Economic value of U.S. national parks

The watchdog and whistleblower organization Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility, in a press release, disclosed an internal study by the National Park Service on the "FY 2005 Economic Benefits of National Parks," based on results from the NPS Money Generation Model, which determines the impacts of NPS visitor spending on a local region.

From the press release:

The study estimates that national parks generate nearly $5 of economic benefits for every tax dollar invested in park budgets ... [and] that the more than 272 million recreational visits to national parks during the 2005 fiscal year stimulated more than $10.3 billion in benefits to local economies and supported more than 236,000 jobs, including Park Service staff.

-- The biggest economic beneficiary of national park visitation is California, with nearly $1.2 billion in benefits supporting nearly 27,000 jobs, followed by the District of Columbia and Tennessee;

-- The Southeast enjoys more positive economic impact than any other region, followed closely by the Rocky Mountain region and the Pacific West; and

-- Not surprisingly, the national park system’s so-called “crown jewels” were the biggest job and income creators, led by Grand Canyon and followed by Yosemite and Yellowstone National Parks. Heading the next tier of economic generators was the Blue Ridge Parkway in Tennessee followed by the Lake Mead Recreational Area in Nevada.

Look at estimated economic benefits of National Parks:
-- By Region
-- By State
-- By Park
-- View NPS visitation statistics by year, type and park

In the DC, MD, VA region the statistics are:

Visits Economic Value Jobs supported
DC --- 30,245,546 ---- $789,795,000 -------- 17,161
MD --- 7,324,460 ----- $277,071,000 --------- 6,277
VA --- 14,451,598 ---- $263,105,000 -------- 6,111

Index Keywords: parks; economic-impact