Revised estimates for direct-effect recreational jobs in the interior Columbia River basin

This paper reviews the methodology used to derive the original estimates for direct employment associated with recreation on Federal lands in the interior Columbia River basin (the basin)， and details the changes in methodology and data used to derive new estimates. The new analysis resulted in an estimate of 77，655 direct-effect jobs associated with recreational activities on Federal lands in the basin. This estimate is a little over one-third of the previous estimate. The new estimated direct-effect recreational jobs amount to 4.48 percent of the total estimated jobs in the basin in 1994. This is still slightly larger than the estimated percentage of jobs in ranching， mining， and lumber and wood products combined (3.52 percent) in the basin. The intent of the original analysis is clarified， limitations of the data are brought forward， a cross-sectional analysis is conducted， and suggestions for future research are provided.