Chapters 1 - U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Environmental Consequences
Public Use
The public use activities proposed under Alternative A would have no adverse effects related to
vectors and odors.
5.7.1.6 Effects to Economics/Employment
Wildlife and Habitat Management
Under Alternative A, the Refuge would continue to maintain its existing staffing levels (i.e., one full
time permanent Refuge Manager and one part time term maintenance worker). Therefore, the
effects to economics and employment at the local and regional level of implementing Alternative A
would be negligible.
Public Use
Since the Refuge would continue to have limited opportunities for public access, the economic
benefit of the Refuge to the regional economy is low. The Refuge does however provide some
regional economic benefits. An estimate of these benefits was developed using the procedures and
data in Banking on Nature 2006: The Economic Benefits to Local Communities of National
Wildlife Refuge Visitation (Carver and Caudill 2007).
The estimate took into consideration the following information. The Refuge’s average total
number of visitors annually is approximately 1,000, with an average visit lasting four hours. The
two special event days draw additional visitors. Since hunting and fishing are not allowed on this
Refuge, all of the Refuge’s visitors participate in non-consumptive activities such as interpretation
and wildlife observation. The retail sales associated with Refuge visitation were calculated using
visitor days and the average recreation expenditures per person per visitor day for the Region 1
area, which included California at the time the 2006 study was prepared. Retail sales include
lodging and transportation. Table 5-3 depicts the estimated visitation and expenditures for the
Seal Beach NWR in 2006 based on this study. Expenditures are likely to be somewhat lower in
2010 as a result of the current economic downturn.
Table 5-3
Estimated Visitation and Expenditures
for the Seal Beach NWR in 2009
Number of Visitors Visitor Days Retail Sales
Resident 1,216 607.75 $18,165
Non-Resident 215 107.25 $11,687
Total Impacts $1,430 $715 $29,852
Using these retail expenditures and a regional multiplier, the final demand was calculated, which is
the difference in all final consumers’ expenditures in the area attributable to refuge visitation
(Carver and Caudill 2007). This spending creates jobs. The IMPLAN software was used to
calculate the jobs and tax revenue generated from the visitation of the Refuge using Orange
County and Los Angeles County data (Caudill 2008). These economic benefits are provided in
Table 5-4. All of these benefits would continue under Alternative A.
Draft Comprehensive Conservation Plan 5-75