one of the greatest champions in our nation’s history for conservation. As Interior secretary he championed the burgeoning environmental movement, protected the treasures that are our parks, seashores and wildlife refuges, worked for energy independence, and ensured the arts remain a central part of civic life.”
Also in tribute, President Barack Obama said this about Udall’s federal service: “(As) Secretary of the Interior, Stewart Udall left an indelible mark on this nation and inspired countless Americans who will continue his fight for clean air, clean water, and to maintain our many natural treasures”.
“Cherish sunsets, wild creatures and wild places. Have a love affair with the wonder and beauty of the earth.”
– Stewart Udall
The Climate Change movement certainly craves public sector leaders like Stewart Udall. We need people in the seats of power who can see the “big picture” and understand how all the pieces—from key land purchases, to implementation of pollution controls, to development and allocation of new energy resources, and equitable distribution of wealth and power—must fit together to provide a roadmap for the future that is both realistic and achievable.
Text excerpted from book: “PROTECTING THE PLANET: Environmental Champions from Conservation to Climate Change” written by Budd Titlow and Mariah Tinger and published by Prometheus Books. Photo credits: Copyright Shutterstock(3)
Author’s bio: For the past 50 years, professional ecologist and conservationist Budd Titlow has used his pen and camera to capture the awe and wonders of our natural world. His goal has always been to inspire others to both appreciate and enjoy what he sees. Now he has one main question: Can we save humankind’s place — within nature’s beauty — before it’s too late? Budd’s two latest books are dedicated to answering this perplexing dilemma. “PROTECTING THE PLANET: Environmental Champions from Conservation to Climate Change”, a non-fiction book, examines whether we still have the environmental heroes among us — harking back to such past heroes as Audubon, Hemenway, Muir, Douglas, Leopold, Brower, Carson, and Meadows — needed to accomplish this goal. Next, using fact-filled and entertaining story-telling, his latest book — “COMING FULL CIRCLE: A Sweeping Saga of Conservation Stewardship Across America” — provides the answers we all seek and need. Having published five books, more than 500 photo-essays, and 5,000 photographs, Budd Titlow lives with his music educator wife, Debby, in San Diego, California.
CONSERVING NATURE WITH WORDS & PHOTOS 