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Secretary
Jewell, NPS Director Release New Report Showing
National
Parks Remain Strong Economic Engines, Support 243,000 Jobs Nationwide
|
Preliminary
Estimates of Shutdown’s Impact Shows More Than $400 Million in Losses to
Local Communities
|
 Washington,
DC – March 2014 / Newsmaker Alert / Boosted by an additional 4 million
visitors in 2012, national parks across the country continued to be important
economic engines, generating $26.75 billion in economic activity and supporting
243,000 jobs, according to a peer-reviewed
report released by Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell and National
Park Service Director Jonathan B. Jarvis.
“National
parks like Yellowstone and Gettysburg are places of unimaginable beauty
and powerful history that help tell America’s story while connecting us
with nature,” said Jewell. “At the same time, our national parks help propel
our nation’s economy, drawing hundreds of millions of visitors every year
who are the lifeblood of the hotels, restaurants, outfitters, and other
local businesses that depend on a vibrant and reliable tourism and outdoor
recreation industry supported by our public lands.”
“In
2012, the National Park Service welcomed more than 280 million visitors
to their national parks. For nearly 100 years we have helped people discover
places to explore, learn from and enjoy,” said Jarvis. “These places of
history, culture and natural wonder offer unparalleled experiences and
return $10 for every $1 American taxpayers invest in the National Park
Service. That’s a successful formula we can all embrace as we prepare for
the next 100 years of the National Park Service.”
More
than 200,000 of the jobs supported by national parks in 2012 were in local
neighboring communities. These range from big parks like the Grand Canyon,
which attracted 4.4 million visitors and supported 6,000 jobs, to smaller
parks like the Lincoln Boyhood Home, which had 133,000 visitors and supported
93 jobs in local communities.
This
2012 analysis is a revision from previous reports. Many of the hallmarks
of the past model are preserved, but the new model makes significant strides
in accuracy and transparency of the analysis. Key changes include new software,
updated assumptions about the nation’s economy based on 400 different characteristics,
and new estimates of spending and visitor trip characteristics.
The
figures in the report are based on spending by nearly 283 million visitors
in communities near national parks in 2012. An in-depth analysis of the
2012 figures found an increase in local visitor spending and a correlating
increase in economic activity and jobs in local communities.
Jewell
and Jarvis also announced estimates of the government shutdown’s impacts
on national park gateway economies. Overall, the16-day shutdown resulted
in 7.88 million fewer national park visitors in October 2013 compared to
a three-year average (October 2010-12), and an estimated loss of $414 million
in visitor spending in gateway and local communities across the country
when comparing October 2013 to a three-year average (October 2010-12).
These losses are part of an economic analysis of the shutdown’s effects
on parks and neighboring communities that was released today. While the
shutdown figures do not affect the 2012 economics report, they will weigh
on the 2013 economics report due out later this year.
The
annual economic report, with information by park and by state on visitor
spending, jobs and other impacts, and the shutdown report, are available
online at: www.nature.nps.gov/socialscience/economics.cfm.
According
to the 2012 economic analysis, most visitor spending supports jobs in restaurants,
grocery and convenience stores (39 percent), hotels, motels and B&Bs
(27 percent), and other amusement and recreation (20 percent).
About
the National Park Service
More
than 20,000 National Park Service employees care for America’s 401 national
parks and work with communities across the nation to help preserve local
history and create close-to-home recreational opportunities. Visit us at
www.nps.gov,
on Facebook www.facebook.com/nationalparkservice,
Twitter www.twitter.com/natlparkservice,
and YouTube www.youtube.com/nationalparkservice.
For
more state-by-state information about national parks and how the National
Park Service is working with communities go to www.nps.gov/[statename],
for example: www.nps.gov/virginia.
Contacts:
Jessica
Kershaw (DOI) 202-208-6416
Jeffrey
Olson (NPS) 202-208-4988 |
