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Hawaii, Montana, and Maine are the three states whose economies depend most on outdoor recreational activities such as hiking, water sports, hunting, and skiing.
The outdoor recreational industry accounted for 5.4 percent of Hawaii’s gross domestic product in 2017, the largest share of all U.S. states. The Aloha State was followed by Montana and Maine, where recreation contributed 5.1 percent and 4.8 percent to their states’ economies, respectively. The industry added $427 billion, or 2.2 percent, to the nation’s GDP, according to a Commerce Department report Friday.
William Edwards, ©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
Vermont, Wyoming, Florida and Alaska also showed a higher relative dependence on outdoor recreation, making up more than 4 percent of their respective state GDP. Connecticut, Ohio and New York are least dependent on the sector.
Real gross output, labor compensation and employment all grew more in outdoor recreation than the economy as a whole. The industry expanded by an inflation-adjusted 3.9 percent in 2017, the most recent data available, faster than the broader economy’s 2.4 percent growth.
Boating and fishing added $20.9 billion to the national economy during the year, led by Florida and California. RVing was the second-largest activity, with $16.9 billion in value added, paced by Indiana and Ohio.
–With assistance from Martin Keohan.
©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
This article was written by William Edwards from Bloomberg and was legally licensed through the NewsCred publisher network. Please direct all licensing questions to legal@newscred.com.
Photo Credit: Tourists walking along a beach in Hawaii, which is seeing growth in outdoor recreation as a part of its economy. Ronen Zilberman / Bloomberg
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