On January 25, 1978, the Interior Department's Bureau of Outdoor Recreation ended its 16-year existence. BOR, the Federal government's "focal point for outdoor recreation," did not disappear without impact, however. Rather, it was reborn as the Heritage Conservation and Recreation Service, an agency with expanded programs and responsibilities.

As a nation and as a people, Americans have acquired the most diverse and rich legacy in the history of mankind. Often in the rush to grow and expand, however, this nation has lost the signposts of the past.

The recognition and awareness of who we are, the meaning of where we live, work, and play, the special meaning of our national and historic landmarks, together with a renewed reverence for the quality of our national environment, comprise a consciousness very real in America today. By preserving those places of special, natural, historic, and scientific value, we can ensure that our children and grandchildren will have a chance to know a part of America which we and our ancestors might otherwise have taken for granted.

While the Federal government has been involved in natural and historic preservation for some time, the efforts have not always been well coordinated from a policy and program point of view. In his 1977 Environmental Message, President Carter directed the Secretary of the Interior to formulate an integrated program to identify, acquire, and protect the most significant examples of our natural and historic heritage and to encourage, support, and coordinate ongoing private, State, and Federal programs.

In response to that directive, Secretary of the Interior Cecil D. Andrus assembled a National Heritage Task Force composed of representatives of 55 private organizations and State and Federal agencies to assist in the development of a National Heritage Program. The resultant proposed program is based on the concept that the key to successful heritage conservation is voluntary action by private individuals and organizations, and by local and State governments, supported by a responsive Federal government. Such a program would:

—Develop a strong partnership among private citizens and local,

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State and Federal governments for heritage resource identification and protection.

—Provide a single point of contact within the Department of the Interior for conservation of heritage resources and consolidate the Federal government's planning functions for heritage conservation and recreation.

—Develop criteria against which heritage resources may be judged for significance.

—Coordinate the first comprehensive national inventory of potential heritage resources.

—Expand and strengthen the tools available to protect heritage resources.

The decision was made by President Carter and Secretary Andrus to administer a National Heritage Program through a new Department of the Interior agency—the Heritage Conservation and Recreation Service (HCRS)-to include most of the functions of the Bureau of Outdoor Recreation and the National Park Service's National Landmarks Program and various programs of the Office of Archeology and Historic Preservation.

The new agency is headed by Chris Therral Delaporte, the last director of the Bureau of Outdoor Recreation. As the successor to the BOR, HCRS is the Federal focal point for outdoor recreation and has retained nearly all of the programs and responsibilities which the former agency had, including the Land and Water Conservation Fund program and the surplus Federal property for parks and recreation program.

The National Heritage Program now has moved from the conceptual stage. Further program definition, and ultimately, its final shape and substance will be the result of consultation with the Congress and the established constituency groups which helped to form the outline of the program through the task force.

While outdoor recreation remains an integral part of the Heritage Conservation and Recreation Service, this new agency hopes to harness the diverse movement of associated interests to enchance the quality of life in America.

The HCRS Lake Central Regional Office, covering the States of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, and Wisconsin, is located at the Federal Building in Ann Arbor, Michigan 48107 (telephone 313-668-2000). Questions about its mission and programs are welcome by the new agency.

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