US Department of Commerce… Through the Travel, Tourism & Outdoor Recreation program, EDA is focused on accelerating the recovery of communities that rely on the travel, tourism and outdoor recreation sectors. $750 million of EDA’s American Rescue Plan funds are allocated to support the following efforts:
State Tourism Grants: $510 million in non-competitive awards to help states quickly invest in marketing, infrastructure, workforce and other projects to rejuvenate safe leisure, business and international travel.
Competitive Grants: $240 million to help communities that have been hardest hit by challenges facing the travel, tourism and outdoor recreation sectors to invest in infrastructure, workforce or other projects to support the recovery of the industry and economic resilience of the community in the future.
Travel Oregon, in partnership with the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department (OPRD), the Oregon Office of Outdoor Recreation (OREC), Oregon Fish & Wildlife (ODFW) and Earth Economics, released a new Outdoor Recreation Economic Impact Study that demonstrates the importance of Oregon’s vast range of outdoor recreation opportunities to the state’s economy.
$15.6 BILLION IN OUTDOOR RECREATION SPENDING $552 MILLION IN STATE AND LOCAL TAXES CREATED $13 BILLION IN GDP CONTRIBUTIONS 224,000 FULL AND PART-TIME JOBS $9.3 BILLION IN WAGES AND OTHER COMPENSATION
The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife has created an iNaturalist project to increase their knowledge of wildlife and biodiversity in the state, with special emphasis on the Oregon Conservation Strategy Species. The following is their description of the project and links to participate.
Have you ever taken a picture of wildlife in Oregon and wondered if anyone might want to know where you saw it? We do!
Help us improve our conservation efforts by sharing your wildlife observations! The Oregon Wildlife Conservation iNaturalist Project allows you to share your wildlife observation data directly with biologists. Even if you can’t identify what species you are looking at, odds are that someone in the iNaturalist community can. Participation in this project helps to enhance our understanding of wildlife in our state, and your data can help improve wildlife conservation efforts in Oregon.
It is not possible for the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) to survey all wildlife species, we need your help to monitor their presence and distributions across the state. The Oregon Wildlife Conservation iNaturalist Project was developed to collect wildlife observation data from community scientists like you on amphibians, birds, mammals and reptiles across Oregon. While we are interested in all wildlife observations, we are particularly interested in your observations of the 109 wildlife Strategy Species, or species of greatest conservation need, and Strategy Data Gap Species that are missing key information needed to accurately determine their conservation status.
The information gathered will augment ongoing research efforts, conservation actions, and management plans for sensitive wildlife species by ODFW and our partners. Your help is crucial for the successful conservation of Oregon’s wildlife species! iNaturalist is a free online tool managed by the California Academy of Sciences and the National Geographic Society that helps users to identify, report, and learn more about the plants and animals they observe.
We appreciate your contribution and ask that you help to spread the word.
