Marine tourism can be harmful

Marine tourism can be harmful: Studies

The Indonesian government and stakeholders in the tourism industry are planning a marine tourism zone stretching from Bunaken in Sulawesi to Raja Ampat in Papua.

The zone basically integrates marine tourism destinations, connected by direct flights, and is expected to make a significant contribution to socio-economic development in the country.

The concept is already present in other countries located in the coral triangle, in line with the fact that marine tourism is currently the fastest-growing sector in the industry.

Marine tourism, however, is far too important to be left to only tourism specialists, as it can have detrimental impacts on the natural ecosystem and the people in terms of livelihood, experts at the World Ocean Conference (WOC) say.

A joint study on human-induced alterations in the Bunaken Marine National Park, north of Manado, by experts from Canada, Japan and Indonesia has found that coral reefs inside the national park are rapidly degrading due to a combination of natural and anthropogenic factors, as well as climate variation and change.

“Marine ecosystem loss will affect services, and biodiversity loss increasingly impairs the ocean’s capacity to provide food, maintain water quality and recover from perturbations,” said the report, authored by Bet E.S. Lagarense and J.R. Pahlano Daud under the auspices of the University of Waterloo, Kyushu University and Manado State Polytechnic.

Lagarense and Daud found the improper management of tourism activities, lack of awareness of regulations, poor sanitation and the exploitation of corals and shells for handicrafts were among the main causes of the deterioration.

Another study presented at the conference showed similar findings – conducted along the coast of Hoi An City in Vietnam by Pedro Fernandez Carrasco from Madrid Polytechnic University and Thu Lan Ho from Canberra National University.

Just as in coastal areas off South Sulawesi, the lack of strategic planning and management of infrastructure development, particularly hotels and resorts, and lack of proper waste management have caused rapid deterioration.

“Signs of deterioration include the lack of clean water supply and loss of pine forests that protect the shores from sand intrusion and storms,” Carrasco said.

The other detrimental effect of marine tourism was on the livelihoods of local people.

Noted author Geoffrey Wall from the University of Waterloo said tourism often deprived natives of their main sources of income due to the changing environment.

“Textbooks will tell you how to develop tourism, but in fact people living in tourism areas vary from one place to another,” he said.

“Therefore one has to consider the unique context that comes with the place.”

Tourism, Wall went on, was a major agent of change, and thus it was important for all stakeholders to understand links with other sectors and lay out a concerted effort in integrating various approaches from various disciplines in creating a balance between development and natural conservation.

“Tourism is too important to be left to tourism specialists,” he said.

Indonesian Marine Tourism Association secretary-general Didin Junaedi said most players in the industry recognized that “there is no tourism without sustainable tourism and sustainable development”.

However, he said, some problems were simply beyond their reach.

“Take the issue of waste management,” he said.

“It’s very bad. I think the situation in Bunaken can get worse. The government must recognize this.”

http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2009/05/13/marine-tourism-can-be-harmful-studies.html

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