Economic Impacts of Parks, Rivers, Trails and Greenways

Evidence is accumulating that demonstrates that accessibility of facilities isimportant in encouraging physical activity (Humpel, 2002).An Outdoor Industry Association survey showed that lack of nearby parks or areasto recreate is the number five challenge for participation in outdoor activities, and agreater number of local parks or nearby recreation areas was cited as the sixth andfifth best action for encouraging youth and adults, respectively, to experienceoutdoor activities (Outdoor Industry Foundation, 2004).A study on the recreation impact of the designation of additional wilderness wasconducted to determine whether designation leads to additional recreational use orwhether users are just spreads across a greater range. Designation of additionalwilderness areas resulted in an overall increase in wilderness recreation use. Therate of increases use was such that a 10% increase in designated wilderness wouldresult in an average increase in visitor use of 8.9% (Loomis, 1999).Impact on Employers In 1994, the costs that U.S. businesses bore for obesity-related health problemsreached $13 billion, broken down by:o health insurance expenditures: $8 billiono sick leave: $2.4 billiono life insurance: $1.8 billiono disability insurance: $1 billion (Thompson, 1998) Limited physical inactivity has been linked to increased costs for time awayfrom work. The high risk category, meaning people participated in physicalactivity less than once a week, had a time away from work costs of $1,088compared to low risk groups which only had costs of $1,005 (Wright, 2002). Examples of Employee Fitness Programs:o HealthPartners, a Minneapolis-based health insurer, offers $25 gift cardsto employees who start a walking program or join an on-site WeightWatchers group (Tahmincioglu, 2004).o Blue Cross Blue Shield of Western New York, based in Buffalo, givesradios and binoculars to employees who participate in company walksand wellness programs (Tahmincioglu, 2004).o Colonial Life and Accident Insurance in Columbia, SC implemented acomprehensive wellness program and invited officers from the localArmy recruiting battalion to administer a fitness test. It was runaccording to the Army’s active duty personnel standards, for example, bylaying out a 2-mile course that met the Army’s standards for maximumelevation. Those who passed received gift certificates to a local sportinggoods store (Patton, 2004).114