Economic Future relies on our past First in a series

The occasion of the National Western Stack Show in Denver each January is a good time to remember that the West's traditional industries -- ranching, farming, timbering and mining -- still play an important role in Western economic and cultural life.

These industries still account for the employment of significant numbers of Westerners. Though the percentage employed has declined, these industries remain major players.

Ranching, mining and other traditional industries are important because they are successful export products, such as wheat. In all of them, we export technology and know-how.

They are important also because they have what economists call a large "multiplier" effect, meaning their payrolls and purchases spread a lot of dollars through the rest of the economy.

Consequently, these industries still account for an important segment of the economy in many Western states -- and often a disproportionate share of state and local revenues. Result: When these industries sneeze, state and local finances catch cold.

These industries are also important to the culture of the West. The West's rapidly growing tourism sector, for example, is founded in part on the cowboy and the lumberjack, the working ranch and sawmill. These are the activities and places that people think about when they think of "the West." It's what they come here to see, along with natural wonders.

Take away these traditional industries, and you remove one of the important attractions of the West. Take away multiple use of public lands by mining, tourism, grazing and other uses and you undermine the cultural diversity and economic vitality of the West.

Contrary to popular belief, these traditional industries are not "old economy" industries. Some of the first and most powerful applications of biotechnology, for example, were in animal husbandry, improving the productivity of cattle, sheep and other animals which are important sources of jobs, wealth and sustenance for people and communities.

The mining industry today sees employment going down in large measure because of technology-based productivity increases. New technologies of exploration, production, processing and transportation make it faster, cheaper and cleaner to get the same product out of the ground with fewer people. This is true whether you are talking about coal, precious metals such as gold and silver, or hard rock

Timbering is also greatly affected by the application of advanced technology, -- both in the development of harvesting plans and milling the logs. Each of these industries has been very active in developing and using technology-intensive methods to mitigate the impact of their harvesting, extraction and processing activities on the environment.

But these industries are also in trouble. First, there is an across-the-board assault on people who mine things, make things, grow things and harvest things.

Second, as productivity goes up, the relative number of people working in these industries decreases. Result: They are losing their political clout and the ability to fend off damaging taxes and regulations. The same thing is happening to those industries, such as oil, where the high-grade, easy-to-reach product is running out.

So stock show time is a good time to think about where our bread is buttered and to take a broad view of the economic community that sustains us.