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For Florida, Investing In Its Beaches Is Worth It

Blue skies above a sandy beach
Daniel Piraino via Flickr

Florida gets a good return on its investment when it spends money on its beaches. That’s according to a study from the state’s top economists.

Chief Economist Amy Baker says the study looked into three factors – the draw of Florida’s beaches, the return on investment gained from beach-related spending,  and the impact on negative events like hurricanes.

“What we found is we get a return on our invested dollars of $5.41. So that means it recovers all of its cost and is actually bringing additional money into the state as a result of the activity we generate,” Baker says.

But Baker says disasters like hurricanes can mean the state loses a lot of money. She says a major hurricane could cost the state about $80 million for beach restoration. And could result in a loss of about $57 million  from reduced tourism.

Follow @Regan_McCarthy

Regan McCarthy is the Assistant News Director for WFSU Public Media. Before coming to Tallahassee, Regan graduated with honors from Indiana University’s Ernie Pyle School of Journalism. She worked for several years for NPR member station WFIU in Bloomington, Ind., where she covered local and state government and produced feature and community stories.

Phone: (850) 645-6090 | rmccarthy@fsu.edu

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