NPS Trumpets Economic Benefits of National Parks
A new study says national parks and monuments boosted the economies of surrounding communities in Wyoming, Montana and Idaho by a combined $1.15 billion last year.
Wyoming saw $723.3 million in spending by visitors to parks and monuments run by the National Park Service; Montana, $397.3 million; and Idaho, $29.4 million.
Nationwide, the total economic benefits to communities within 60 miles of a national park was $14.6 billion.
Wyoming, Idaho and Montana share parts of Yellowstone National Park, where visitors spent almost $382 million in nearby communities.
Visitors to Grand Teton National Park and the adjoining John D. Rockefeller Jr. Memorial Parkway spent more than $502 million in northwest Wyoming and eastern Idaho communities.
More than 2 million visited Glacier National Park in Montana, spending more than $178 million.