Published in the April 2015 Cougar Rewilding Foundation (CRF) Newsletter, "Yellowstone East: The Economic Benefits of Restoring the Adirondack Ecosystem With Native Wildlife," CRF executives Dr. John Laundre and Christopher Spatz cite as examples U.S. regions currently promoting big wildlife recreation............... Penned herds of elk and bison attract 130,000 visitors yearly to Kentucky's Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area............. Red wolves restored to North Carolina's Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge attract 25,000 families, generate $37 million every year, and have boosted eastern North Carolina tourism by 19%.............. Yellowstone National Park's 1.8 million annual wildlife watching tourists produce $675 million in revenue, many drawn to Yellowstone's elk, bison and its restored wolves. ...............The study suggests that rewilding America's first wilderness with its marquee wildlife would draw an additional 470,000 wildlife recreationists a year, in part, by keeping New York wildlife watchers in-state.................. "Nearly two-thirds of New York State's $10.6 billion in annual wildlife watching revenue goes out-of-state," says John Laundre, the former SUNY Oswego ecologist who published a cougar habitat analysis for the Adirondacks in 2013, "With these big, charismatic animals restored to the East's grandest Park, tourists and hunters from downstate, and the City, and the Northeast could decide to stay closer to home instead of going to Alaska or Yellowstone or on an African big game safari - 84 million of them within a day's drive.".

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Christopher Spatz ;spatzcat61@gmail.com
Date: Fri, Apr 24, 2015 at 8:45 AM
Subject: Press Release: Yellowstone East: Native Wildlife Pageantry Would Restore Adirondack Ecosystem, Sustain Park Economy
To: Rick Meril <rick.meril@gmail.com

For Immediate Release: April 24, 2015  

Contact: John Laundre, Vice President, Cougar Rewilding Foundation, (315) 529-3759, launjohn@hotmail.com

           John Davis, Director, Cougar Rewilding Foundation, (321) 222-8993, john@wildlandsnetwork.org

           Christopher Spatz, President, Cougar Rewilding Foundation, (845) 658-2233, spatzcat61@gmail.com

Study: Native Wildlife Pageantry Would Restore Adirondack Ecosystem, Sustain Park Economy

Essex, N.Y. - An economic study published this week proposes that restoring the Adirondack ecosystem with native wildlife would establish Adirondack Park as an international wildlife recreation destination. While noting that native woodland elk, bison, wolves and cougars created elements of Northeast ecosystems, the Cougar Rewilding Foundation report estimates that restoring these missing species to Adirondack Park would add upwards of $583 million annually in wildlife watching and big game hunting tourism, while creating 3540 new jobs. The study reports that Adirondack ecosystem restoration would enhance both New York State's U.S.-leading wildlife watching tourism and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation's (DEC) Watchable Wildlife Adirondack viewing locations, while creating opportunities for wildlife tracking classes and vacations, darting, howling and photography safaris, and big game hunting.


Eastern Wolf in Algonquin National Park, Canada

Published in the April 2015 Cougar Rewilding Foundation (CRF) Newsletter, "Yellowstone East: The Economic Benefits of Restoring the Adirondack Ecosystem With Native Wildlife," CRF executives Dr. John Laundre and Christopher Spatz cite as examples U.S. regions currently promoting big wildlife recreation. Penned herds of elk and bison attract 130,000 visitors yearly to Kentucky's Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area. Red wolves restored to North Carolina's Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge attract 25,000 families, generate $37 million every year, and have boosted eastern North Carolina tourism by 19%. Yellowstone National Park's 1.8 million annual wildlife watching tourists produce $675 million in revenue, many drawn to Yellowstone's elk, bison and its restored wolves. 



Puma in Florida

With its proximity to the Northeast's metropolitan centers, Adirondack Park already attracts millions of visitors each year. The study suggests that rewilding America's first wilderness with its marquee wildlife would draw an additional 470,000 wildlife recreationists a year, in part, by keeping New York wildlife watchers in-state. "Nearly two-thirds of New York State's $10.6 billion in annual wildlife watching revenue goes out-of-state," says John Laundre, the former SUNY Oswego ecologist who published a cougar habitat analysis for the Adirondacks in 2013, "With these big, charismatic animals restored to the East's grandest Park, tourists and hunters from downstate, and the City, and the Northeast could decide to stay closer to home instead of going to Alaska or Yellowstone or on an African big game safari - 84 million of them within a day's drive."



Elk

With its proximity to the Northeast's metropolitan centers, Adirondack Park already attracts millions of visitors each year. The study suggests that rewilding America's first wilderness with its marquee wildlife would draw an additional 470,000 wildlife recreationists a year, in part, by keeping New York wildlife watchers in-state. "Nearly two-thirds of New York State's $10.6 billion in annual wildlife watching revenue goes out-of-state," says John Laundre, the former SUNY Oswego ecologist who published a cougar habitat analysis for the Adirondacks in 2013, "With these big, charismatic animals restored to the East's grandest Park, tourists and hunters from downstate, and the City, and the Northeast could decide to stay closer to home instead of going to Alaska or Yellowstone or on an African big game safari - 84 million of them within a day's drive."




Woodland Bison

The study reports that successful restorations of all four species have occurred in regions with comparable or higher human densities than the Adirondacks, including elk to Pennsylvania, bison and wolves across Europe, and cougars test-released along the eastern Georgia/Florida border. "Economic wildlife studies, including a study of the DEC's Environmental Protection Fund, show that for each $1 invested in open space and wildlife returns $7-$21 in revenue, jobs and taxes," says CRF president and Rosendale, N.Y. resident Christopher Spatz. "By restoring its ancient, animal pageantry to the mighty Adirondacks, New York State has an opportunity to lead the nation by merging ecosystem recovery with economic sustainability."

Cougar Rewilding Foundation is a 501(c)(3) dedicated to the recovery of cougars to their former range.

PO Box 81 

Hanover, WV 24839