Sen. Hassan supports NH's outdoor recreation economy

GORHAM — U.S. Sen. Maggie Hassan, D-N.H., held a discussion with a cross-section of leaders on Aug. 5 on the key role that outdoor recreation plays in the Granite State's overall economy. Estimates indicate that outdoor recreation now contributes more than $3 billion every year across the state, providing 31,000 jobs. Hassan met six experienced panelists in a large open-sided, timber-frame building at Camp Dodge, a well-equipped trails center built on the site of a former 1930s Civilian Conservation Corps camp. An interested audience of 22 Appalachian Mountain Club AmeriCorps Trail trainees who are spending their summer exploring a career in conservation while learning ax and trail building skills, first-aid, and ethics, also attended the presentation. The trainees' experience spans 12 weeks and 450 hours. Each person receives a $250 stipend. Hassan told the young trail workers who hail from several states that much of New Hampshire's history and its rugged individualism was heavily influenced by both its geography and its natural beauty. Hassan co-sponsored and helped pass the bipartisan Great American Outdoors Act, which permanently guarantees paying each year for the Land and Water Conservation Fund and provides mandatory funding for deferred maintenance on public lands. Stanley Carte, recreation and wilderness program leader at the White Mountain National Forest's Campton headquarters, told the audience that the national forest had received over $3 million in funds through the act between fiscal years 2021 and 2024, including work on the Glen Ellis Falls Reconstruction on Route 16, Rumney Rocks Climbing Area Trail Improvements and the Deer Hill Road Reconstruction. Also, in progress are backcountry toilet replacements, the Corridor 19 Snowmobile Bridge replacement and six other projects. Manager Nate Harvey and Events and Marketing Director Meghan Moody Schwartz, both employees of the Great Glen Trails Outdoor Center, provided an Androscoggin Valley perspective on the outdoor recreation economy. The Great Glen Trails Outdoor Center is part of the Mt. Washington Auto Road in Gorham. The timing of seasons is changing, and the number of people visiting the area at different times of the year waxes and wanes. It's hard for companies to balance employees' work and income over an entire year. Importantly, both Great Glen and Auto Road employees make every effort to teach good stewardship practices to all visitors, but not everyone understands this need. Great Glen is trying to spread its recreational and tourism activities over a larger area in order to reduce any adverse impacts on the land. Janel Lawton, director of the Office of Outdoor Recreation Industry Development of the N.H. Department of Business and Economic Affairs, said, "I'm an office of one, as are many of the 16 state offices of outdoor recreation (in other states)," she said. Lawton works collaboratively with many organizations, large and small, including the Granite Outdoor Alliance, partners at the University of New Hampshire, for private and nonprofit businesses and organizations, plus federal and state resources. The organizations of Tyler Ray, who founded the Granite Outdoor Alliance, and Chris Thayer, who serves as director of government relations and partner relations for the AMC, are both experiencing some change. Ray discussed the importance of stewardship as the numbers of outdoor enthusiasts who come to the Granite State continue to increase. Many visitors engage in a number of sports: hiking, Nordic skiing, mountain biking and camping as a family. Ray added his voice to those of others in the state calling for more affordable housing and the continued importance of the federal Clean Air and Clean Water Acts. A report prepared by the AMC, Mount Washington Observatory and Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest in the White Mountain National Forest informs readers of the changing environment. Titled "Climate Change in the White Mountains: Warmer and Wetter," the report notes: "Long-term records from four sites across the White Mountains of New Hampshire indicate that the climate has been shifting over time. These shifts in climate include increases in air temperature, rainfall, as well as decreases in snow cover. "The records reported here are from observations made daily by local researchers and partners since the 1930s who live and work in the White Mountains, a region defined by the character of its four distinct seasons. Long-term records and climate models together suggest that rainier, warmer days will continue, which shifts seasonal runoff and increases erosion and risk of flooding. These changes affect the local ecology, natural resources, recreation, and tourism."