KAS ea) URE TAT hee: 
Figure 47—Rising incomes will give consumers more freedom in choosing among activities, but 
time available for recreation will affect their choices. 
increased values for recreation 
resources to the point that private 
landowners may provide additional 
recreational opportunities on a fee 
basis. This is obviously beneficial to 
resource owners, but may be 
considered undesirable by some people 
who have become accustomed to and 
prefer free access. At the margin, some 
people may be denied access to some 
recreation simply because they do not 
choose to pay the fee. 
Outdoor recreation and wilderness have 
important social significance to many 
Americans. Individuals, groups, 
communities, regions, and the Nation 
as a whole are affected to varying 
degrees by recreation and wilderness 
demand and supply. Providing 
preferred recreation opportunities to 
some segments of American society, 
including the elderly, less educated, 
some racial minorities, the 
economically disadvantaged, and those 
living in central cities, will be an 
important challenge in the future. 
Some recreational and wilderness uses 
are compatible, but others are not. 
Thus, growth in recreational demands 
could lead to situations requiring 
management of competing uses of the 
forest and rangeland resource in some 
local areas. For example, some 
recreational activities are not 
compatible with wildlife and fish. 
Increased use of forests will place 
added stress on trees and could 
intensify forest pest problems, 
especially near population centers. 
The growth in demand for recreational 
activities implies expenditures for 
equipment, guide services, travel—all 
of the items necessary to make the 
experiences enjoyable. Supply—demand 
imbalances that constrain the growth of 
recreation will limit both the growth of 
these expenditures and the growth of 
local economies dependent on 
recreation-related industries. 
Opportunities—The major ways of 
increasing supplies include: 
—Rehabilitating deteriorating sites and 
adequately maintaining existing 
facilities. 
—Expanding activities concerned with 
visitor information services, including 
field interpretive and educational 
services that match recreationists with 
the recreational opportunities in a 
particular area. 
—Improving coordination and 
encouraging partnerships among 
private groups, nonprofit organizations, 
and public agencies so as to deliver 
recreational opportunities more 
efficiently. 
—Developing stable sources of 
revenue to cover costs of providing 
recreational opportunities, for example, 
user fees for recreational use on private 
and public lands. 
—Constructing additional facilities 
such as trails, campgrounds, picnic 
areas, boat ramps, and other sites. 
—TImproving the coordination and 
integration of outdoor recreation uses 
with other uses. 
—TImproving access to forest and range 
land and inland water suitable for 
outdoor recreation, including private 
lands. 
Wildlife and Fish 
Implications—W ildlife and fish are 
critical parts of nature. Society’s 
concerns and values for fish and 
wildlife are evident in various laws and 
regulations that have been passed to 
protect the resource. The social, 
economic, and environmental 
implications of increasing demands on 
the fish and wildlife resource are hard 
to quantify, however. Employment and 
income implications have important 
consequences in fishing communities 
in areas where other opportunities are 
limited, such as coastal Alaska. 
49 
