Walt Disney Productions welcomes this opportunity to comment on your thoughtful article concerning the decision of the United States Forest Service to develop Mineral King as an all-year recreational area.
Certainly, the balanced use of public lands is a major issue confronting society today, and no one in government has given more thoughtful consideration to the management of these valuable assets than has United States Senator Thomas H. Kuchel. As a senior member of the Senate's Committee of Interior and Insular Affairs, he was the author of the bills creating the Redwood National Park and the Point Reyes National Seashore.
In commenting on the Mineral King Development, Senator Kuchel has written as follows:
"Opponents of Mineral King raise a legitimate question of whether the valley's present wilderness-like condition is a more important public resource than would be the recreation opportunities resulting from its development. With our nation's wilderness ever shrinking, we have a solemn duty to consider this question whenever it is proposed that the character of wilderness be altered. As a cosponsor of the Wilderness Act of 1964, and as the Senate author of the first addition to our nation's wilderness system under that Act, I am especially sensitive to that obligation.
"Mineral King is . . . surrounded by wilderness-like country, but it does not qualify as wilderness itself. There is a road into its very heart. A mining' road into Mineral King was built in the 1920's. It has since been improved to serve dozens of summer homes, an old resort and other improvements in the, valley. The existing road alone disqualifies Mineral King for inclusion in the Wilderness System under the 1964 Act.
"The possibility of adding Mineral King to Sequoia National Park was studied when the boundaries were expanded in 1926. However, Mineral King was not proposed for inclusion in the park because mining and improvements in the valley were inconsistent with National Park objectives.
"The demand for suitable winter sports sites has increased dramatically during the last few years and will continue to grow. But areas suitable for winter sports development are extremely limited. Most have already been developed. This need is particularly critical in California where, according to a recent study, 35 per cent of all skiers in the nine western states now live.
"We must make balanced judgments on whether any given resource should be developed commercially, developed for recreation, or maintained in its natural state. These are difficult judgments for which there are all too few guideposts. But if we fail to allocate a balanced portion of our total resources to each of these needs, sheer economic and demographic pressures will lay waste to the remaining wilderness we possess.
"People will continue to go to the mountains. There is no way to stop them. Indeed, why should we try to stop them? Is it not far better for their government to help set aside specific and suitable areas for their enjoyment and recreation? If we fail to develop selected areas, such as Mineral King, the 50 million people who will be in California before the end of this century will spill over the sides of the coastal cities and ravage the Sierra with unplanned and undirected enthusiasm for the vanishing outdoors.
"The best assurance that we will permanently protect portions of our natural heritage lies in orderly development to accommodate the demands of our growing population to be near nature.
"In Mineral King, California has an outstanding opportunity that should not be lost. It is a spectacularly unique area which, if carefully planned, can be developed into one of the finest recreation complexes of the world."
The responsibility for careful planning, as mentioned above by Senator Kuchel, now rests with Walt Disney Productions, which, in 1965. was selected to develop the area under the administration of the United States Forest Service.
We have placed our substantial creative talents and reputation for quality recreational developments behind the master planning of this project. In a few months, when these plans have received final approval from the Forest Service, we hope you will review them carefully to reassure yourself and your readers that every possible consideration has been given to preserving the aesthetic values and protecting the capacities of the area. You will find that the concept of our facilities pictured in your article is substantially in error and that it has been greatly improved since we began our on-site investigative efforts.
It is our hope that Mineral King will become a prototype and a standard of excellence for all outdoor recreational centers of the future.
