Remarks Upon Arrival at the Airport, Ashland, Wisconsin.

Governor Reynolds, Senator Nelson, Secretary Freeman, Secretary Udall, ladies and gentlemen:

I am glad to be back in northern Wisconsin. I am, I think, the second President of the United States to spend the night in Ashland. Calvin Coolidge was here for some weeks, some days, but he never said a word; and I was here for one night and spoke all the time! In any case, I appreciate very much your coming out and welcoming us back.

This trip, which is a conservation trip across the United States, came about as a result of a suggestion by your junior Senator, Gaylord Nelson, who made conservation his great work as the Governor of Wisconsin, and has had a strong conviction as Senator, as do I, that every day that goes by that we do not make a real national effort to preserve our national conservation resources is a day wasted. Anyone who flies over those islands, as we just did, looks at that long beach, looks at those marshes, looks at what a tremendous natural resource this can be, and is now, for nearly 50 million Americans who will live in this section of the United States in the coming years, must realize how significant this occasion is.

What we are doing here, which is concentrating the attention of the people of the country on this great natural resource, must be duplicated in every State of the Union, all the way from Massachusetts to Hawaii, if we are going to make this country as good a place to live in for our children as it has been for us. So I am glad to come to this section of the country, which has experienced so many economic hardships, which has lived so close to nature, which has understood the importance of preserving this resource for many years, and come here and tell you that we, with you in this State, and with your Governor, will work closely to develop the resources of northern Wisconsin so that this area can rise and provide a life for its people and an attraction for people from all over the Middle West.

This State has seen the result of waste and indifference, and it has seen what can be done by dedication and determination. This section of Wisconsin, like other sections of the United States which in the past depended upon a few natural resources, has known what economic distress can do when those resources are exhausted or when indifference lays them waste. We are seeking to help correct those conditions, through area redevelopment programs, through conservation programs, rural area development programs, and increased fisheries research. These things won't happen. They are going to be made to happen. And they must represent the dedicated effort of us all. And I believe we have the brightest hopes in this section of Wisconsin for the development of outdoor recreation facilities.

If promptly developed, recreational activities and new national park, forest, and recreation areas can bolster your economy and provide pleasure for millions of people in the days to come. If we do what is right now, in 1963, we must set aside substantial areas of our country for all the people who are going to live in it by the year 2000. Where 180 million Americans now live, by the year 2000 there will be 350 million of them, and we have to provide for them, as Theodore Roosevelt, and Franklin Roosevelt, and the others provided for us.

The precise manner in which these resources are used, land and water, is of the greatest importance. There is need for comprehensive local, State, regional, and national planning. I think you are fortunate that in this State, because of Gaylord's work and because of John Reynolds' work, you have already made a detailed study of the resource development potential of the south shore of Lake Superior. Wisconsin is the first State in the Nation to prepare a comprehensive plan for the development of its resources. You are also fortunate in having under way a $50 million program for acquiring recreational resources.

Unless you do this in your State, all these resources will be wasted away, will be used by a few, will be underdeveloped, and this area of the State will fall behind' In an effort to correct this, improve it, develop it, enrich it, I pledge you the cooperation of the Federal Government.

Lake Superior, the Apostle Islands, the Bad River area, are all unique. They are worth improving for the benefit of sportsmen and tourists. In an area of congestion and pollution, man-made noise, and dirt, Lake Superior has a beauty that millions can enjoy. These islands are part of our American heritage. In a very real sense they tell the story of the development of this country. The vast marshes of the Bad River are a rich resource providing a home for a tremendous number, and varied number, of wild animals. In fact, the entire northern Great Lakes area, with its vast inland sea, its 27,000 lakes, and thousands of streams, is a central and significant part of the fresh water assets of this country, and we must act to preserve these assets. Earlier this year, industrial accidents dumped millions of gallons of oil into the Minnesota River, causing the destruction of thousands and thousands of ducks and other wildlife, and damaging the recreational use of that river for 100 miles. Preliminary studies show that the pollution of the Upper Mississippi River is growing worse.

I am, therefore, announcing, under provisions of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, the convening of an enforcement conference to investigate the pollution of the water of the Upper Mississippi and Minnesota River to be held in St. Paul, Minn., in January. The Department of Health, Education, and Welfare has allocated $250,000 to commence the study of the pollution of this area. If, in cases such as these, we fail to act, if we fail to learn our lesson from the past--and this lesson has been a hard one for the people of this area--then the pressures of a growing population and an expanding economy may destroy our assets before our children can enjoy them. But with the proper spirit and effort of the people living in this section of Wisconsin, the people living in this State, the people living in this country, we can do in the 1960's what was done at the turn of the century, and that is, make this great country of ours more beautiful for those who are here now and those who come after us.

I want to thank you again for welcoming me back to Wisconsin, which carries many memories with it, and to tell you, as I look around here, that I see many familiar faces, and I hope we are going to have a chance to say hello to some of you personally.

Thank you.