Journal of Environmental Management 30, 157-l 74
Value of Wilderness Designation in Utah
C. Arden Pope III
Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah, U.S.A.
and Jeffrey W. Jones
Foreign Agricultural Service, Washington, D.C., U.S.A.
Received 19 August 1988
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1. Introduction

158 Wilderness designation
Utah wilderness designation conducted by the University of Utah Survey Research
Center in July 1986, indicated that the public generally supports wilderness protection.
The study which is reported here, however, uses a developing approach of estimating
non-market values called contingent valuation to provide a measure of the value of
wilderness designation. This measure can be compared with values of alternative uses.
2. History of wilderness designation in Utah
By December 31, 1984, wilderness designation in the United States totalled 88 522 321
acres. This represents 3.8% of the total U.S. land area. Approximately 64% of the total
U.S. designated wilderness is in Alaska, 32% in the eleven most western states, and the
remaining 4% is located in the other 38 states. Excluding Alaska, 87% of present
designated wilderness is situated in the western United States. Approximately 1.45% of
the land base of the lower 48 states is designated as wilderness. All land designated as
wilderness, no matter which Federal Agency administers it, automatically becomes part
of the National Wilderness Preservation System (NWPS). NWPS lands are administered
by several federal agencies, including the following: (1) Park Service administering
approximately 42%; (2) U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service (FS) adminis-
tering approximately 36%; (3) National Fish and Wildlife Service administering ap-
proximately 22%; and (4) Bureau of Land Management administering less than 1% of
the total NWPS lands (U.S. Department of Agriculture, 1985).
The first land designated as wilderness in Utah came with passage of the Endangered
American Wilderness Act of 1978, which designated 30 088 acres of the Lone Peak area
in the Wasatch National Forest. In 1984, congress passed the Utah Wilderness Act that
encompassed approximately 750 000 acres in 12 areas. Also in 1984, congress passed the
Arizona Wilderness Act that added 22 551 acres in Utah of designated wilderness which
presently is the only designated wilderness managed by the BLM in Utah.
In June of 1985, Representative Jim Hansen of Utah introduced a bill proposing
1 264 43 1 acres of land within eight Utah National Parks and National Monuments be
designated as wilderness. Mr Hansen’s bill was sent to the House Committee of Interior
and Insular Affairs and has not been acted upon.
2.1. BLM WILDERNESS PROPOSAL
Recently, the BLM inventoried approximately 20 million acres of BLM land in Utah.
This inventory identified land which met initial consideration criteria, such as being
roadless, having no noticeable development, being pristine, unique, and also possibly
containing ecological, geological, or other features of scientific, educational, scenic, or
historical value. Areas that met these initial tests were identified as wilderness study
areas (WSA). There were 10 areas in Utah that were previously classified as natural or
primitive areas. Six of these were included as WSAs. Three additional WSAs were added
because of appeals by conservation groups.
The BLM then conducted a more intensive inventory and evaluation of land values,
resources, and existing or potential uses within these wilderness tudy areas. Based on
these studies, in February of 1986, U.S. Department of the Interior published the Utah
BLM Statewide Wilderness Draft Environmental Impact Statement. The BLM’s DEIS
analyzed the environmental consequences of seven alternative wilderness proposals. The
seven alternatives analyzed range from no additional wilderness designation up to an all
wilderness alternative which would designate 3 231 327 acres. The BLM’s preferred