BANKING ON NATURE 2004: The Economic Benefits to Local Communities of National Wildlife Refuge Visitation In a world where money counts, the land needs value to give it a voice. ─ Frances Cairncross, Costing the Earth James Caudill, Ph.D. and Erin Henderson Division of Economics U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Washington, DC September 2005 Table of Contents Executive Summary......................................................................................................................... i Introduction..................................................................................................................................... 1 Glossary ........................................................................................................................................ 11 Region 1.........................................................................................................................................13 Ash Meadows National Wildlife Refuge.............................................................................. 14 Bandon Marsh National Wildlife Refuge ............................................................................. 18 Columbia National Wildlife Refuge ..................................................................................... 22 Deer Flat National Wildlife Refuge...................................................................................... 27 Grays Harbor National Wildlife Refuge............................................................................... 31 Guadalupe-Nipomo Dunes National Wildlife Refuge.......................................................... 35 Humboldt National Wildlife Refuge..................................................................................... 40 Kealia Pond National Wildlife Refuge ................................................................................. 44 Kern National Wildlife Refuge............................................................................................. 48 Kootenai National Wildlife Refuge ...................................................................................... 52 Little Pend Oreille National Wildlife Refuge....................................................................... 56 Lower Klamath National Wildlife Refuge............................................................................ 60 Malheur National Wildlife Refuge ....................................................................................... 64 Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge ..................................................................................... 68 Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge.................................................................................... 72 Ruby Lake National Wildlife Refuge ................................................................................... 76 Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge.................................................................................. 80 Saddle Mountain National Wildlife Refuge ......................................................................... 84 Sonny Bono Salton Sea National Wildlife Refuge............................................................... 88 Stillwater National Wildlife Refuge ..................................................................................... 92 Tijuana Slough National Wildlife Refuge ............................................................................ 96 Region 2.......................................................................................................................................100 Balcones Canyonlands National Wildlife Refuge .............................................................. 101 Bill Williams National Wildlife Refuge ............................................................................. 105 Bitter Lake National Wildlife Refuge................................................................................. 109 Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge.................................................................... 113 Buffalo Lake National Wildlife Refuge.............................................................................. 117 Cibola National Wildlife Refuge ........................................................................................ 121 Kofa National Wildlife Refuge........................................................................................... 126 Maxwell National Wildlife Refuge..................................................................................... 130 Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge .................................................................................. 134 Sequoyah National Wildlife Refuge ................................................................................... 138 Tishomingo National Wildlife Refuge................................................................................ 143 Washita National Wildlife Refuge...................................................................................... 147 Region 3.......................................................................................................................................151 Big Stone National Wildlife Refuge................................................................................... 152 Crane Meadows National Wildlife Refuge......................................................................... 156 Mingo National Wildlife Refuge ........................................................................................ 160 Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge................................................................................. 164 Necedah National Wildlife Refuge..................................................................................... 168 Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge ....................................................................................... 172 Patoka National Wildlife Refuge........................................................................................ 176 Rice Lake National Wildlife Refuge................................................................................... 180 Seney National Wildlife Refuge ......................................................................................... 184 Sherburne National Wildlife Refuge .................................................................................. 188 Squaw Creek National Wildlife Refuge ............................................................................. 192 Tamarac National Wildlife Refuge..................................................................................... 197 Region 4.......................................................................................................................................201 Black Bayou Lake National Wildlife Refuge ..................................................................... 202 Bon Secour National Wildlife Refuge ................................................................................ 206 Cache River National Wildlife Refuge............................................................................... 210 Cape Romain National Wildlife Refuge............................................................................. 214 Chassahowitzka National Wildlife Refuge......................................................................... 218 Clarks River National Wildlife Refuge .............................................................................. 222 Felsenthal National Wildlife Refuge .................................................................................. 226 J. N. Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge ..................................................................... 230 Lower Suwannee National Wildlife Refuge....................................................................... 234 Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge................................................................................ 238 Pea Island National Wildlife Refuge .................................................................................. 243 Pee Dee National Wildlife Refuge...................................................................................... 247 Piedmont National Wildlife Refuge.................................................................................... 251 Sabine National Wildlife Refuge........................................................................................ 256 St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge ................................................................................... 260 Tennessee National Wildlife Refuge .................................................................................. 265 Theodore Roosevelt National Wildlife Refuge Complex................................................... 270 West Tennessee Refuge Complex ...................................................................................... 275 White River National Wildlife Refuge ............................................................................... 280 Region 5.......................................................................................................................................284 Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge ................................................................................... 285 Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge................................................................................. 289 Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge ..........................................................................