The Economic Value of Beaches

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The Economic Value of Beaches
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(No Transcript)
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Travel and tourism is the largest industry in
the world and U.S. (Contributing 3.5 trillion
to the worlds Gross Domestic Product GDP - and
1.2 trillion to the U.S. GDP).   World Travel
and Tourism Council, 2001
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Travel and tourism is the largest employer in the
world and U.S. (Employing 16.9 million people,
or 1 out of every 8.1 people, in the U.S.)
World Travel and Tourism Council, 2001
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Spending by foreign tourists supports 2.7 million
American jobs - as many jobs as are in the U.S.
computer industry. Bureau of Labor
Statistics, 2001
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Technology jobs account for little of total
employment in most local economies and dont do
much to boost a regions overall prosperity.
Council on Competitiveness, 2001
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Per-capita wages for travel and tourism jobs are
13 higher than average U.S. per-capita wages.
Holecek and Herbowicz, 1995
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Travel and tourism contributes about 200
billion to U.S. exports (Greater than the
combined export value of U.S. agricultural
products, aircraft, computers, and
telecommunications equipment). World Travel
and Tourism Council, 2001 U.S. Department
of Commerce, 2001
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Foreign visitors to the U.S. produced a trade
surplus of 13.9 billion (Greater than any
trade component including agricultural exports).
World Travel and Tourism Council, 2001 U.S.
Department of Commerce, 2001
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Americans take pride in high-technology
industries, but these industries ran a trade
deficit of 35 billion in 2000. U.S.
Department of Commerce, 2001
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Foreign tourism provides annual tax revenues of
7.5 billion. U.S. Travel and Tourism
Administration,1995 (TT Admin abolished by
Congress in 1996)
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Foreign Tourism
Annual Tax Revenues
State 33.0
2.5 Billion
4 Billion
1 Billion
Local 14.0
Federal 53.0
U.S. Travel and Tourism Administration, 1995
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Beaches are the leading tourist destination in
the U.S.
USA Today, 1993 Carlson Wagonlit Travel Agent
Poll, 1998 ABC News, 2000 Washingtonpost.com
Poll, 2001
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Coastal states receive 85 of all tourist-related
revenues in the U.S. World Almanac, 2001
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Annual Tourist Visits
(Millions)
California Beaches
National Park Service
Bureau of Land Management
0 100 200 300
400 500 600
700
Includes national seashores and monuments
Properties are one-eighth of U.S. land

King and Symes, 2002 National Park Service,
2001 Bureau of Land Management, 2001
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Annual Tourist Visits
(Millions)
National Beach Visits
National Parks
Bureau of Land Management
State Parks
0 200 400 600 800 1000
1200 1400 1600 1800 2000
Clean Beaches Council, 2001
National Park Service, 2001
Bureau of Land Management, 2001
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California State beaches make up just 2.7 of
State parks but have 72 of park visits. King,
1999


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Beach tourists contribute 260 billion to the
U.S. economy and 60 billion in Federal
taxes. King, 1999 Clean Beaches Council,
2001 World Travel and Tourism Council, 2001
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Beach erosion is the number one concern that
beach tourists have about beaches.


Hall and Staimer, 1995
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Germany has spent 6 times as much on its beaches
over the past 40 years as has the U.S.

Kelletat, 1992
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Japan spends more in a single year on shore
protection and restoration than the U.S. has in
40 years.

Marine Facilities Panel, 1991
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Spain spent more on beach nourishment over a
5-year period than the U.S. spent in 40 years.

Ministerio de Obras Publicas y
Transportes, 1993
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Miami Beach Experience
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Beach attendance at Miami Beach following beach
nourishment in the late 1970s increased from 8
million in 1978 to 21 million in 1983.


Wiegel, 1992
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Annual Tourist Visits
(Millions)

Miami Beach (1983)
Yosemite (2001)
Grand Canyon (2001)
Yellowstone (2001)
0 5 10
15 20
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Wiegel, 1992 National
Park Service, 2001
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Foreign beach tourists spend 500 annually (1.2
billion) for every 1 spent on the annual
capitalized cost of the Miami Beach nourishment
project City of Miami Beach, 2001 Houston,
1996 Stronge, 2000
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If the Miami Beach experience could be
successfully repeated, an investment of 1 of the
annual crop subsidy in national beach restoration
would wipe out the average annual U.S. trade
deficit. Houston, 2002 U.S. Department of
Commerce, 2001
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Federal Tax Revenues from Foreign Beach
Tourists Versus Federal Beach Nourishment Costs
2.0 1.8 1.6 1.4 1.2 1.0 0.8 0.6
0.4 0.2 0
Foreign Beach Tourist Federal Tax Revenues (2B)
BILLIONS
Federal Beach Nourishment Costs (0.1B)
U.S. Travel and Tourism
Administration, 1995 Marlowe, 1999
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Federal Tax Revenues from All Beach Tourists
Versus Federal Beach Nourishment Costs
60 50 40 30 20 10 0
Beach Tourist Federal Tax Revenues (60B)
BILLIONS
Federal Beach Nourishment Costs (0.1B)
U.S. Travel and Tourism
Administration, 1995

Marlowe, 1999
World Travel and Tourism Council, 2001
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There is probably no country in the world that
has a greater comparative advantage in tourism
than the United States.  

U.S. Travel and Tourism Administration, 1993
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The U.S. receives over 45 of the developed
worlds travel and tourism revenues and 60 of
its profits. Wall Street Journal, 1994
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The U.S. ranks 31st in tourism advertisement
behind countries such as Malaysia and Tunisia,
spending less than 10 of what Spain spends on
advertising to international tourists.   Brooks,
1995 Washington Post, 1995 (In 1996 Congress
ended this national tourism spending)
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The U.S. has slipped behind France and Spain as
the leading tourist destination, and the U.S.
share of the international tourism market has
steadily declined in the 1990s.  

Cable News Network (CNN), 2000
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U.S. will rank a disappointing 122 in
international tourism growth from 2001 to 2011,
lagging countries such as Burkina Faso,
Mauritius, Mali, Laos, and Botswana.

World Travel and Tourism
Council, 2001
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Without a paradigm shift in attitudes toward the
economic significance of travel and tourism and
necessary infrastructure investment to maintain
and restore beaches, the U.S. will relinquish a
dominant worldwide lead in its most important
industry.
Houston, 1995