MARK SMITH / PVT The Amargosa River runs quietly just north of Tecopa below the Resting Spring Range. RELATED STORY Amargosa hike set for Saturday Advertisement

SHOSHONE, Calif. -- This Saturday, Oct. 24, at the Crowbar Cafe in Shoshone, Calif., the Amargosa Conservancy is hosting a long-awaited party for the many people who contributed to the designation of the Amargosa River as a wild and scenic river. This designation has been a long time coming.

In 1968 the National Wild and Scenic Rivers Act, calling for certain rivers to "be preserved in free-flowing condition and that they, and their immediate environments shall be protected for future generations."

The act created three classes within the wild and scenic designation: "wild," which are still primitive; "scenic," which are mostly primitive but have some access by roads; and "recreational," areas that are readily accessible for recreational activities.

The Amargosa River contains all three classes: scenic from Shoshone to the Amargosa Canyon below Tecopa, wild from the canyon south to Dumont Dunes, and recreational beyond the dunes. About the same time the act was signed into law, a growing group of citizens recognized the beauty of the Amargosa River and the need to protect its unique yet fragile resources.

This burgeoning scientific, educational and political movement was led by Ben and Mim Romero.

Ben Romero had worked on the Tonopah & Tidewater Railroad, which ran along the river and through the Amargosa Canyon, and, as a result had a deep passion for the area, a passion he passed on to Mim Romero and many others.

Through persistence and advocacy, this dedicated group convinced California Sen. Alan Cranston to spearhead legislation that created the California Desert Conservation Area in 1976.

This legislation led to the designation of the Amargosa Canyon and Grimshaw Lake as a Areas of Critical Environmental Concern several years later.

Although the ACEC designation was a great victory, since it legitimized the inventory of the river's rich natural resources taken by its advocates, it did not have the funding nor the national recognition to protect these resources.

Even the Desert Protection Act, passed in 1994, did not protect the river itself, although it protected much of the surrounding area.

Again, a group of citizens, with the support of many committed visitors, began working together to gain further legal protection for the river. When Inyo County began its planning process in 1999 to create a countywide general plan, the southeast Inyo advisory committee recommended to the board of supervisors that the Amargosa be designated wild and scenic and hosted several supervisors on a tour of the area.

Since that time, local groups, including the Amargosa Conservancy, have hosted many regional and national political representatives to educate them about the beauty of the river and the importance of protecting it for future generations.

These efforts were supported by national organizations that had recognized the cultural significance -- and fragility -- of the Amargosa over the years and had begun working with these grassroots organizations to gain wild and scenic status through national legislation.

After a decade of hard work, and several disappointments, last March the Omnibus Public Land Management Act, sponsored by California legislators Rep. Howard McKeon, Sen. Barbara Boxer and Sen. Dianne Feinstein, was signed into law.

This bill designates the Amargosa as a wild and scenic river and, therefore, includes the river in the National Landscape Conservation System, a system of spectacular and culturally important landscapes administered by the BLM which encompasses all national monuments, historic trails, wild and scenic rivers, and wilderness areas throughout the nation.

Over 40 years after the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act was passed, the Amargosa River finally has the legal status it deserves to protect it for future generations.

The Amargosa Conservancy has a lot to celebrate

(Susan Sorrells is a founding member of the Amargosa Conservancy and a long-time champion of matters involving Shoshone, Tecopa and the surrounding area.)