HARRISBURG, PA \u2014 Pennsylvania\u2019s outdoor recreation industry grew to $20.4 billion in 2024, adding thousands of jobs and outpacing national growth, according to new federal data.<\/p>\n
What This Means for You<\/p>\n
Outdoor recreation is creating jobs and boosting local economies
\nTourism and outdoor businesses are expanding across the state
\nState investments are supporting parks, trails, and recreation access<\/p>\n
The Shapiro Administration said the industry expanded by $1.5 billion last year and now supports more than 177,000 jobs across the Commonwealth.<\/p>\n
Outdoor recreation refers to economic activity tied to activities such as hiking, fishing, boating, hunting, and outdoor tourism, as well as related manufacturing and retail.<\/p>\n
Job Growth and Wages<\/p>\n
Officials said the sector added 9,000 jobs in 2024 and generated an additional $800 million in wages, bringing total wages tied to outdoor recreation to $9.5 billion.<\/p>\n
The industry now accounts for about 2 percent of Pennsylvania\u2019s total economy and grew at a rate of 2.7 percent, exceeding national growth levels.<\/p>\n
What Is Driving the Growth<\/p>\n
State officials credited investments in parks, trails, and outdoor infrastructure, along with support for outdoor businesses and tourism initiatives.<\/p>\n
\u201cInvesting in Pennsylvania\u2019s parks, trails, and outdoor recreation infrastructure is more than protecting our natural resources \u2014 it\u2019s about creating good-paying jobs and supporting local communities,\u201d said Department of Conservation and Natural Resources Secretary Cindy Adams Dunn.<\/p>\n
Key sectors contributing to growth include manufacturing of outdoor goods, retail sales related to activities like boating and hunting, and increased tourism tied to outdoor destinations.<\/p>\n
Expanding Industry Sectors<\/p>\n
Officials said outdoor recreation manufacturing has grown 30 percent in recent years, contributing $3 billion to the state economy.<\/p>\n
Retail activity tied to outdoor recreation grew 10 percent in 2024, while tourism related to outdoor activities increased 15 percent. Health and wellness-related outdoor businesses saw the fastest growth, rising 40 percent.<\/p>\n
\u201cOutdoor recreation is more than time spent outside \u2014 it is a thriving industry in Pennsylvania and a critical driver of economic growth,\u201d said Nathan Reigner, director of the Office of Outdoor Recreation.<\/p>\n
Next Steps<\/p>\n
State officials said they plan to continue investing in outdoor infrastructure, tourism campaigns, and business development programs to sustain growth in the sector.<\/p>\n
For the latest news on everything happening in Chester County and the surrounding area, be sure to follow MyChesCo on Google News<\/a> and MSN<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"HARRISBURG, PA \u2014 Pennsylvania\u2019s outdoor recreation industry grew to $20.4 billion in 2024, adding thousands of jobs and…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":145456,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[28,5040,30,29,10326,66368,7803,66369],"class_list":["post-145455","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-pennsylvania","tag-pennsylvania","tag-pennsylvania-department-of-conservation-and-natural-resources","tag-pennsylvania-headlines","tag-pennsylvania-news","tag-recreation","tag-recreational-development","tag-tourism","tag-tourism-in-pennsylvania"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/145455","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=145455"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/145455\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/145456"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=145455"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=145455"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=145455"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}