The Real Value of Public Fisheries

Editor's Note: This article is reprinted with permission from American Sportfishing, The official publication of the American Sportfishing Association, Volume 1 No. 9 July/August, 1998. Copyright © American Sportfishing Association. All rights reserved.

By Mike Horak

John Eckhardt, a fisheries biologist at the Siuslaw National Forest near Hebo, Ore., sees firsthand a trend that seems to be occurring throughout the country - as private landowners become less willing to allow anglers to fish on their private property, anglers are turning in greater numbers to the nation's public lands, particularly those run by the U.S. Forest Service.

"As we get more and more away from traditional country-style living and as urban development grows, private property owners seem to have adopted the mindset 'What's mine is mine,' and these landowners are not allowing anglers on their property," Eckhardt said. "I know around here anglers are finding it harder and harder to get access to private land to fish."

One result is that anglers are heading to national forests in greater numbers. In fact, during the past five years, national forests, which compose 30 percent of all federal land, have seen a more than 25 percent increase in usage by anglers.

A second, and maybe more meaningful result, is that because of this increase in usage, recreational activities such as fishing, hunting and birdwatching have replaced timber harvesting as the uses that generate the most revenue for the U.S. economy. Last year, angling in national forests generated $8.1 billion in economic activity.

The Real Value

"What we are seeing is an evolution of how our national forests are being used," said Vishwanie Maharaj, ASA's director of economics. "Today the real value of our national forests comes from money generated through fishing, hunting and other wildlife-related recreation, and not just from timber harvesting."

A new economic analysis done by the American Sportfishing Association shows this dramatic impact. Ten percent of all inland fishing in the United States now takes place on the 130,000 miles of fishable streams and 2.8 million acres of lakes, ponds and reservoirs on lands managed by the U.S. Forest Service. In terms of economic impact, fishing on those lands creates more than 90,000 full-time jobs. Those jobs pay an estimated $2.13 billion in wages and generate $149.8 million in state sales and income tax revenue and $229 million in federal tax revenue.

200,000 Jobs

The new ASA study indicates that together fishing and other wildlife-related activities in 1996 generated more than 200,000 full-time equivalent jobs in the United States. That same year, U.S. Forest Service figures indicate that the number of local community jobs generated by timber harvesting in our national forests was only 61,000.

"For years, the popular assumption was that the worth of national forests lie in the money that could be generated by harvesting timber," Maharaj said. "When you look at the economic impact, it becomes evident that assumption is entirely wrong. Jobs generated from fishing and wildlife-related activities far exceed the jobs created in the local economy from logging. That is not my opinion but fact based on economic analysis." And the value seems to be growing at a phenomenal rate.

The ASA analysis shows that between 1991 and 1996, the amount of money spent by anglers who went fishing in national forests increased 39.1 percent to $2.8 billion a year. In the five-year span, the resulting economic output increased 43.1 percent, the amount of wages paid as a result of this activity increased 54.1 percent, and the number of jobs created increased 39.1 percent.

Mike Dombeck, chief of the U.S. Forest Service, has noticed the trend, too. Fisheries and conservation groups have credited him with beginning to change the culture of the U.S. Forest Service from one aimed at maximizing timber profits to one placing greater value on overall forest health and multiple use.

In a report to Congress in June, Dombeck defended the forest service for moving away from its traditional policy of considering logging the paramount mission of the national forest, saying that it would now place greater value on long-term benefits measured in terms of such things as clean water, abundant fish and wildlife habitats, and diverse recreational values. "Today, people want their forests to look like forests," Dombeck recently said. And to the pleasure of the sportfishing community, Dombeck has backed this view with new monies to improve and restore more than 168,500 acres of fish and wildlife habitat this year in the national forest system.

Maharaj said that for years the timber industry has pitted the need to protect its jobs against the protection of national forests.

"These statistics send a pretty powerful message that wise conservation choices that protect fish and wildlife also protect jobs," she said. "Poor timber harvesting practices can negatively impact fisheries habitat, degrade water quality and thus reduce recreational fishing opportunities.

"There is no question that there is direct correlation. A recent study indicated that if clearcutting were to occur during a 30-year period on 84,000 acres of national forest land in Oregon, the result would be the loss of 84,000 salmon and 24,000 steelhead."

ASA President Mike Hayden said he hopes that ASA's new analysis will serve as a reminder to policy makers that recreation-related activities not only must be taken into account, but also given a greater voice when land management decisions are made about national forests. "As a society we enjoy the benefits of outdoor recreation on public lands, as well as the benefits of consuming timber products," Hayden said.

Multi-use Approach

"We are not advocating the end of timber harvesting, but the sportfishing industry must make sure our lawmakers adopt a multi-use approach to managing our national forests, so that management decisions are derived from good data and sound scientific analysis. That will enable us to guarantee that we utilize national forest resources for the greatest public benefit," he said.

And if that is the case, John Eckhardt, who has lived near the Siuslaw National Forest for 48 years, says he expects to see the trend of more recreational use continue. "I think word is getting out about the resources we have to offer," he said.