Nelson and Augusta counties are located in Central Virginia, containing parts of Shenandoah National Park and the George Washington and Jefferson National Forest. The counties also contain other outdoor recreation attractions such as streams, lakes, and state or county parks. Survey results indicate that respondents find these recreation attractions to be an important aspect of the region; 88.8% of survey respondents reported having visited a national park at least once in the past year, and 93.5% reported to have hiked or taken a walk in the woods at least once.
Participation in outdoor recreational activities.
The role of outdoor recreation and natural parkland in the region is compulsory to conversation about the Atlantic Coast Pipeline because the pipeline risks destroying natural areas in and around Nelson and Augusta counties. Besides having a 50-foot-wide corridor along the entire pipeline route, 15.9 miles of the pipeline is proposed to actually traverse the George Washington and Jefferson National Forest, ultimately impacting 430 acres of national forest in Virginia and West Virginia during construction (Forest Service, 2017). In addition, recreational tourism is a strong economic contributor to Nelson and Augusta counties. A 2016 study by Key-Log Economics concluded that the ACP would cause an annual $20.2 million loss in recreation tourism expenditures in Augusta County alone. This loss is thought to be due to the disruption to natural beauty in the region and the harm to valued natural recreation areas caused by the ACP. Therefore, in the case of the ACP, there may be an influence from the role of recreation and natural parks on its opposition.
Importance of outdoor recreational areas to the region.
Question: Please indicate the extent to which you agree with each of the following statements.
_________ are important to this region.
Survey Topic: What value is placed on the environment?
Question: How often do you ______?
