Proclamation 5991—National Grasslands Week, 1989

We Americans have been blessed with a fertile land of unparalleled beauty. It is the source of much of our country's strength and wealth. The great sweep of grasslands that crosses the continent -- beginning below the border of Mexico and stretching into central Canada -- is an ecological treasure.

Nearly 4,000,000 acres of grasslands, located in 11 States across the United States, are public property. These national grasslands constitute an invaluable resource for the American people. Archeologists, anthropologists, and rangeland ecologists have discovered enormous potential for scientific research in them. Careful management has made them a model of successful conservation policies and multiple-use of land. It has also enhanced public appreciation for the natural resources they contain. Throughout the national grasslands, innovative agricultural techniques -- as well as sustained-yield management of oil, gas, timber, fish, wildlife, and forage for livestock -- are being developed.

The national grasslands are home to a variety of plants, soils, minerals, and animals not found elsewhere. The lands are also a source of employment and economic stability for rural Americans, who benefit from the opportunities they provide in livestock grazing, energy development, tourism, and recreation.

Publicly owned and beneficial to all Americans, the national grasslands are a proud portion of our natural heritage. This week, let us renew our appreciation for them. Let us also remember our responsibility -- as individuals and as a Nation -- to cherish and protect the environment.

In recognition of the value of the national grasslands, the Congress, by Public Law 100-664, has designated the week of June 18 through June 24, 1989, as "National Grasslands Week" and has requested the President to issue a proclamation in observance of this week.

Now, Therefore, I, George Bush, President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim June 18 through June 24, 1989, as National Grasslands Week and call upon the people of the United States to observe this week with appropriate ceremonies and activities.

In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this fifteenth day of June, in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and eighty-nine, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirteenth.

GEORGE BUSH