The Economic Impact of Fishing

by Doug

A revitalization of the sport of recreational fishing will be the impetus to drive rural economic development, a new age geo-tourism industry and job creation for the hi-tech industry.

Did you know that if we could grow the level of participation in recreational fishing back to the levels of the early 90’s, we could drive $47.0 billion back into the Canadian economy over 5 years? And that is just from getting more people outdoors to go fishing! If we include other outdoor activities we would take a $73.0 billion business and grow it to over $125.0 billion annually.

As most of us know, anglers today typically get in a boat and head off to the far end of the lake to fish when in fact some of the best fishing was right at the dock. And so it is with the holistic view of fishing….most times the best fishing is in our own back yard and we don’t even know it.

Southern Ontario has a beautiful river running right through it called the Thames River. The Thames River Watershed actually contains one of Canada’s most diverse fish communities. Over 90 fish species have been recorded in the watershed, which represents more that half of Ontario’s fish species. Imagine, Rainbow Trout, Brook Trout, Small Mouth Bass, Walleye, Pike, Largemouth Bass, Pike, Perch, Crappie and Carp all at our dock….and most of us don’t know anything about it.

We need to get more people involved in our outdoors and we need to start right in our own backyard. It won’t be long before a new generation becomes hooked and the want to reach out beyond the backyard. As they go further and further into the north, they will help our struggling rural economy grow, gain a greater appreciation and understanding of the environmental and global warming issues, broaden the tourism sector, create a healthier population and have fun learning new skills that will help connect the city to the country and the country to the city.

It can be done! We need to start now! The TecVana program is about creating a new tourism industry on the backbone of Information Communication Technology (ICT), social media and digital interactive “real-life” user-created outdoor adventures. It is the way of the future. In fact, many games recently developed by the students at Fanshawe College incorporated tangible in-game incentives to draw people away from their computer and into the interactive real-life experience portrayed in the game; a process called game-driven marketing.

It certainly appeals to the lifestyle and needs of our younger generation. More importantly the exercised reinforced the belief that our youth, once empowered, can be the voice of our future; they just need an opportunity to be heard and an incentive to get involved.

Gaming is but one of many social media components of the program but a key element to reach the gamers within our market. The overall strategy is to use the power of social media, the power of interactive digital technology and the power of marketing to engage our youth market and get them actively involved in non-urban outdoor activities.

The outdoor industry needs to embrace change such as this and support efforts to move innovative ideas from concept to reality! And our government needs to become more involved in helping innovation to get off the ground.

Talk about a great way to reduce our deficit, prevent program cuts and avoid tax increases; all by just having fun in the great outdoors. And as previously stated, by getting more involved in our outdoors, we help our struggling rural economy grow, gain a greater appreciation and understanding of the environmental and global warming issues, broaden the tourism sector, create a healthier population and have fun learning new skills.