3/18/2013

PHOTO: Apostle Islands National Lakeshore is well-known for its spectacular scenery and sea cave formations which occur where Lake Superior interacts with thinly bedded sandstone. (Photo courtesy of Robert Hume)

A National Park Service (NPS) report shows that 176,040 visitors to Apostle Islands National Lakeshore in Bayfield cumulatively spent $20.9 million in communities surrounding the park during 2011. The spending supported 364 local jobs.

The number of visits increased from 156,945 in 2010.

"Apostle Islands National Lakeshore is a wonderful place to learn about America's story and is clean, green fuel for the engine that drives our local economy," Park Superintendent Bob Krumenaker said in a prepared statement. "We attract visitors from across the U.S. and around the world who come here to experience the park and then spend time and money enjoying the services provided by our neighboring communities and getting to know this amazing part of the country.

The information was included in a peer-reviewed spending analysis of national park visitors across the country conducted by Michigan State University for the National Park Service. For 2011, that report shows $13 billion of direct spending by 279 million park visitors in communities within 60 miles of a national park. That visitor spending had a $30 billion impact on the entire U.S. economy and supported 252,000 jobs nationwide.

Most visitor spending supports jobs in lodging, food, and beverage service (63 percent) followed by recreation and entertainment (17 percent), other retail (11 percent), transportation and fuel (7 percent) and wholesale and manufacturing (2 percent).

To read the entire stucy, click here.

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