Appalachian Trail Communities

! The Trail! A.T. Communities! Sustainable Tourism in Unicoi

County

Benton MacKaye

" a path interspersed with planned wilderness communities where

people could go to renew themselves"

" to seek respite from an increasingly industrialized, urbanized society.

ATC

Last year, more than 6,200 volunteers contributed over 220,000 hours to Trail maintenance projects.

Appalachian Trail Communities

Economic Impact of the A.T.

!2 million recreation visits annually!$125 168 million annual spending! $27 million spending in local

communities!626 jobs supported by trail-related

tourism

J.M. Bowker, S.J. Zarnoch, H. Ken Cordell USDA FS; Neelam Poudyal, Gary Green UGA; Matt Owens GA DNR. Presented as preliminary findings at 20th American Trails National Symposium in Chattanooga, TN, November 14-17, 2010

How the Trail Benefits Communities

Protecting Natural Resources:vital habitat corridors, species diversity, ecosystem services that citizens depend on such as watershed, air quality, foodsheds and even medicine

Protecting Rural Character and Place: ridgelines, river corridors, visual relief by framing neighborhoods in the face of sprawl, preserving farmland (e.g. in PA)

Healthier lifestyles:encouraging hiking, walking, jogging from a close location, positive life-long exercise and experience, free!

Education:citizen scientists, outdoor classrooms, experiential learning, teaching stewardship

Enhanced quality of life for residents

Ecosystem Management Restoration

Employment opportunities for ecosystem management and monitoring,

Increase the work force of communities to accomplish ecological restoration activities like non-native invasive species control, prescribed fire, timber stand improvements, and biomass thinning

Job training opportunities for young adults

Providing high quality experiential education

Media Support: guidebooks, web mapping, etc..

National NetworkLogo Usage and brandingSignageIncreased Recognition and VisibilityTeacher EligibilityIncreased Environmental Stewardship

Appalachian Trail Community Benefits

Unicoi  County

Sustainable  Tourism  Initiative

Hiking  Trails  info

Festival

Increased  land  manager  

and  community  partnership

Outcomes and Successes, example

Asset Based Action Plans

1) Recreational activities at Rocky Fork 2) Programming showcasing the new TN Welcome Center 3) Cultural Asset guidelines booklet 4) Commercial Services through beautification plan 5) Marketing plan for natural resources

Entrepreneurs Workshop

Regional economic analysisBusiness planning Financial Strategies and resourcesCase studies

Unicoi Already Attracts Tourists

3,600 Hikers visit Unicoi each year

28,000 Boaters visit Unicoi 50,000 Anglers live within an

hourMany More____________________________________________________TOURISM IMPACTS on UNICOI County:

Source:    Upper  Nolichucky  River  Watershed  Resource  Benefit  Study,  Equinox  Environmental  Consultation,  May  2005

Local Taxes:$620,000

Employment:74 Jobs

Local Taxes:$620,000

2008 Tourist ExpendituresSelected TN & NC Counties

County / State 2008 Tourist Expenditures($ million)

Washington Co., TN $197.37 million

Avery Co., NC $89.76 million

Greene Co., TN $71.83 million

Carter Co., TN $31.27 million

Madison Co., NC $29.26 million

Yancey Co., NC $26.33 million

Mitchell Co., NC $19.86 million

Unicoi Co., TN $7.62 million

Source:    TN  Dept.  of    Tourist  

Development  &  U.S.  Travel  

Association;  NC  Dept.  of  

Commerce,  Tourism  Division

Economic Benefit Could Be Higher

! Unicoi receives an estimated $12.1 M annual economic benefit from nature-based recreation

! Economic Impact from Recreational Users in Unicoi Could Increase by 39%

! With planning, promotion, and partnerships built from asset-mapping plans

! With growing of Appalachian Trail Community Network (now 24 Communities) and

! Growing destination packages to an national and international market of Voluntourists.

Source: Upper Nolichucky River Watershed Resource Benefit Study

Julie Judkins, ATC jjudkins@appalachiantrail.org

The Mountains are calling, and I must go.John Muir

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