16 U.S.C. § 3170: Special access and access to…

Summary

The Secretary must allow people to use snowmachines (when there is enough snow), motorboats, airplanes, and nonmotorized travel on conservation system units, national recreation and conservation areas, and public lands set aside as wilderness study for traditional activities and for travel to and from villages and homesites. The Secretary can make reasonable rules to protect those lands. Such uses can only be banned after a local notice and hearing if the Secretary finds they would harm the area's resource values. If State or private land, subsurface rights, or a valid mining claim lies inside or is surrounded by those public lands, the Secretary must give the owner or occupant the access they need for economic and other purposes. That access can also be reasonably regulated to protect the lands.

Title 16, §3170

Conservation, Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)Use of snowmachines, motorboats, airplanes, nonmotorized surface transportation, etc. for traditional activities and for travel

Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act or other law, the Secretary shall permit, on conservation system units, national recreation areas, and national conservation areas, and those public lands designated as wilderness study, the use of snowmachines (during periods of adequate snow cover, or frozen river conditions in the case of wild and scenic rivers), motorboats, airplanes, and nonmotorized surface transportation methods for traditional activities (where such activities are permitted by this Act or other law) and for travel to and from villages and homesites. Such use shall be subject to reasonable regulations by the Secretary to protect the natural and other values of the conservation system units, national recreation areas, and national conservation areas, and shall not be prohibited unless, after notice and hearing in the vicinity of the affected unit or area, the Secretary finds that such use would be detrimental to the resource values of the unit or area. Nothing in this section shall be construed as prohibiting the use of other methods of transportation for such travel and activities on conservation system lands where such use is permitted by this Act or other law.

(b)Right of access to State or private owner or occupier

Notwithstanding any other provisions of this Act or other law, in any case in which State owned or privately owned land, including subsurface rights of such owners underlying public lands, or a valid mining claim or other valid occupancy is within or is effectively surrounded by one or more conservation system units, national recreation areas, national conservation areas, or those public lands designated as wilderness study, the State or private owner or occupier shall be given by the Secretary such rights as may be necessary to assure adequate and feasible access for economic and other purposes to the concerned land by such State or private owner or occupier and their successors in interest. Such rights shall be subject to reasonable regulations issued by the Secretary to protect the natural and other values of such lands.

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

References in Text

This Act, referred to in text, is Pub. L. 96–487, Dec. 2, 1980, 94 Stat. 2371, known as the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see

Short Title

note set out under section 3101 of this title and Tables.

§3170 Special Access and Access to Inholdings