U.S. Department of the Interior

Office Of the Secretary

Showcase for www.recreation.gov:
Secretary Norton Will Highlight Recreational & Health Resources
on National Public Lands Day, September 28

SALT LAKE CITY, UT - At the National Public Lands Day observance here today -- one of 400 across the country -- Secretary of the Interior Gale Norton will highlight how millions of acres of lands that belong to all Americans are "just what the doctor ordered" and show them how to fill a prescription for recreation and health on the web at www.recreation.gov.

She will make the announcement while congratulating two teams of trekkers who started separate 1600-mile journeys across public lands from the Canadian and Mexican borders on July 31 and will meet in Salt Lake City this weekend. The Department of Interior and its Bureau of Land Management are two of the sponsors of this "American Frontiers" journey.

"The long journey, the countless new experiences and the ceremony today all are designed to draw attention to what America offers in its public lands and to encourage their use," Norton says. "To that end, today I am announcing the relaunch of our Recreation.gov website."

The Interior Department is the managing agency for www.recreation.gov, which offers information about recreation possibilities at some 2,000 sites managed by ten agencies from five different cabinet departments.

Created in 1998, the award-winning site is being re-launched on Public Lands Day in an expanded format with links to federal, state and local recreation sites as well as to President Bush's health initiative site. Secretary Norton joined President Bush at the White House earlier this year to launch his health initiative. The President said then, "If you're interested in doing something about your health, go to one of our parks -- and take a hike."

The President's Healthier US program is the result of the overwhelming statistics that show 61 percent of the adult population is overweight or obese. Even more shocking, about 8 million young Americans, almost 15 percent of all children, are overweight. "I can think of no better prescription than to exercise together in activities on public lands. Hiking, swimming, walking are all beneficial exercises," Norton says. "It is interesting that a high-technology website may be instrumental in bringing people back to the outdoors, back to the natural world, back to the public lands."

On www.recreation.gov, citizens can search for recreational opportunities by activity or by location on a clickable map. Norton points out the multitude and variety of public land experiences.

"We have watched these teams be reunited after a spectacular journey of almost 1,600 miles for each--- in which they never set foot outside of public lands. These lands were national parks and forests, wildlife refuges and Bureau of Land Management lands. Lands that if put together would cover the 25 smallest states plus Texas. Lands that belong to all Americans.

"Many are here in the West, but there are public lands within 100 miles of every major metropolitan area. In most cases, a two-hour drive will take you to America's backyard to hike, to camp, to picnic or just to ponder something other than the sale at the mall."

Www.recreation.gov has been expanded and improved. The website now includes more indoor sites. Museums are now being listed, starting with the Smithsonian and National Park Service facilities. In addition, National Register Travel Itineraries have been added to highlight historic locations where the public is welcome to visit. Customers can now locate the major recreation sites near a place they plan to visit using a "clickable" map, and links have been added to provide local maps and driving directions. In the future, interactive Geographic Information System (GIS) capabilities will be implemented to provide more detailed and more accurate maps.

Links have been added on Recreation.gov to state tourism organizations and other sites with recreational and historic information, so customers can find even more recreational opportunities -- not just sites managed by government agencies. Norton added, "I'm pleased we are adding new data sharing partners, especially state and local recreation sites now. Cooperation is essential to conservation. Federal agencies must work with state, local, tribal, and non-government organizations to manage special places with care, so tourism will be sustainable in the long-term."

For more information on recreation on public lands, go to www.recreation.gov.

For more information on the journey culminating in Salt Lake City, see www.americanfrontiers.net/NPLD.

For more information on National Public Lands Day, see www.blm.gov/volunteer/npldlist02.html.