There are 158 national forests within the United States, including two
in Alaska and one in Puerto Rico. They contain approximately 175,000,000
acres of public land and are administered by the Forest Service, United
States Department of Agriculture. The Montezuma is one of 14 in
Colorado.
To grow a timber crop and to protect the forest and vegetative cover as
a precautionary measure against erosion on the watersheds, are important
and necessary. To this end the national forests were established with
the positive injunction that all their resources were to be protected,
developed, and used in perpetuity for the benefit of all citizens.
Therefore, conservative use of all forest resources, with adequate
protection to insure a continual supply, has been the primary
consideration in their management.