Economics of Outdoor Recreation

Marion Clawson, Jack L. Knetsch

• Verlag: RFF Press
• Jahr: 2013
• ISBN:
  9781135990015
• Auflage: 2
• Thema: Jura
• Thema: Umweltrecht

This book is one of the first to supply the means for evaluating recreational resources in economic terms. Originally published in 1967.

I
The Setting

1
Introduction

The purpose of this book is to present a review of outdoor recreation in the United States with particular concern for the significant policy issues of the next decade or two. From the extremely large number of subjects or topics that could be involved in questions of outdoor recreation, we have chosen those which seemed to us, conditioned by our own particular interests, to be most useful for dealing with the important policy and operational decisions.

If the problems and opportunities of outdoor recreation are to be properly understood, they must be seen in terms of the whole society and whole economy. Accordingly, considerable attention is given to the role of leisure in the total life and economy of the United States today and in the future, and to the role of outdoor recreation as one of many uses of leisure.

The discussion at many points will emphasize the limited nature of our present knowledge about outdoor recreation. With a few notable exceptions, the various physical, economic, social, political, and other problems relating to outdoor recreation have not been the subject of serious research and study. In no small part, this has been due to the fact that recreation has been equated to a degree with play, and both have been considered beneath the dignity of serious research effort. Fact-gathering and fact-analysis have been infrequent enough, but sound theorizing has been especially lacking. The shortcomings of many years of neglect obviously cannot be made good in any single book. We hope that some new ideas, new methodology, new facts will be found here. But, perhaps most of all, we hope that this book will serve to clarify and to organize what is known, or believed to be known, and that it will stimulate others to greatly extend present knowledge.

Major emphasis is placed in this book upon the economic and social aspects of outdoor recreation. This emphasis arises out of two considerations: (1) these seem the most important and at the same time the most neglected aspects of outdoor recreation at present, and (2) these are the aspects on which we feel best qualified to speak.

We approach outdoor recreation as social scientists. The starting point of the whole analysis is people and their wants and demands for outdoor recreation; from this, the resource and institutional problems are considered, and lastly the major policy issues—as we see them—are posed. Other authors, with different professional backgrounds, might well include somewhat different ranges of subject matter under the same title.

Our objective is not to present, much less to advocate, an "action" program; rather, the purpose is to suggest things to be considered in developing any program and to raise what seem to be significant issues for public discussion and hence for ultimate resolution. Increasingly in the future, conflicts of value and dynamic changes in our society are going to require a better awareness of what is happening and a better analysis of recreation alternatives.

Major attention is focused throughout upon outdoor recreation on publicly owned land and water areas—the areas that have been of major importance in the past and about which more is known. Much of the discussion, though illustrated by examples from public areas, is equally applicable to private areas, which may well increase in importance.

The Shape of the Future

Since outdoor recreation is but a part of the total life of the nation, and since the demand for outdoor recreation will be determined in large measure by factors external to recreation itself, a brief consideration of our social and economic structure may be helpful at the outset.

Most would agree that the society and economy of the United States during the next several decades will evolve gradually, and in directions now rather evident, from the present society and economy. Radical departures and drastic changes are ruled out; but continued modification, which over a period of decades will bring changes so great in magnitude as almost to be changes in kind, is definitely assumed. To anticipate a little the discussion which follows, a "more so" society and economy is forecast. There will be more people, more income, more leisure, more travel, more opportunity for individual choice and growth, and more varied activities generally. But the change each year will be comparatively modest; the forecast is evolution, not revolution. We also assume that developments in science and technology will be evolutionary in nature. A constantly increasing volume and variety of consumer goods is probable. Some of these goods will add to the enjoyment of outdoor recreation; others will compete with recreation for the time, interest, and money of the average citizen.

Of prime importance among the factors affecting outdoor recreation are population trends. Steady growth in population is probably the most persistent social change in this country. But growth is not the only kind of population change that has an impact on the recreation situation. People are also becoming better educated and healthier. Shifts are taking place in the age distribution of people and in their locations or places of residence. This last includes the steady movement of people westward and the all-important movement of people from rural areas to urban areas. These trends have been subject to minor fluctuations, but the directions are clearly indicated by long periods of observation and they will surely continue.

Another important change is the increase in leisure time (a subject explored in more detail in Chapter 2). The average workweek has decreased from around 70 hours in 1850 to about 40 hours today, and there are signs that it may well become shorter in the future. Changes are also occurring in the timing and sizes of pieces of leisure. Annual vacations are becoming the rule for workers in nearly all occupations, and the average length is growing. Retirement years are also increasing owing to increased longevity and changes-in retirement programs. Again, the future will see more changes in the amount and arrangement of leisure time.

The population is also becoming more mobile. Total travel per capita has increased from around 480 miles annually in 1900 to over 5,000 miles in 1956. Better roads, more automobiles, and the airplane are among the contributing factors. This upward trend is also expected to continue.

Incomes are also increasing. The trends here, though more irregular than others, are clearly upward, and are expected to continue. Per capita disposable incomes have increased, in 1958 dollars, from about $1,236 in 1929 to $2,200 in 1965.¹ Along with changes in average incomes, there are shifts in the distribution of income, which make it economically possible for more and more people to engage in different kinds of outdoor activity.

The indications are imposingly those of a more-so society. And so it is with recreation. Attendance and use figures for outdoor areas are already reflecting the trends of related factors and are rising at continued high rates. National park attendance rose from about a million in 1920 to 102 million in 1964. Total state park attendance increased from about 69 million to 285 million over the years 1942 to 1962. Some areas, particularly those which are water-oriented, are experiencing even higher rates of increase in use. In view of the trends in recreation participation and in the factors having a direct relationship to outdoor recreation, greater pressures on recreation resources seem inevitable.

A Few Definitions

Discussion about recreation matters has been plagued by much misunderstanding and vagueness, in no small part because the same word means quite different things to different people. For this reason, a few definitions seem desirable; those that follow are a prelude to discussion in following chapters.

Recreation, as the word is used in this book, means activity (or planned inactivity) undertaken because one wants to do it. In a deeper psychological sense, recreation refers to the human emotional and inspirational experience arising out of the recreation act; we use the latter to stand for the whole. Recreation contrasts with work, which is done primarily to earn money or otherwise to provide the "necessities" of life, or what have come to be so considered, for one's self and one's family. It also contrasts with the mechanics of life, such as eating, sleeping, housekeeping, and personal care.² There is no sharp line between recreation and all other activities. The same activity may be work at some times and recreation at others. Cooking, dressmaking, embroidery, furniture making, and other specific activities may fall into either classification. Even some jobs which are the chief source of income may be essentially recreation. One college professor friend of the authors has admitted that, had he other income, he would gladly pay for the opportunity to do a modest amount of college teaching.

The distinguishing characteristic of recreation is not the activity itself but the attitude with which it is undertaken. When there is little or no feeling of compulsion or "ought to," an activity (or inactivity) is almost surely recreation. In the modern, complex world, where so many aspects of life are socially ordered, recreation is often a major opportunity for self-expression. However, elements of social compulsion are present even for recreation, as we shall see in later chapters.

Recreation is closely related to leisure. Briefly, if leisure is taken to mean time in which activities (or inactivity) consciously decided upon are undertaken, then the relation of recreation and leisure is very close. On this basis, mere idleness is neither leisure nor recreation.

Outdoor recreation is simply recreation that is typically carried on outdoors. As such, it contrasts with the various forms of recreation typically carried on indoors. There are some borderline activities, that can take place either outdoors or indoors. Basketball courts are typically indoors, yet on occasion are outdoors. Track activities are typically outdoors, yet often are held indoors. Outdoor recreation obviously requires space and resources, sometimes large quantities, for its enjoyment. Some kinds are best carried on where the natural landscape has had the minimum modification, others require extensive investment.

Natural resources for outdoor recreation include areas of land, bodies of water, forests, swamps, and other natural features, and even air spaces, which are in demand for outdoor recreation or likely to become so. The physical characteristics of these natural elements of the landscape affect their use for outdoor recreation, but they become resources for outdoor recreation only as they are useful for this purpose. Land, water, forests, and other natural features which for any reason are not or cannot be used for recreation are not part of the present outdoor recreation resource, although they may have future value for this purpose. In this respect, outdoor recreation is no different from any other use of natural resources such as farming, forestry, grazing, and mining. There is nothing in the physical landscape or features of any particular piece of land or body of water that makes it a recreation resource; it is the combination of the natural qualities and the ability and desire of man to use it, that makes a resource out of what otherwise may be a more or less meaningless combination of rocks, soil, and trees.

Recreation activities include those specific actions undertaken as part of recreation, whether indoors or outdoors. Some activities are relatively formal, as is the case with many organized games and other group activities. But most activities—picnics, hikes, fishing expeditions, and many others—are characterized by their informality. Very often it is the informality, the formlessness, the absence of order and pressure, and the spontaneity that give outdoor recreation its appeal and its value. In our modern urban and industrial society the job and the workday have relatively a lot of order and form, and as a relief from them many people seek outdoor recreation. This is one reason why outdoor recreation "activity" must always include a large measure of inactivity; many people stress the opportunity merely to lie around, loaf, talk informally, or merely rest.

Plan of This Book

As a means of organizing ideas and facts on this general subject, we have divided this book into five major parts and into sixteen chapters. There is to us, and we hope to our readers as well, a logical progression from chapter to chapter.

Part I: The Setting includes three relatively short chapters. There is this introductory one, with a little general setting and some definitions. Chapter 2 considers leisure in modest detail; recreation is so peculiarly a time-oriented activity, that it seems essential to consider first the limitations of time available for recreation. There has been much interest, and much misunderstanding, about leisure. On the one hand, we judge there will be more leisure in the future, as a result of numerous aspects of modern life which are described in the chapter; but, on the other hand, we judge that productive work to earn income will still dominate most of the life span for most people, either for themselves or for their married partner. Outdoor recreation will be a growing use of leisure, but only one use of it. In Chapter 3, we describe some general aspects of outdoor recreation, including the "whole experience" and the nature of outdoor recreation areas, which are basic to the analysis of later chapters.

Part II: Demands for Outdoor Recreation is the longest single part in the book, and in some respects the most important part. In our judgment, demand for recreation is always important and sometimes it is crucial, but it has often been neglected. Although demand and supply are closely interrelated, as is pointed out at several places in this part, here we focus on demand, leaving a more detailed consideration of supply for later.

Chapter 4, Some Elements of Recreation Demand, is designed to show the noneconomist how the powerful tool of demand analysis, developed by economists over several decades, can help solve some of the difficult problems existing in outdoor recreation. The best solution to such practical problems as to how much land to buy for parks, its best location, the allocation of costs among project purposes, the best level of development of a park, and others can often be facilitated by a good demand analysis. The chapter is also designed to show economists some of the practical problems within recreation to which demand curve analysis is applicable. Chapter 5, The Nature of the Demand for Outdoor Recreation, applies this general demand approach to specific recreation situations of the general kinds described in Chapter 3, with illustrative examples. The value and limitations of this demand approach are also discussed here.

In Chapter 6, Behavior of Some Causal Factors in Demand, we temporarily put aside the analytical demand approach, to look again and in more detail at some of the factors which have underlain demand for outdoor recreation in the past—population, leisure, transportation, and income, which we had mor...

Inhaltsverzeichnis

• Cover Page
• Half Title page
• Series page
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Original Title Page
• Original Copyright Page
• Foreword
• Contents
• List of Tables
• List of Figures
• I The Setting
• II Demands for Outdoor Recreation
• III Recreation Resources
• IV Some Economic Considerations
• V Outdoor Recreation for the Future
• Appendix
• Index