Cathy Cullinane Thomas
Biography
Cathy Cullinane Thomas is an economist with the Fort Collins Science Center Social and Economic Analysis Branch. Cathy specializes in regional economic impact modeling, data collection, survey analysis, and data visualization, and she uses these skills to support Department of Interior agencies with questions about the economic impacts and contributions of programs, projects, and management alternatives. Since joining the USGS in 2010, Cathy has built models to estimate the jobs and business activity associated with National Park visitation, Fish and Wildlife Service Wildlife Refuge management, and ecological restoration projects. Cathy also has expertise in decision analysis processes and simulation modeling and has used these tools to help researchers develop decision-relevant science and to develop invasive species spread models and scenario analyses.
Education:
- M.S. Colorado State University, Natural Resource Economics, 2010
- B.S. Colorado State University, Mathematics, 2003
Science and Products
Documenting, Mapping, and Predicting Invasive Species Using the Fort Collins Science Center's RAM (Resource for Advanced Modeling)
The Resource for Advanced Modeling room provides a collaborative working environment for up to 20 scientists, supported with networked, wireless computing capability for running and testing various scientific models (e.g., Maxent, Boosted Regression Trees, Logistic Regression, MARS, Random Forest) at a variety of spatial scales, from county to global levels. Models use various predictor layers...
Economics and Ecosystem Services
Federal policymakers and land managers are accountable to the public for how they use public resources and for the outcomes of policy and management decisions. Through a variety of economic analyses and custom modeling, SEA economists evaluate how investments and management decisions affect individuals, local communities, and society as a whole.
National Park Service Visitor Spending Effects
The National Park Service (NPS) manages the Nation’s most iconic destinations that attract millions of visitors from across the Nation and around the world. Trip-related spending by NPS visitors generates and supports a considerable amount of economic activity within park gateway communities. USGS economists collaborate with the National Park Service social science program to estimate NPS...
Economic Impacts of Ecological Restoration
Federal investments in ecosystem restoration projects protect Federal trusts, ensure public health and safety, and preserve and enhance essential ecosystem services. These investments also generate business activity and create jobs. However, limited information exists on the costs and associated economic impacts of ecosystem restoration projects due to the complexity of the “restoration...
Developing an expert elicited simulation model to evaluate invasive species and fire management alternatives
Invasive species can alter ecosystem properties and cause state shifts in landscapes. Resource managers charged with maintaining landscapes require tools to understand implications of alternative actions (or inactions) on landscape structure and function. Simulation models can serve as a virtual laboratory to explore these alternatives and their...
Jarnevich, Catherine S.; Cullinane Thomas, Catherine; Young, Nicholas E.; Backer, Dana M.; Cline, Sarah A.; Frid, Leonardo; Grissom, Perry Economic Impacts of Restoration in National Parks
The National Park Service’s (NPS) Resource Protection Branch (RPB) works with parks under the authority of the System Unit Resource Protection Act (SURPA) and the Oil Pollution Act, among others, to conduct damage assessment and restoration activities for NPS resources that have been injured. Funds used for restoration support jobs in local...
Cullinane Thomas, Catherine; Van Gilder, Noah; VanMouwerik, Mark 2017 National Park visitor spending effects : Economic contributions to local communities, states, and the Nation
The National Park Service (NPS) manages the Nation’s most iconic destinations that attract millions of visitors from across the Nation and around the world. Trip-related spending by NPS visitors generates and supports a considerable amount of economic activity within park gateway communities. This economic effects analysis measures how NPS visitor...
Cullinane Thomas, Catherine M.; Koontz, Lynne; Cornachione, Egan 2016 National Park visitor spending effects: Economic contributions to local communities, states, and the Nation
The National Park Service (NPS) manages the Nation’s most iconic destinations that attract millions of visitors from across the Nation and around the world. Trip-related spending by NPS visitors generates and supports a considerable amount of economic activity within park gateway communities. This economic effects analysis measures how NPS visitor...
Cullinane Thomas, Catherine; Koontz, Lynne Visitor spending effects: assessing and showcasing America's investment in national parks
This paper provides an overview of the evolution, future, and global applicability of the U.S. National Park Service's (NPS) visitor spending effects framework and discusses the methods used to effectively communicate the economic return on investment in America's national parks. The 417 parks represent many of America's most iconic destinations:...
Koontz, Lynne; Cullinane Thomas, Catherine; Ziesler, Pamela; Olson, Jeffrey; Meldrum, Bret
Estimating the economic impacts of ecosystem restoration—Methods and case studies
Federal investments in ecosystem restoration projects protect Federal trusts, ensure public health and safety, and preserve and enhance essential ecosystem services. These investments also generate business activity and create jobs. It is important for restoration practitioners to be able to quantify the economic impacts of individual restoration...
Cullinane Thomas, Catherine; Huber, Christopher C.; Skrabis, Kristin; Sidon, Joshua 2015 National Park visitor spending effects: Economic contributions to local communities, states, and the nation
The National Park Service (NPS) manages the Nation’s most iconic destinations that attract millions of visitors from across the Nation and around the world. Trip-related spending by NPS visitors generates and supports a considerable amount of economic activity within park gateway communities. This economic effects analysis measures how NPS visitor...
Cullinane Thomas, Catherine M.; Koontz, Lynne Benefits and limitations of using decision analytic tools to assess uncertainty and prioritize Landscape Conservation Cooperative information needs
The Landscape Conservation Cooperatives (LCCs) are a network of partnerships throughout North America that are tasked with integrating science and management to support more effective delivery of conservation at a landscape scale. In order to achieve this integration, some LCCs have adopted the approach of providing their partners with better...
Post van der Burg, Max; Cullinane Thomas, Catherine; Holcombe, Tracy R.; Nelson, Richard D. Draft comprehensive conservation plan and environmental impact statement - Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge
The Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge Complex, consisting of some of the newer properties in the National Wildlife Refuge System, is a work in progress. Offering unique assets to surrounding communities, these lands promise to become some of the premier urban wildlife refuges in the country. At the heart of the refuge complex is the...
Huber, Christopher C.; Cullinane Thomas, Catherine 2014 National Park visitor spending effects: economic contributions to local communities, states, and the nation
The National Park System covers more than 84 million acres and is comprised of more than 401 sites across the Nation. These lands managed by the National Park Service (NPS) serve as recreational destinations for visitors from across the Nation and around the world. On vacations or on day trips, NPS visitors spend time and money in the gateway...
Cullinane Thomas, Catherine; Huber, Christopher C.; Koontz, Lynne Silvio O. Conte National Fish and Wildlife Refuge: Draft comprehensive conservation plan and environmental impact statement
The Connecticut River is treasured by all for its majesty and significance in supporting life along its winding 410-mile passage through urban and rural communities in New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, and Connecticut. Working with our partners, we are inspired to protect and enhance the natural and cultural richness throughout the watershed...
Donovan, Elizabeth; Gascoigne, William; Cullinane Thomas, Catherine 2013 National Park visitor spending effects: economic contributions to local communities, states, and the nation
The National Park Service (NPS) manages the nation's most iconic destinations that attract millions of visitors form across the nation and around the world. Trip-related spending by NPS visitors generates and supports a considerable amount of economic activity within park gateway communities. This economic effects analysis measures how NPS visitor...
Cullinane Thomas, Catherine M.; Huber, Christopher C.; Koontz, Lynne