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112 Ecotourism

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112 Ecotourism

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DreamyNyx
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G eo Factsheet

April 2001 Number 112


Can ecotourism work?
A fashionable sector in a fashion industry
Tourism is now one of the world’s leading industries. In 1950 there were Whilst there is a general feeling of what ecotourism is about and where
25 million international tourists. By 1990 this figure had risen to 600 it is located in the wide spectrum of tourism, individual definitions
million and the whole business was worth more than $200 billion. Since emphasis different aspects (Table 1).
then, the industry has continued to boom. Today, globally, there are more
people employed in tourism than in any other industry. It is estimated that Table 1 Analysis of 15 definitions of ecotourism
10% of global economic output is now created by tourism, being valued
at close to $400 billion. Characteristics No. of definitions making reference

Interest in nature 10
Tourism has been described as a fashion industry. The motivations,
expectations and demands of tourists are very fickle and constantly Contributes to conservation 10
changing. But, within today’s booming tourist industry, there is one Reliance on protected areas 9
particular fashion that is said to be growing faster than any other. It is Benefits local people 8
ecotourism and its rise is reflected in: Education and study 7
Low impact and non-consumptive 5
• the proliferation of ecotourist projects, particularly in LEDCs the Ethical responsibility 4
impressively high occupancy rates of many of those projects Sympathetic management 4
Sustainability 4
• the rapid increase in tourists going to what are known as ecotourism
Enjoyment and appreciation 3
countries (e.g. Belize, Ecuador, Botswana, Madagascar, the Maldives)
Culture 3
• the increasing popularity of wilderness destinations such as Small scale 2
Antarctica and the Himalayas Adventure 1

• the sky-rocketing numbers entering protected areas, such as national


One definition that does well in terms of embracing most of the
parks and biosphere reserves.
characteristics in Table 1 runs as follows:
What is ecotourism?
‘Ecotourism is a sustainable form of natural resource-based tourism that
Ecotourism is classified as part of ‘alternative tourism’ as distinct from
focuses primarily on experiencing and learning about nature, and which
‘mass tourism’. In the former, relatively small numbers of travellers are
is ethically managed to be low-impact, non-consumptive and locally-
catered for, largely by independent specialist operators or local
orientated (control, benefits and scale). It typically occurs in natural
communities. The place of ecotourism within alternative tourism is close
areas, and should contribute to the conservation and preservation of
to cultural tourism and adventure tourism. They grade into each other in
such areas’.
what is known as ACE (Fig. 1).
From this definition, the key features of ecotourism may be extracted as:
Fig. 1 The components of alternative tourism • involving areas that are in some way ‘special’ or ‘precious’, because
of their scenery, wildlife, remoteness or culture
• educating and thereby increasing understanding and appreciation
CULTURAL • minimising the impact on, and damage to, the local environment and
ECOTOURISM TOURISM local community
• maximising local involvement, local control and local benefits

ACE Why has ecotourism grown so fast?


TOURISM Four factors are involved:
(ADVENTURE,
CULTURE, 1. The downside of mass tourism
ECOTOURISM) There is a growing awareness of the environmental, cultural and
economic costs of mass tourism. These include:
• a huge consumption of resources – water, land and energy – that puts
local people at odds with tourists
• the threat to human rights – local people are denied access to
ADVENTURE beaches, forced to move to make way for tourists
TOURISM • the commercialisation and debasing of local culture
• the destruction of traditional lifestyles and livelihoods
• leakage of the economic bonuses of tourism from LEDCs and
MEDCs

1
Can ecotourism work? Geo Factsheet

2. A search for more sustainable forms of tourism Many people today in MEDCs are on the look-out for something and
There is now a widespread belief that a more sustainable form of tourism somewhere that are just a bit different. Today’s exciting tourist destinations
might offer a way around the above costs. The key to sustainable tourism are thought to lie either in the Tropics or in the world’s wilderness areas.
appears to lie in the local community (Table 2). It is not just a matter of Snorkelling and scuba-diving, whale and bird-watching, mountaineering and
consultation and involvement, but also one of fair treatment. trekking are among today’s exciting leisure activities. Popular perceptions of
places and activities are strongly influenced by TV programmes as well as by
Table 2. The 10 principles of sustainable tourism advertising and marketing. The internet is encouraging the proliferation of
niche operators as it enables more effective customer links.
1 Conserve resources as much as possible
2 Reduce over-consumption and waste
4. Doing the ‘right’ thing
3 Maintain diversity (biological, social, cultural)
The tourism market-place is becoming ‘greener’ and more environmentally
4 Integrate tourism into wider planning
sensitive. Consumers are beginning to translate their concerns about the
5 Support local economies
environment into appropriate action by choosing holidays that are
6 Involve local communities
environmentally and ecologically benign (kind rather than damaging). More
7 Consult local communities
tourists are asking the sorts of question shown in Table 3.
8 Train staff
9 Market responsibly
10 Undertake research
Table 3. The ecotourist’s questionnaire

(Tourism Concern) Before booking your holiday ask yourself the following questions:
• What is the environmental impact of tourism on the country I
Meeting all the principles set out in Table 2 is not easy, because mass tourism want to visit?
is driven by the need to maximise profits. Nonetheless, there are signs that • Have people been forcibly resettled to make way for tourist
things are beginning to change in a modest way. Efforts are being made by developments?
hotels to reduce their environmental impact by more careful management of • By travelling to this country, am I supporting a repressive regime?
water, waste and energy. This might include the recycling of waste, the • Are my needs as a tourist increasing the demand for goods and
conservation of water and the use of alternative energy such as solar power. services supplied by MEDCs?
Clearly, any steps in this general direction are better than none, but even with • Is my presence as a tourist likely to have an adverse effect on
the whole-hearted support of the hotel industry, this ‘greening’ will do little to local society and culture?
meet the need for environmental protection, equity and local control.

3. Seeking ‘new locations and experiences’ What is the difference between ecotourism, sustainable
Here it is necessary to draw attention to the fact that tourism is a fashion tourism and green tourism?
industry. Destinations come and go in terms of popularity, as do Fig. 3 shows the relationship between these three brands of tourism; the
recreational activities. In short, the tourist industry is driven by the relationship is a ‘nesting’ one.
product life cycle (Fig. 2):
• a destination and its resources are discovered and evaluated Fig. 3 Spheres of tourism
• they are made increasingly available M

M
• demand grows and the destination booms A
• the resources become over-exploited S S I S
Green tourism T O U R
• the destination becomes less attractive
IVE T
• the destination declines as demand disappears, unless a rejuvenation AT O
U
strategy is developed N
R

R
E

IS
Sustainable tourism
ALT

Fig. 2 Tourism: the product life-cycle


M
Discovery and emergence

Growing popularity and


fashion

Saturation

Fading fashion

Decline

Ecotourism
Growth

Green tourism embraces all brands of tourism where a conspicuous


effort is made to reduce, in some way, the environmental and ecological
impacts of tourism. This may range from:

• Sustainable tourism represents a ‘greener’ form of green tourism,


but as highlighted in Table 2, is also very concerned about the well-
Is there
being of local people.
Investors, Investors, a future
tourists and
tour operators
tourists and
tour operators ? • Ecotourism is the ‘greenest’ form of green tourism. Whilst it seeks to
be sustainable, it is more focused on conservation of the natural
move IN move ON environment than other forms of sustainable tourism and places great
emphasis on education.
Time
Three case studies at different spatial scales follow.

2
Can ecotourism work? Geo Factsheet

Case study 1: The Asa Wright Nature Centre • staff are helped in a variety of ways from training to interest-free
The Asa Wright Nature Centre is located in the upper Arima valley cut loans for building and renovating homes
into the rainforest-clad Northern Ranges of Trinidad. • there is ‘on-site’ recycling of refuse and waste water
• much of the food served to guests is either grown on the estate or
Fig. 4 The Arima Valley, Trinidad. purchased from local producers
• only 10% of the original estate is accessible to tourists via 5
Caribbean Sea N designated trails. The remainder is insulated and so wildlife is left
Arima undisturbed. The total area of the estate has now been extended
Port of with the gradual acquisition of the tracts of primary forest.
VENEZUALA Spain
Atlantic There is no doubting the success of the AWNC venture in terms of:
Ocean • meeting ‘green and sustainable objectives
• raising money to support education projects in the Arima Valley
• acquiring more forest for conservation
TRINIDAD
0 km 20 Indeed, enough money has been raised to buy another old plantation
estate further along the Northern Ranges to the east. This may be used
as another visitor centre. However, there is one shadow over all this.
In 1967 a former plantation estate of 193 acres was bought by a non- The money has been raised, partly by a high occupancy rate of the 24
profit making trust. The main aims of the Trust’s venture were: rooms throughout the year, but more so by greatly increasing the
• to allow the cleared areas if the plantation to revert to montane rainforest number of fee-paying day visitors. Those day visitors are of three types:
• to conserve this part of the Arima Valley for the protection of • local people
wildlife and for the enjoyment of local people • overseas visitors staying in other parts of Trinidad
• to promote public awareness of the value of the rainforest and its wildlife • tourists on cruise ships that berth at Port of Spain for a day or two
• to provide accommodation for visitors
In recent years, there has been a tremendous increase in the number
The idea was that profits derived from providing guest accommodation should of cruise visitors. It is they who are mainly responsible for the annual
be used to finance the conservation and education work of the Trust, as well number of day visitors increasing from just over 10,000 to nearly
as to purchase adjacent areas of primary(relatively untouched) rainforest. 18,000 between 1995 and 1999.
There have been a number of unwanted outcomes:
During its first seven years, the AWNC ran at a loss. It was only in • serious over-use of the Centre’s facilities and more importantly its
1974 that it began to make the required profit. This was achieved by: trails. The disturbance of wildlife along some of those trails has
• appointing a booking agent in New York to promote the Centre to reached unacceptable levels
US tourists (now also to European tourists) • the peace and quiet that resident visitors come here to enjoy is
• gradually increasing the number of rooms available for visitors. It seriously eroded
now stands at 24. • undue working pressure on staff is beginning to cause disaffection
• keeping the Centre open throughout the year, rather than closing
it between March and October It appears that the AWNC has passed the critical threshold. It may
well be that most ecotourist projects, if they are to succeed in all their
In many ways, AWNC has fulfilled virtually all of the criteria of objectives, do have to be constrained both in size and growth. It seems
ecotourism and sustainable tourism (Tables 2 and 3). For example: therefore that ventures such as these do have a product life-cycle (Fig.
• most of the staff of just under 60 live in the Arima Valley 2), unless firm steps are taken to stay short of the saturation point.

Case Study 2: Bhutan Fig. 5 Bhutan


This small, land-locked kingdom in the Himalayas is one of the poorest
nations in the world. So far, it has resisted the temptation to go all out N
to exploit its tourism resources – fine scenery, wildlife and a rich
Buddhist cultural heritage – to bring in much needed foreign exchange. CHINA
BHUTAN
After 300 years of isolation, Bhutan reopened its doors to tourists in 1974: NEPAL
• The number of foreign visitors was rationed to 2500 each year.
• All tourists must be part of an escorted tour to specified locations;
• All tours must be organised by known and vetted companies. INDIA
• All tourist developments, such as hotels, must use traditional
designs and materials.
BANGLADESH
In short, the emphasis is on the conservation of the environment, wildlife
and culture by a restricted, tightly controlled and closely monitored tourism. BURMA
It certainly seems that Bhutan has met most of the requirements of
ecotourism (and of cultural tourism, for that matter), but it now looks Bay of
as if the number of foreign tourists allowed to enter the country in a Bengal
year is about to be doubled. Can the country cope, or will tourism soon
reach the dreaded saturation point in the product life-cycle (Fig. 2)?

3
Can ecotourism work? Geo Factsheet

Case study 3: Antarctica • most cruises follow the so-called Lindblad Plan which manages
itineraries in such a way as to ensure that they are ecologically
Fig. 6 Antarctica. ‘benign’ (i.e. any impacts are negligible).
South Atlantic Ocean Indian Ocean
Table 4 The Lindblad Plan
Falkland Islands French, Southern &
Argentina Antarctic Lands * The Plan works best with ships of 100 to 140 passengers
operating under an experienced captain and cruise leader.
Chile ANTARCTICA Heard & * Each voyage is treated as an adventure expedition, with ship-
McDonald Islands board lectures, briefings and one or more daily landings.
South Pole * Lecturing staff are often experienced Antarctic researchers/administrators.
N * Landing sites are selected for their historical associations,
Ross wildlife or scenic beauty.
Ant

South
Pacific Ice * Passengers are briefed before their first landing about the requirements
arc

Ocean Shelf of the Antarctic Treaty and the Protocol about behaviour offshore,
tic

Ci South Magnetic
rcl possible hazards and ensuring that wildlife is not disturbed.
0 km 2,000 e Pole
* Passengers are landed by zodiacs in groups of 10 to 15 and are
accompanied and supervised by experienced guides. They are required
The first tourist ship arrived in 1958. Since then tourism has increased to wear gumboots (most landings are wet ones) and brightly-coloured
slowly, catering mainly for a small up-market sector of adventure padded jackets to ensure that they can be seen from a distance.
travellers and natural history lovers. Numbers have been limited mainly Ecotourism in Antarctica seems to be working quite well. But there are
by the formidable expenses arising from Antarctica’s remoteness. As a potential problems:
destination, it does have a number of in-built regulators: • the growing number if summer visitors and fears about the
• the season runs from mid-November to mid-March when weather disturbance of wildlife and damage to fragile ecosystems
and ice conditions are best and wildlife most spectacular • the introduction of larger cruise ships that greatly exceed the
• only small sections of the Antarctic coast are accessible (the South recommended maximum of 140 passengers
America sector is the most visited) with around 70 permitted landing sites • the possibility of land-based tourism – be it under canvas (this is
• the Antarctic Treaty (1959) and the later Protocol on Environment already permitted in a few designated areas), at scientific bases or
Protection set out regulations and guidelines for all activities in perhaps even in hotels.
Antarctica, including tourism
• all captains of tour ships are required to observe these and other An unusual aspect of this particular ecotourist destination is that there
ground rules laid down by the International Association of is no local human community to be protected or involved. Many hope
Antarctic Tour Operators (IAATO) when taking parties ashore that Antarctica will remain an unpopulated continent (except for a
• specially protected areas have to be avoided; so too discharge of small scientific community of no more than a few hundred people) and
waste and disposal of rubbish in Antarctic waters that virtually all of the tourism will remain ship-based.

The verdict References and further research


Ecotourism may be able to put right some of the things wrong with mass Chater, E. & Lowman, G. (eds.), Ecotourism: a sustainable option? (Wiley, 1994)
tourism, but the potential is limited. The main constraint is scale. That Fennell, D.A. Ecotourism: An introduction (Routledge, 1999)
applies as much to Antarctica and Bhutan as to pioneering ecotourism France, L/ (ed.), Sustainable Tourism (Earthscan, 1997)
projects like the AWNC dotted around the world. Evidence suggests that Neale, G. The Green Travel Guide (Earthscan, 1998)
small, local projects can work well. But, if ecotourism is to significantly Warn, S. Recreation and Tourism (Stanley Thornes, 1999)
change the nature of global tourism, there will need to be: Williams, S. Tourism Geography (Routledge, 1998)
• a huge increase in the number of such grass roots projects. Is this Tourism Concern has a comprehensive website: www.tourismconcern.org.uk
feasible? Scaling up individual projects runs the risk of intensifying
rather than reducing pressure on the environment. It can easily Exam Questions
become self-defeating (the lesson of AWNC) A. Examine the challenge posed by developing rural tourism in a
• a loosening grip that the global tour operators and TNCs have on the sustainable way. 10 marks
industry. Is it realistic to expect ecotourism to knock out holidays at B. Is developing tourism the best way to sustain rural communities? 10 marks
the same low, heavily discounted prices?
• a recognition that NOT everyone wants, or can afford, to go to
AS Answer hints
Antarctica or other ecotourist destinations; ACE (adventure, culture In these short extended pieces of writing you have to structure your thoughts in 10
and ecotourism) is not everyone’s idea of holiday fun. minutes. With only one side of writing you have to focus straight on the answer:
A. You need to define sustainable tourism and then look at the challenge of
Ecotourism may be a growing sector of the tourist market but it is unlikely to conserving the environment, benefiting the community and pleasing the
wean holidaymakers off the ever-popular diet of ‘sun, sea, and sand’ (3S tourist. You would only be able to use one detailed case study such as
tourism). It certainly cannot begin to meet those needs in a way that is really Trinidad or Antarctica, with as many precise facts as possible.
‘friendly’ to the environment and local culture. An additional and longer-term B. You have to look at tourism as one strategy for sustaining rural communities
worry relates to the fact that tourism is both an exploitative and a fashion – there are many others, e.g. rural industry or farm diversification. Two brief
industry. Remember that, with the notable exception of the brand of tourism juts case studies of an area, e.g. Costa Rica or S. Shropshire, would work well.
mentioned, the tourist industry is prone to product cycles of boom and decline,
Acknowledgements;
exploitation and exhaustion (Fig. 2). Why should ecotourism and ecotourist This Factsheet was researched by Dr. M. Witherick, formally of Southampton University
destinations be any different, in having their heyday and then fading away? Geography department, now working with Ornitholidays as a tour guide.
Geo Press. Unit 305B, The Big Peg, 120 Vyse Street, Birmingham B18 6NF
So the answer to the question posed in the title is ‘yes’ ecotourism can work, Geopress Factsheets may be copied free of charge by teaching staff or students, provided that
their school is a registered subscriber.
in a modest way within alternative tourism. But for how long? To what effect?
No part of these Factsheets may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any
And without killing the goose that lays the golden egg? Only time will tell. other form or by any other means, without the prior permission of the publisher. ISSN 1351-5136
4

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