CHAPIKR 4: ENVIKO.NMKN'IAI. ( ONSKyiKNCES 



watching visitors (or 39,000 people) enter the park by passing through West Yellowstone, Gardiner, or 

 Cooke City. Expenditures of $293 per nonresident visitor impHes a total nonresident expenditure in the 

 Montana economy of $1 1.3 million per year due to the presence of wolves in YNP (Duffieid et al. 2001 ). 



While the experience of YNP and the Lamar Valley suggests that the presence of wolves in an ecosystem 

 can have a strong positive impact on both visitors and a local economy, predicting a similar impact 

 statewide is more difficult. As noted above, the Lamar Valley is a truly unique setting that allows for 

 easy wolf watching in one of the nation's premiere national parks. The extent to which this type of 

 setting and experience might be duplicated elsewhere in Montana is unknown. Despite the presence of 

 wolves for a number of years in northwestern Montana and the Nine Mile Valley, no significant 

 experience similar to that seen in YNP has developed, possibly due to the predominance of forested 

 terrain. A small percentage of visitors to GNP specifically seek wolf-viewing opportunities along the 

 western boundary, home of several wolf packs since the mid-1980s. However, most Glacier visitors 

 gravitate to the spectacular scenery along the Going to the Sun Road. 



FWP expects wolf-viewing opportunities to have a positive impact on recreational values in Montana. 

 But at this point, the impact can't be quantified due to an absence of data. For example, we do not know 

 how changes in the number of wolves affect the odds of seeing wolves or how increasing or decreasing 

 viewing opportunities affect expenditures or net benefits. However, it is possible to estimate the number 

 of individuals that may be positively affected. Both residents and visitors enjoy wildlife viewing 

 experiences in Montana every year. The National Fishing and Hunting Survey reported that 341,000 

 residents age 16 and over (50% of Montana's population) and 51 1,000 nonresidents participated in 

 wildlife watching in Montana during 2001 (USFWS and U.S. Department of Commerce 2002). Relative 

 to the state population, the number of nonresident wildlife watching participants in Montana (74%) was 

 similar to the estimate for Alaska and greater than that for any other state except Wyoming. 



The addition of wolf viewing to the experiential aspect of these trips should positively impact the 

 recreational values of many of these people. The size of the wolf population should be directly related to 

 the positive value accruing to the individuals would seek out wolf viewing or hearing opportunities. As 

 the alternative specifying the largest recovered population, the No Action Alternative would also likely 

 have the greatest potential to positively impact recreational values among the five alternatives examined. 



FWP Fiscal Impacts 



FWP is primarily funded by user fees and federal excise taxes paid by hunters and anglers. The largest 

 revenue source is the sale of hunting and fishing licenses. Annual license sales generate more than $30 

 million, $23 million of which is used for day-to-day operations. The balance is earmarked for specific 

 programs like hunter access, conservation easements, and maintenance of property. More than $11 

 million in federal funds are also allocated to Montana based on formulas that consider the number of paid 

 hunting and fishing license holders and the land and water area of the state. 



Nonresidents are assessed higher fees than residents for hunting and angling opportunities. Montana 

 statutes limit the number of licenses available to nonresidents for some hunting licenses. Even though the 

 number of licenses sold is limited, revenues from nonresident license sales account for more than two- 

 thirds of FWP' s total license receipts. 



How FWP revenue will be affected by each of the alternatives is an important consideration. Trends in 

 license sales for the general elk license and the general deer license are largely influenced by factors such 

 as elk or deer population status, hunter access, changing hunter demographics, or price, and not 

 necessarily the presence or status of a recovered wolf population. However, a recovered wolf population 



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