Which recreational activities result in annual spending greater than the cost of all the Atlanta Hawks, Braves, and Falcons tickets sold each year? Which recreational activities create 31,000 jobs and produce $198 million in Georgia state and local taxes?

Hunting and fishing, according to the new report, Hunting and Fishing: Bright Stars of the American Economy produced by the Congressional Sportsmen's Foundation, a coalition of outdoor-related businesses that provides advice, support and information to the Congressional Sportsmen's Caucus. On the national level, 34 million sportsmen 16 or older spent more than $76 billion in 2006, supporting 1.6 million jobs. If a single corporation grossed as much as hunters and anglers spend, it would be among America's 20 largest, ahead of Target, Costco, and AT&T.

"Spending by sportsmen benefits not only the manufacturers of hunting- and fishing-related products, but also everything from mom-and-pop businesses to wildlife conservation," noted Doug Painter, president of the National Shooting Sports Foundation, based in Connecticut. "And because most hunting and fishing takes place in rural areas, much of the spending benefits less affluent parts of the state."

Georgians who don't pursue the age-old sports of hunting and fishing may scoff at the numbers, but they're considered rock solid by state and federal natural-resource agencies and the outdoor business community. In fact, they're probably conservative since the spending of hunters and anglers under 16 was not considered.

Skeptics have only to look at the growth of outdoor-oriented big-box retailers like Bass Pro Shops, which has three locations in Georgia, including Savannah, to see that our state's outdoorsmen and outdoorswomen are spending big bucks.

"The economic impact that sportsmen have on state economies should be a wake-up call to state governments to welcome and encourage hunting and fishing in their states," said Jeff Crane, president of the Congressional Sportsmen's Foundation. "The evidence is clear: States that encourage hunting and fishing by providing access and maintaining healthy habitats and fisheries benefit many times over through jobs and taxes as well as enjoying a boost to travel and tourism."

This first-of-its-kind study showed that Georgia ranked high in many categories, including tops in the nation for the number of non-resident hunters (136,000) and 10th for the number of resident hunters and anglers (1.1 million). These residents and visitors spend an estimated $1.8 billion annually, which means $3 billion to the Peach State economy.

New land for hunters

"We are excited that Georgia ranks at the top in the nation for non-resident hunters," said Dan Forster, director of the Wildlife Resources Division of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources. "Undoubtedly, many are coming to take advantage of the abundance of whitetail deer, wild turkey and small game on public and private lands. They bring out-of-state dollars to our economy, which helps us show the value of healthy wildlife populations and habitat to our private landowners and elected officials."

Georgia currently features about 1 million acres of state-managed land available for public hunting. Federal, state and local governments own slightly more than half, and the remainder is leased from private owners, mostly timber companies, for public use. As the state's population expands, the pressure to convert this land to homes and businesses will only increase.

Loss of this wildlife habitat could mean that traveling hunters look elsewhere when planning their trips. To stem the tide, the state recently spent $35 million to acquire 20,000 acres in Decatur, McIntosh, and Paulding counties through the Georgia Land Conservation Program. The state legislature appropriated $42 million for this program in the current state budget. That amount represents just a portion of the $680 million hunters spent in Georgia during 2006.

While Georgia got high marks for appealing to non-resident hunters, the state ranked in the middle of the pack when it came to attracting non-resident anglers. This is one of the reasons that Gov. Sonny Perdue made the Go Fish Georgia project a priority for funding during 2007.

On an unseasonably warm Dec. 28, 2007, Perdue joined a number of local officials to announce that the Go Fish Georgia Center will be built on 120 acres at the Georgia National Fairgrounds and Agricenter located adjacent to Interstate 75 in Perry. The center will include a visitor's area to market and promote fishing opportunities throughout the state, an on-site public fishing lake and a state-of-the-art warm-water hatchery. He also announced that $5 million would be spent to renovate 10 boat ramps on seven reservoirs and two rivers, making them more attractive venues for freshwater bass tournaments.

Even though Georgia may not be a preferred destination for traveling anglers, almost a million residents enjoy fishing in the state's rivers, lakes, and coastal waters, spending over $1 billion. Anglers spend more than hunters, about twice as much, in fact, according to the report, and they affect all sectors of the economy from boat manufacturers to convenience stores to tackle shops. For example, during 2006 Georgians spent an estimated $207 million just for boats and outboard engines.

Growth of related business

Gene Weeks has been in the fishing tackle business for over 50 years. He moved to Brunswick in 1983 and opened the Tackle Shack. Over the past two decades he has witnessed firsthand the growth in sportsman spending. In fact, the availability of new products and customer demand for these products forced him to move to a new and larger building in 1995.

"When I started in the fishing tackle business, there were only a few manufacturers and little variety in makes and models," Weeks said. "Nowadays, anglers have almost too many choices, including space-age technology like global-positioning-system devices, composite-material fishing rods and synthetic fishing lines. Sure, online shopping and the big retailers have affected my business, but I find that sportsmen still like the traditional tackle shops. We can provide sound advice and a more intimate shopping experience. People get to see and touch the product before making a decision to buy."

In addition to supporting the economy with their spending, sportsmen also help foot the bill for conservation. Manufacturers of hunting and fishing products pay an excise tax to the federal government to support the Wildlife Restoration and Sport Fish Restoration programs. The more hunters and anglers spend, the more dollars go into the trust funds.

"America's anglers are in many ways the nation's most powerful force for the environment, investing millions of dollars each year in fisheries management and conservation through taxes on fishing equipment and license sales," explained Mike Nussman, president of the American Sportfishing Association in Washington, D.C.

Each year, the Georgia Department of Natural Resources has used these funds for activities that ensure hunting and fishing opportunities for present and future generations. These include construction of public boat ramps, maintenance of waterfowl impoundments, and planting of food plots on wildlife management areas.

For more information on the report, Hunting and Fishing: Bright Stars of the American Economy, visit www.sportsmenslink.org.