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The enjoyment and services we receive from the natural environment through outdoor recreational activities are not fully captured by the indicator on personal consumption expenditures. This indicator on the participation in outdoor recreational activities reflects our changing interests in various environmental services. In the context of sustainability, it will ultimately be important to monitor not only the participation in various outdoor activities, but also the degree to which the natural habitat and environmental quality are maintained, enhanced, or degraded by these activities.
By examining trends in outdoor recreation activities in the United States, we can gain some insight into environmental conditions, the availability of recreational services, and the amount of leisure time and economic resources available for these activities. This indicator shows a marked increase in the use of natural areas for camping and hiking from 1982 to 1995, but it is difficult to draw any conclusions about this trend based on these data alone.
The original National Survey on Recreation was established in 1960 by the U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI). The most recent survey was expanded to include information on environmental concerns, and it was renamed as the National Survey on Recreation and the Environment. The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Forest Service provided organizational and technical leadership in conducting the most recent survey, and other survey collaborators included the Bureau of Land Management, the National Park Service, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and the Sporting Goods Manufacturers Association. This survey information is useful to private industry and public decision-makers as they strive to understand and meet the public demand for outdoor recreational activities.
Reference:
Forest Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Survey on Recreation and the Environment, 1995.
Link(s) to be added, when feasible, to data at level of detail suitable
for use at the community level.
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http://www.sdi.gov/indicators/lc_rec.htm Last Modified: May 14, 2002 |