December 2010 - Parks & Recreation - 30

Who, What, Where & how Around the Parks

from ultraviolet radiation, up to 95 percent, which reduces the chance of skin
cancer and cataracts of the eye. By removing carbon and storing it in their
tissue, trees actually absorb carbon
emissions. One acre of park-tree cover

can store an average of 40 tons of carbon and remove about 1.2 tons of carbon per year. Larger trees with trunk
diameters greater than 30 inches store
approximately 800-900 times more carbon than smaller trees less than three

Gazebos
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Is a park complete without a gazebo?
We were honored to have met many
of you at the NRPA Congress & Expo
in Minneapolis last month. If you
have not yet ordered your own copy
of the 40 page catalog and price
guide, please call today!

Sizes range from 8ft. - 30ft.
Prices range from $3k - $30k

me
" Our wedding income
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azebo! "
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Order your catalog, DVD and price guide today!
www.AmishGazebos.com or call 1-800-700-1777
Circle 13 on product information form on PAGE 79

26 Parks & Recreation

DECEMBER 2010

www.NRPA .ORG

inches in diameter. Park trees nationally
store about 75 million tons of carbon and
remove about 2.4 million tons each year.
Park soils nationally store about 102 million tons of carbon, which equates to
about $2.1 billion/year. Clearly, sustaining large, healthy trees in parks is one
key element to increasing our air quality.

Measuring the Economic Impact of
Park and Recreation Services
By Dr. John Crompton, Texas A&M
University
Tourism depends on attractions, often
sports tournaments, festivals, parks, and
major recreation facilities operated by
public park and recreation departments.
Pleasure travel is a business driven by
the public sector, and park and recreation agencies are central to that business. Thus, in most communities, park
and recreation agencies are the engines
of tourism.
In a climate of fiscal conservatism,
park and recreation agencies are mistakenly perceived to be " black hats "
whose services have to be subsidized
by tax funds and result in net economic
losses to the community, while convention and visitor bureaus have established
themselves as " white hats " because they
bring new money into the community.
Indeed, parks and recreation agencies are one of the few " businesses " in a
community that are likely to bring " new
money " to it. Most businesses, especially small businesses, simply recycle existing money.
How do park and recreation agencies show direct financial benefit to their
community? Economic impact studies.
Likely, park and recreation agencies
are, in actuality, economic stimulators in
the community. By conducting economic impact studies and preparing annual
reports for stakeholders, park and recreation agencies can better present their
worth and safeguard their position in the
community.
For more information on these five
monographs, visit www.NRPA.org. 

CMY

December 2010 - Parks & Recreation

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of December 2010 - Parks & Recreation