Geoscience Reference
In-Depth Information
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Figure 12-1.
Lewis-and-Clark bicentennial reenactment at Kaw Point, where the Kansas River enters the Missouri
River. A. Overhead view with the 55-foot (17 m) keelboat at center tied up with smaller pirogues above. Blimp
airphoto by S.W. Aber and J.S. Aber. B. Replica keelboat and pirogues on display for the public with the Kansas
City, Missouri downtown skyline in the background. Photo by J.S. Aber.
system might have repercussions elsewhere.
For instance, Marsh built connections between
deforestation and soil degradation, the draining
of marshes and lakes and the decline of depend-
ent l ora and fauna, and the channeling of rivers
and the loss of fertile l oodplain soils (Marsh
1864). He was not the i rst to make these con-
nections. Yet, through his work, Marsh provided
the scientii c rationale for tempering the exploi-
tation of natural resources for human develop-
ment with an approach that recognized the
i nite nature of resources and the need for their
conservation.
These philosophical arguments along with
burgeoning scientii c evidence amplii ed public
awareness, and by the end of the nineteenth
century subtle changes became apparent in
United States' policy toward natural resource
use. Theodore Roosevelt's presidency (1901-8)
served to entrench more i rmly a conservationist
approach to resource management, advocating
a “planned and orderly development” of natural
resources to benei t the citizens of the United
States (Library of Congress 2002). Among other
initiatives, Roosevelt worked to expand the
National Parks Service, established what would
later become the National Wildlife Refuge system
with the i rst wildlife refuge at Pelican Island in
Florida as a breeding ground for native birds,
and expanded National Monument sites through
Presidential Proclamation (Library of Congress
2002).
During Roosevelt's term, the United States
Forest Service was established in 1905 with
Gifford Pinchot serving as its i rst chief. Pinchot
was also a key advisor to Roosevelt on forest
and natural resource policy and played an inl u-
ential role in establishing a more scientii c
approach to resource management. His focus on
wise use within the forestry sector promoted a
utilitarian philosophy of resource management.
He recognized the vital role natural resources
played in the development of the nation, but
also acknowledged the need for their protection
and enhancement for future generations. Despite
the signii cant industrial development pressures
of the twentieth century, early ethical rumina-
tions and guiding principles built a conservation
philosophy that attempted to balance the pres-
ervation of certain lands and resources from
use, while promoting multiple-use and sustained-
yield policies for others (Cutter and Renwick
2004).
Other countries experienced similar conser-
vation trajectories and early European ideas of
conservation clearly inl uenced the United
States' approach. Germany's conservation tradi-
tion also identii es with key works including
Wilhelm Heinrich Riehl's
Naturgeschichte des
Volkes
and Ernst Rudorff 's essay in the
Preußische
