Wasatch County, a popular area for recreationists, sees millions in revenue driven by the recreation industry each year. Advocates say that preservation and conservation may play key roles in maintaining that positive economic impact in Wasatch County.
Save Our Canyons Executive Director Jack Stauss spoke at the Central Wasatch Symposium in January. The nonprofit leader discussed “wild economics” and how preserving land may be key in supporting Utah’s recreation industry.
Stauss said he did not immediately recognize that he acted as an economic driver when he began recreating in wilderness areas across Utah. It was a gradual process of understanding how recreation impacts the economy in the state.
He explained that there are on-site recreational benefits where individuals pay for parking or permits, purchase goods and services and buy gas or food at nearby businesses. Then, there are socioeconomic bonuses in job creation, community benefits, ecological and passive-use benefits.
“They’re a lot more intrinsic in nature or ones we don’t think about, but they end up becoming quite a bit of money, which is, I think, really cool that these things that we value as humans can also equate to both revenue as well as value for our communities,” Stauss said.
Studies show that Wasatch County is a leader in outdoor sports such as fishing, snowmobiling, skiing, trail running and biking. One pre-pandemic report from Utah State University suggests that snowmobilers should advocate for continued or improved protection and management of “high-quality snowmobile destinations,” which would continue driving revenue. In 2017, the report showed that the winter sport generated $13 million in state and local tax revenues.
Cody Sargent of the Utah Snowmobile Association and Jeff Salt of the Utah Anglers Coalition both say that preservation is a key part of their outdoor sports.
For Sargent, preservation has a significant effect on snowmobiling and access to winter sports. Without access to open, public lands, there would be no place for the 400 members in his association and then some to snowmobile in the winter. And that’s not to mention the backcountry skiers that recreate in the Wasatch Back every winter.
“We don’t want public ground being sold,” Sargent said. “Preservation, keeping the ground public — absolutely.”
While there is no immediate threat — apart from low-snow years — to snowmobiling access in Wasatch County, Salt said there is more of a risk to Blue Ribbon fisheries like the Provo River when it comes to anglers’ access.
“The middle Provo, as it’s referred to between Jordanelle and Deer Creek, is a really high-concentration, high-density fishing location destination, and it’s because of the restoration effort and following that preservation that’s kept it established,” Salt said.
Salt referred to the Utah Reclamation Mitigation and Conservation Commission Provo River Restoration Project between the Jordanelle Dam and Deer Creek Reservoir. That project was completed in 2008. It entailed moving the straightened river channel to mimic historical conditions while reconnecting the river to secondary channels and constructing small side channels and ponds. The project also acquired an 800 to 2,200-foot-wide continuous corridor the length of the middle Provo River protected for angler access and wildlife habitat.
The Provo River has some of the highest concentration of fishing anywhere in the state apart from Strawberry Reservoir.
Right now, there are a few inadvertent threats to fishing in the area, according to Salt. One is the Utah Department of Transportation bypass route. In January, UDOT announced its preferred route: Alternative B, which cuts through the North Fields.
UDOT Region 3 Project Manager Craig Hancock said that Alternative B will have no impact on the Provo River. But Salt said there are issues that arise when development occurs close to fishing areas. That’s the same with development along the Jordanelle Ridge. Salt said he is unsure how fishing in these zones may change with more construction and urbanization.
“If the fish are impacted by water quality, then they die off,” Salt said.
On a higher level, Utah Open Lands Executive Director Wendy Fisher said that she believes there is substantial evidence to suggest that protecting landscapes and open space has an effect on Wasatch County residents’ overall quality of life, which “fundamentally” affects the economy.
“For 36 years, Utah Open Lands has been preserving open space. We’ve also known that the top two reasons that people come to the state of Utah to work, to play, to live is its scenic beauty and recreational opportunity,” Fisher said.
That became clearer to Fisher during the nation’s economic downturn in 2008.
“Everybody saw a surge in people moving to more rural areas again because of quality of life; they were exiting areas that were highly developed to be in areas that had trails out the backdoor and open space, viewscapes and simply a sense of space,” Fisher said.
Counties with vast open space and viewsheds, Fisher said, tend to be those that visitors and new residents seek out. She said it’s important for places like Wasatch County to protect those open spaces, which invite tourists and outdoor enthusiasts.
“I think that it’d be great if there were just these simple answers, but then you look at the way that a community evolves — its success is really dependent on how they use the land, like those communities where they’ve polluted their rivers, or where there’s horrible inversions, those don’t tend to be the places that people are going to spend their economic dollars,” Fisher said.
Looking at protection of areas like the North Fields is integral to the success of Wasatch County, Fisher said. She said it helps that some Utah State University studies show that open space is cheaper for a county to maintain than new development.
“As I like to say, cows are not going to school. You’re not calling the police on a gaggle of ducks,” Fisher joked.
Fisher said that, along with economic impact, losing or minimized open spaces and protected lands would have an impact on quality of life.
“If we lose those open spaces, if we lose that access to recreational opportunities, and if we fundamentally change the airshed and the watershed, you’d have to be naive to think that isn’t going to have an impact,” Fisher said.
When it comes down to it, Fisher said, it’s most important for a given county to decide what to prioritize. It can be open space, development or something in between, she said.
“Fundamentally, what is most important for us as communities is to look at what we value most,” Fisher said.