Mineral resource potential map of the Buffalo Peaks Wilderness Study Area, Lake, Park, and Chaffee Counties, Colorado

Under the provisions of the Wilderness Act (Public Law 88-577, September 3, 1964) and the Joint Conference Report on Senate Bill 4, 88th Congress, the U.S. Geological Survey and the U.S. Bureau of Mines have been conducting mineral surveys of wilderness and primitive areas. Areas officially designated as "wilderness," "wild," or "canoe" when the act was passed were incorporated into the National Wilderness Preservation System, and some of them are presently being studied. The act provided that areas under consideration for wilderness designation should be studied for suitability for incorporation into the Wilderness System. The mineral surveys constitute one aspect of the suitability studies. The act directs that the results of such surveys are to be made available to the public and be submitted to the President and the Congress. This report discusses the results of a mineral survey of the Buffalo Peaks Wilderness Study Area, Pike and San Isabel National Forests, Lake, Park, and Chaffee Counties, Colo. The area was established as a wilderness study area by Public Law 96-560, December 22, 1980.