When I started working for the Department in April, 1970, I recall the enthusiasm and concern people from widely different backgrounds showed about the environment. A nation s entire consciousness changed, due in large part to Earth Day 1970 -- an event that stimulated a remarkable quarter- century of environmental improvements at the local, state and national level.

In 1995, I m struck by how much progress we have made in Wisconsin toward fulfilling the vision offered 25 years ago. We in Wisconsin should be very proud of what we ve accomplished together. Our water is cleaner, air freer of pollutants, and land and wildlife more wisely managed.

Without the efforts of countless concerned citizens, conservation organizations, businesses and elected officials, the environmental successes highlighted in this report could not have occurred.

We should not, however, be deceived into thinking our work is over. We have answered some questions, only to find more complex problems lying beneath them. We ve learned that the environment is a large, interconnected system that can remain healthy only if people throughout the world cooperate to make it so.

The enthusiasm and energy I remember on the first Earth Day is still very much alive 25 years later. You can see that for yourself as you review Wisconsin s environmental accomplishments since 1970 in the pages that follow. Please join me and the employees at the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources as we look back for inspiration to bring about another 25- year period of environmental prosperity.

George E. Meyer, Secretary
Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources