…In 2012, Headwaters Economics released a report analyzing the major economic role that public lands near Grand County, Utah. The study (scroll down for a full-length PDF download) examined a wide range of public lands uses, including mining and agriculture, but focused on recreation because this type of use represents the largest, most complex, and least well understood activity on public lands in the county.
The study found that that tourism and recreation businesses account for 44 percent of private employment in the county; and that more than one-third of local families have a member that works in a tourism and recreation business related to public lands.…