News Release

Economic Benefit of Redwood National Park

John Chao

News Release Date: June 7, 2019

Contact: Candace Tinkler, [phone]

CRESCENT CITY, Calif.  – A new National Park Service (NPS) report shows that 482,535 visitors to Redwood National Park in 2018 spent $31,071,000 in communities near the park. That spending supported 423 jobs in the local area and had a cumulative benefit to the local economy of $36,783,000.
 
While the above numbers reported for Redwood National Park are impressive on their own, they do not include visitation statistics for the three California State Parks within the Redwood National and State Parks (RNSP) partnership—Del Norte Coast Redwoods, Jedediah Smith Redwoods, and Prairie Creek Redwoods State Parks. RNSP managers conservatively calculate that the average annual combined visitation to all four parks within the partnership at 1.5 million people per year. Therefore, the actual values for both visitation and spending for the entire Redwood National and State Parks partnership are probably significantly greater than reported in the NPS survey.
 
“Redwood National and State Parks welcomes visitors from across the country and around the world,” said Superintendent Steve Mietz. “We are delighted to share the story of this place and the experiences it provides. The park is an outstanding way to introduce our visitors to this unique and remarkable part of the country 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 will continue to work with local communities to enhance visitor services and enjoyment of the Redwoods.”
 
The peer-reviewed visitor spending analysis was conducted by economists Catherine Cullinane Thomas and Egan Cornachione of the U.S. Geological Survey and Lynne Koontz of the National Park Service. The report shows $20.2 billion of direct spending by more than 318 million park visitors in communities within 60 miles of a national park. This spending supported 329,000 jobs nationally; 268,000 of those jobs are found in these gateway communities. The cumulative benefit to the U.S. economy was $40.1 billion.
 
Lodging expenses account for the largest share of visitor spending, about $6.8 billion in 2018. Food expenses are the second largest spending area and visitors spent $4 billion in restaurants and bars and another $1.4 billion at grocery and convenience stores.
 
Visitor spending on lodging supported more than 58,000 jobs and more than 61,000 jobs in restaurants. Visitor spending in the recreation industries supported more than 28,000 jobs and spending in retail supported more than 20,000 jobs.
 
Report authors also produce an interactive tool that enables users to explore visitor spending, jobs, labor income, value added, and output effects by sector for national, state, and local economies. Users can also view year-by-year trend data. The interactive tool and report are available at the NPS Social Science Program webpage: https://www.nps.gov/subjects/socialscience/vse.htm
 
To learn more about national parks in California and Oregon and how the National Park Service works with California and Oregon communities to help preserve local history, conserve the environment, and provide outdoor recreation, go towww.nps.gov/California or www.nps.gov/Oregon.