Tourism to Whiskeytown National Recreation Area creates $32,530,000 in Economic Benefit

Date: March 3, 2014
Contact: Sean Denniston, [phone]

Whiskeytown, California– A new National Park Service (NPS) report shows that 814,374visitors to Whiskeytown National Recreation Areain 2012 spent nearly $33 million in communities near the park. That spending supported 419jobs in the local area.

"Whiskeytown National Recreation Areais proud to welcome visitors from across the region, country and even around the world," said acting superintendent Sean Denniston. "We are delighted to share the story of Whiskeytown and the experiences it provides and to use the park as a way to introduce our visitors to this part of northern California and all that it offers. National park tourism is a significant driver in the national economy – returning $10 for every $1 invested in the National Park Service - and it's a big factor in our local economy as well. We appreciate the partnership and support of our neighbors and are glad to be able to give back by helping to sustain local communities."

The peer-reviewed visitor spending analysis was conducted by U.S. Geological Survey

economists Catherine Cullinane Thomas and Christopher Huber and Lynne Koontz for the National Park Service. The report shows $14.7 billion of direct spending by 283 million park visitors in communities within 60 miles of a national park. This spending supported 243,000 jobs nationally, with 201,000 jobs found in these gateway communities, and had a cumulative benefit to the U.S. economy of $26.75 billion.

According to the report, 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).

To download the report visit https://www.nature.nps.gov/socialscience/economics.cfm

The report includes information for visitor spending at individual parks and by state.

To learn more about national parks in Californiaand how the National Park Service works with California communities to help preserve local history, conserve the environment, and provide outdoor recreation, go to www.nps.gov/California. More information about Whiskeytown National Recreation can be found on the park website www.nps.gov/WHIS or calling the park visitor center.Visit us on Facebook www.facebook.com/WhiskeytownNationalRecreationArea.

NPS b-roll footage is available for this story here: https://www.nps.gov/news/econ_b-roll.htm.