Recreational Vehicles fill every available spot at the South Forty RV Park in Piute County's Marysvale. RVing meant $538 million to Utah's economy in 2022, a good chunk of the state's $8.1 billion outdoor recreation industry that year. Photo courtesy South Forty RV Park.
$8.1 BILLION IMPACT; 71,677 JOBS; $3.6 BILLION IN WAGES
Brice Wallace
Utahns’ and visitors’ love of the outdoors continues to grow.
That translates into dollars, and statistics from the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Economic Analysis shows that the outdoor rec industry in Utah in 2022 produced $8.1 billion in economic output, outpacing the $6.1 million figure in 2021. That translates into 32.8 percent year-over-year growth.
The 2022 number is the largest recorded measure for Utah since the federal bureau began calculating the size of the outdoor recreation economy in 2012.
The stats also show that outdoor recreation accounted for 3.2 percent of Utah’s GDP in 2022, up from 2.7 percent in 2021, and included 71,677 jobs, up from 66,736 in 2021. Those 2022 jobs earned a total of $3.6 billion in wages.
“With a continual rise in people drawn to the outdoors, Utah’s outdoor recreation sector continues to be a catalyst for economic growth and job creation,” said Jason Curry, director of the Utah Division of Outdoor Recreation. “Communities across the state are experiencing the numerous benefits of our readily accessible landscapes, and we will remain committed to fostering a high-quality outdoor lifestyle that drives the outdoor economy and enriches the lives of all Utah’s residents and visitors.”
The state’s top outdoor rec sectors in 2022 were snow activities, $602 million; RVing, $538 million; boating/fishing, $438 million; hunting/shooting/trapping, $245 million; and OHV/motorcycling/ATVing, $136 million.
Nationally, the outdoor rec industry generated $1.1 trillion in economic output in 2022, up from $862 billion in 2021, and 2.2 percent of GDP. It had 3.2 percent of U.S. employees, up from 3 percent the prior year, and created 5 million jobs, up from 4.5 million.
The figures show that the outdoor recreation economy contributed more to the U.S. economy than farming, oil and gas extraction, mining, and utilities.
“If there’s one thing to take away from the BEA presentation it’s this: The state of the outdoor recreation economy is strong, and sustained investment in outdoor recreation and our shared public lands and waters pays dividends for our local and national economies and quality of life,” said Jessica Turner, president of the Outdoor Recreation Roundtable.
“Our industry continues to provide benefits to communities across the country — big, small, urban and rural alike. … We are thrilled to once again see the data reflect what we hear every day: that outdoor recreation is not a ‘nice to have,’ but a necessity for healthy people, places and economies.”