"The Arctic has a call that is compelling. The distant mountains [of the Brooks Range in Alaska] make one want to go on and on over the next ridge and over the one beyond. The call is that of a wilderness known only to a few...This last American wilderness must remain sacrosanct."
- William O. Douglas, U.S. Supreme Court Justice, 1960. Quoted by Jimmy Carter in a speech, 29 February 1980.

"In terms of wilderness preservation, Alaska is the last frontier. This time, given one great final chance, let us strive to do it right. Not in our generation, nor ever again, will we have a land and wildlife opportunity approaching the scope and importance of this one."
- Morris Udall, U.S. Representative, on the Alaska Lands Bill, in Too Funny to be President, 1988.

"This is the single most important land-use decision in the lifetime of most of the people in this room. In terms of acreage involved, there's nothing that compares with it. No other single conservation decision in history is of its magnitude, except the action of President Theodore Roosevelt in establishing the national forests at a time when they were seriously threatened."
- Morris Udall, on the Alaska Lands Bill, 1 December 1978.