VT Digger
VT Digger, Auditi Guha Many Vermont residents value the outdoors. What they may not know is just how much the Green Mountain State’s outdoor recreation economy is worth. Outdoor recreation contributed $2.1 billion in value added, or 4.8% of the state’s gross domestic product in 2023, according to data from the U.S. Department of Commerce. That means it made up the second-highest percentage of state GDP, after Hawaii. Since the Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Economic Analysis started tracking this data a few years ago, Vermont has maintained its position near the top, said Rebecca Washburn, director of the lands administration and recreation division of the Vermont Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation in Vermont. Read the full story here.
