Stewart (Lee) Udall

US public official and conservationist, born in St John, Arizona, USA. Educated at the University of Arizona, he served in the air corps during World War 2, then practised law for several years before serving as a Democrat in the US House of Representatives, where he developed a reputation as a conservation advocate. As secretary of the interior in the Kennedy and Johnson administrations (1961–9), he curbed abuses in the sale and exploitation of public lands, and reformed the Bureau of Indian Affairs. He became a private conservation consultant in 1969.

Udall became increasingly active in public service, being elected to the School Board of Amphitheater Public Schools (District 10) in Tucson in June 1951.

Stewart Udall served as U.S. Representative from Arizona from 1955 to 1961 and then as Secretary of the Interior under Presidents John F. Udall was largely responsible for the enactment of environmental laws in Johnson's Great Society legislative agenda, including the Clear Air, Water Quality and Clean Water Restoration Acts and Amendments, the Wilderness Act of 1964, the Endangered Species Preservation Act of 1966, the Land and Water Conservation [Fund] Act of 1965, the Solid Waste Disposal Act of 1965, the National Trail System Act of 1968, and Wild and Scenic Rivers Act of 1968. Patten