Last year’s government shutdown locked Americans out of their favorite places, and left nearby communities strapped for much-needed revenue. A new report released by the National Park Service shows just how devastating the government shutdown was for national parks, and the toll it took financially.
Overall, there was a 7.88 million decline in October visitation, which caused gateway communities to lose $414 million in visitor spending. Communities in the Rocky Mountain West, which boasts some of our most impressive and most visited parks, were hit particularly hard. Yellowstone National Park and Grand Teton National Park lost 74% and 55% of average visitors, and $15.7 million and $14.2 million in visitor spending, respectively. Rocky Mountain National Park’s visitation dropped 73% during the 16-day shutdown, and lost $10.9 million in visitor spending.
The expansive impacts of the shutdown left national parks and local communities reeling beyond the report’s data. The National Park Service notes that despite the evidence within the report, it can’t capture the entirety of the economic expense taken on by gateway communities. It doesn’t, for example, take into account “job, labor income, or output impacts which are typically considered longer term effects.”
The report also sheds light on the continued need for Congress and the White House to protect our pristine lands and revitalize the towns and cities that enhance the visitor experience we all enjoy. Westerners support land conservation by a wide margin, and are more likely to support candidates who vote for protection measures, a sentiment illustrated in recent polling by Colorado College.
Congress has conservation bills ready and waiting for passage, and President Obama stated quite clearly in his State of the Union address that if Congress fails to act, he will take it upon himself to protect federal lands for future generations. Continued inaction is not acceptable as the cost of ignoring protected lands continues to mount.