Phil Castle, The Business Times

Outdoor recreation contributes more than $484 million a year to the Mesa County economy and accounts for nearly 10,000 jobs, according to the results of a unique study conducted by researchers at Colorado Mesa University.

Moreover, outdoor recreation businesses are diverse  — more like a broad trade group than single industry sector — and include retail, manufacturing and other components.

“There’s a lot of business diversity in the outdoor trade group,” said Nathan Perry, an associate professor of economics at CMU and lead author.

The study is the first outdoor recreation economic impact study conducted on a county level in the United States, Perry said. As such, the study could serve as model for research conducted elsewhere.

While the study only estimates the economic effects of outdoor recreation, Perry said the results reflect the significant role of recreation in accounting for more than 7 percent of the value of goods and services produced in Mesa County and one in 10 jobs. “It’s such a big deal here.”

Perry presented the results of the study at a meeting in Grand Junction that also attracted representatives from statewide and local outdoor recreation and economic development groups. 

Perry also discussed the findings in an interview with the Business Times.

He said he’s long wanted to conduct a study to estimate the economic effects of outdoor recreation in Mesa County, but until recently was busy with other projects.

Perry joined with Tim Casey, a professor of political science and head of the Natural Resource Center at CMU, and Johnny Snyder, a professor of computer information systems at CMU, to conduct the study. They received funding from the Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade and Zoma Labs.

The study involved two parts, Perry said, in estimating the economic effects of outdoor recreation businesses as well as outdoor recreation tourism. 

They worked with the Grand Junction Economic Partnership and Visit Grand Junction, the destination marketing organization of the City of Grand Junction.

The study involved surveys of local businesses involved in outdoor recreation and visitors who said they came to Mesa County between 2019 and 2021 primarily to engage in outdoor recreation.

The study estimated the direct economic effects of outdoor recreation businesses at nearly $199 million and a total of 3,690 full- and part-time jobs in 2021.

Adding indirect and induced effects to take into account the purchase of materials and services in the supply chain as well as employees spending their wages, the total estimates came to nearly $319 million and 4,501 jobs.

The direct effects of outdoor recreation tourism were estimated at nearly $342 million
and a total of 3,930 full- and part-time jobs. Adding indirect and induced effects, the totals came to more than $556 million and 5,396 jobs.

The study also estimated the effects of outdoor recreation on gross domestic product, the broad measure of goods and services produced in Mesa County.

The direct effect of outdoor recreation businesses on GDP topped $131 million. The direct effect of outdoor recreation tourism on GDP exceeded $190 million.

The total of nearly $322 million constituted 4.8 percent of GDP in Mesa County, Perry said.

By comparison, the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis pegged the effect of outdoor recreation in Colorado at 3.1 percent of the state’s GDP in 2019.

Perry said it’s not surprising the proportion is higher in Mesa County given the proximity and popularity of outdoor recreation venues and activities in the county.

The combined effects of outdoor recreation business and tourism on GDP totaled more than $484 million, or about
7.2 percent of Mesa County GDP. The nearly 10,000 jobs represented about 11 percent of all jobs in the county.

Perry said the results of the survey of outdoor recreation businesses also reflected the diversity of their operations.

Nearly 51 percent of respondents indicated their core business operations were most associated with trail and road activities. Another 18.2 percent said their businesses were related with water activities, 9.1 percent with wildlife and 5.5 percent with winter. Still another 16.4 percent  cited other outdoor activities.

Asked to select which industry best describes their businesses, respondents cited retail trades and manufacturing as well as professional, scientific and technical services. Respondents also cited arts, entertainment and recreation as well as agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting.