…Public lands provide competitive economic advantages, according to nonprofit research group Headwaters Economics. In the study “West Is Best,” regional economic strength was found in western portions of the United States where the Great Recession hasn’t decimated the economy as badly as other areas.
Buttressing economic stability and job creation in 11 Western states was the transition to a service economy whose dominant industries include health care and social assistance, real estate, finance and insurance, government, professional and technical services, education, hospitality, arts, entertainment and recreation.
“From 1970 to 2010,” the report states, “service sectors created more than 2 million net new jobs, or nearly 100 percent of net new job growth in the non-metro West. Non-services have been roughly flat over this same period.”
Industries identified by Headwaters Economics that have fared the worst include manufacturing, farm employment and wood products manufacturing.…