Berkeley Blogs: The Wilderness Act is one of the iconic pieces of environmental legislation, and it is 50 years old this year. It created a process and management standard by which millions of acres of relatively undeveloped federal land were protected from development and most forms of active human management. These lands are to be managed, as the Act puts it, to ensure that they are "unimpaired for future use and enjoyment as wilderness." Millions of Americans have enjoyed the solitude and natural beauty available...