Wildlife Viewing Offers Spectacular Returns
As you steady your gaze and binoculars and hold your breath, you may become slightly wide-eyed, your weight imperceptibly shifting. According to a U.S. Fish & Wildlife Report (Watchable Wildlife Industry, 2001) you are a driver in the $980 million spent each year viewing wildlife in Washington State. Fishing nets $854 million and hunting $350 million.
This trend in both interest and accompanying revenue is based on our fascination and love of wildlife, and is also a part of a national trend in nature-based tourism. Wildlife watching is the fastest growing segment of the travel industry and may be associated with the vacation habits of the so-called baby boomers -- those born between 1946 and 1964 -- who are increasingly seeking out relaxed, educational and meaningful vacation experiences. According to the Washington State Interagency Committee on Outdoor Recreation, nature-based activities are expected to experience the greatest percentage growth in Washington over the next decade. Wildlife viewing is also frequently accompanied by related trips to hunt, fish, hike, camp and boat.
Rural communities tend to benefit the most economically from wildlife viewing. Revenue, tax receipts and jobs also tend to be generated by smaller businesses, with Washington State ranking tenth in the nation with 185,000 small businesses. The Pacific Fisheries Management Council reported that personal income in coastal towns rose to more than $9 million in 2001, a three-fold average increase from the previous five years, a change they attribute to wildlife viewing and sport fishing.
Money is spent on:
- lodging and food,
- and on supplies such as boat rentals,
- cameras, binoculars,
- spotting scopes,
- books/maps,
- tents,
- packs,
- and membership dues.
Plenty of binoculars would be needed for the annual Othello Sandhill Crane festival, roughly at the time of year when 25,000 birds pass through the area to migrate north. In Hood Canal, divers spent up to $3,000 in gear, $150 for lessons and $150 for other related expenses. SCUBA divers are among the highest "viewing" spenders.
In addition to continual wildlife viewing activities throughout a season, many communities have worked with Chambers of Commerce, non-profits and government agencies to finance sophisticated festivals.
In Washington State, numerous examples of festivals include:
- Upper Skagit Bald Eagle Festival
- Grand Coulee "Balde" Eagle Festival
- Grays Harbor Shorebird Festival
- Issaquah Salmon Festival
The revenue stream from wildlife viewing is simply astounding. On average, for each year since 2001:
- over $1.7 billion was spent on wildlife viewing activities,
- creating 21,000 jobs in the state,
- $426.9 million in job income, and
- $56.9 million in state tax revenues.
We must protect not only the wildlife itself but its habitat. We need wildlife, and its habitat, both for economic reasons as well as our own emotional health. Through evolution, we are "hard wired," genetically, to co-exist symbiotically with the natural world as well. We need it to survive. Nothing speaks more prominently to environmental protection than "smart" growth and low-impact development, coupled with protection of working forest and farmlands.
Continue reading this story from People for Puget Sound:
Wildlife Viewing Offers Spectacular Returns