U.S. Rep. French Hill (R-AR) on April 26 unveiled the bipartisan Flatside Wilderness Enhancement Act, H.R. 5636, which would designate an additional 640 acres of Arkansas national forest as federally preserved land.

“Arkansans and visitors, young and old, are looking for unique and authentic outdoor recreation opportunities in the Natural State,” said Rep. Hill, noting that his home-state district of Perry County “offers a very special and rare opportunity to support our wildlife and natural resources while also boosting the state’s economy.”

Only Congress can formally designate lands as wilderness under the Wilderness Act of 1964, which created the national preservation system, according to the National Park Service (NPS). To date, Congress has designated more than 106 million acres of federal public lands as wilderness, which is the highest level of conservation protection for federal lands, NPS says. Wilderness areas are designated within existing federal public land and Congress has directed four federal land management agencies — the NPS, U.S. Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service — to manage these areas.

If enacted, H.R. 5636 would call for the designation of a roughly 640-acre addition of existing national forest land to become part of the Flatside Wilderness on the Ouachita National Forest in Arkansas, among other purposes, according to the congressional record and to a summary provided by the congressman’s office. The area has been designated “Recommended Wilderness Additions since 2005” and managed as wilderness land since that time, according to Rep. Hill’s office.

H.R. 5636 also would request that the U.S. Forest Service study select portions of other existing national forest land bordering Flatside Wilderness as being potential additions to the protected wilderness area, the congressman’s staff said in a May 3 statement.

“A century ago, America was witnessing rapid urbanization, industrialization, and the closing of the west — and our own nation elected to protect its wild places,” Rep. Hill said. “Today, just as then, Americans need solitude and refreshment from what President Teddy Roosevelt called ‘the strenuous life.’ Our wilderness areas are places left wild and roadless for exploration, camping, hunting, and hiking.”

Several local, state and national organizations already have voiced support for H.R. 5636, including the Arkansas Department of Heritage, Arkansas Game and Fish Commission, Arkansas Wildlife Federation, National Wildlife Federation, Perry County Chamber of Commerce, and the Perry County Conservation District.

H.R. 5636, which is cosponsored by U.S. Rep. Donald Beyer (D-VA), has been referred to the U.S. House Natural Resources Committee for consideration.