New Report Measures Wildlife Watching’s Contribution to Nation’s Economy
A new report recently released by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service shows that expenditures for wildlife watching are equivalent to the revenues generated from all spectator sports, amusement parks and arcades, non-hotel casinos, bowling centers and skiing facilities combined. Using data from the 2006 National Survey of Fishing, Hunting, and Wildlife-Associated Recreation, the Service’s new addendum report Wildlife Watching in the United States: The Economic Impacts on National and State Economies in 2006 shows wildlife watching not only contributes significantly to people’s enjoyment of the outdoors but is a major factor in the state and national economies.
In 2006, the direct expenditures of wildlife watchers generated $122.6 billion in total industrial output. This resulted in 1,063,482 jobs, a federal tax revenue of $9.3 billion, and a state and local tax revenue of $8.9 billion. The report details the economic impacts of wildlife watching expenditures by State. The top 5 States ranked by economic output include California, Florida, Texas, Georgia and New York. Direct expenditures by wildlife watchers were for items such as cameras, binoculars and bird food, as well as trip-related expenses such as lodging, transportation and food. Read More »
Tags: economic activity, economic impacts, economic output, Fish and Wildlife Service, hotel casinos, national economies, national survey, spectator sports, state economies, wildlife watchers
