Somebody asked me the other day why I call this a self defense blog, so rather than refer you back to the beginning of the blog, I’ll explain.
As you may have guessed if you’ve read any of the posts, I am a manatee (environmental) advocate. I simply want manatees respected as wild animals and to have their needs come first. I would like Crystal River to be known as a premium ecotour destination instead of a tourist trap. I take a lot of abuse from some members of local manatee tourism industry. I have found that the best way to deal with pests is to turn on the lights and let everybody see. This blog sort of works that way. I was constantly being attacked (mostly anonymously) via posts to the local newspaper forums accusing me of trying to ruin the economy of Citrus County. Rather than let these folks take free shots, I started the blog to expose them and go on the record as to what I really said instead of what they claim I said. Those same folks don’t like it when the shoes on the other foot and somebody is pushing back.
Here’s an example: I constantly hear (to my surprise) that I have advocated for the end of swim programs when what I have consistently said is that what I oppose is participants not practicing passive observation as recommended by USFWS, NMFS/MMC, and FWCC. It serves someone’s purpose to have people believe otherwise. People always hate the messenger, especially when it’s not what they want others to hear. Now you know.
To continue (this is sure to piss off somebody): There are problems with ecotourism. It has impacts on the natural resources even when everybody behaves. Throw in ecotour operator wannabe’s who really haven’t a clue that dumping a few hundred people a day, even in smaller groups, on a marine mammal, like say manatees, can ever be called true ecotourism. Just because you are a member of an association with ecotour in its name doesn’t mean that’s what you are doing.
This is from a very good wiki article:
“Ecotourism has become one of the fastest-growing sectors of the tourism industry, growing annually by 10-15% worldwide (Miller, 2007). One definition of ecotourism is “the practice of low-impact, educational, ecologically and culturally sensitive travel that benefits local communities and host countries” (Honey, 1999). Many of the ecotourism projects are not meeting these standards. Even if some of the guidelines are being executed, the local communities are still facing other negative impacts…. A tremendous amount of money is being spent and human resources continue to be used for ecotourism despite unsuccessful outcomes, and even more money is put into public relation campaigns to dilute the effects of criticism. …The money tourism can generate often ties parks and managements to ecotourism” (Walpole et al. 2001). … Indeed many argue repeatedly that ecotourism is neither ecologically nor socially beneficial, yet it persists as a strategy for conservation and development (West, 2006). While several studies are being done on ways to improve the ecotourism structure, some argue that these examples provide rationale for stopping it altogether.
“The ecotourism system exercises tremendous financial and political influence. The evidence above shows that a strong case exists for restraining such activities in certain locations. … At the local level, ecotourism has become a source of conflict over control of land, resources, and tourism profits. In a perfect world more efforts would be made towards educating tourists of the environmental and social effects of their travels. Very few regulations or laws stand in place as boundaries for the investors in ecotourism. These should be implemented to prohibit the promotion of unsustainable ecotourism projects and materials which project false images of destinations.
Ecotourism operations occasionally fail to live up to conservation ideals. It is sometimes overlooked that ecotourism is a highly consumer-centered activity, and that environmental conservation is a means to further economic growth.[14]
Although ecotourism is intended for small groups, even a modest increase in population, however temporary, puts extra pressure on the local environment and necessitates the development of additional infrastructure and amenities. The construction of water treatment plants, sanitation facilities, and lodges come with the exploitation of non-renewable energy sources and the utilization of already limited local resources.[15] …
Ecotourism activities are, in of itself, issues in environmental impact because they disturb fauna and flora. Ecotourists believe that because they are only taking pictures and leaving footprints, they keep ecotourism sites pristine, but even harmless sounding activities such as a nature hike can be ecologically destructive. …Where the ecotourism activity involves wildlife viewing, it can scare away animals, disrupt their feeding and nesting sites,[5] or acclimate them to the presence of people.[5]
While the term ecotourism may sound relatively benign, one of its most serious impacts is its consumption of virgin territories (Kamuaro, 2007). … To generate revenue you have to have a high number of traffic, tourists, which inevitably means a higher pressure on the environment.
While governments are typically entrusted with the administration and enforcement of environmental protection, they often lack the commitment or capability to manage ecotourism sites effectively. The regulations for environmental protection may be vaguely defined, costly to implement, hard to enforce, and uncertain in effectiveness.[20] Government regulatory agencies, as political bodies, are susceptible to making decisions that spend budget on politically beneficial but environmentally unproductive projects. Because of prestige and conspicuousness, the construction of an attractive visitor’s center at an ecotourism site may take precedence over more pressing environmental concerns like acquiring habitat, protecting endemic species, and removing invasive ones.[5] Finally, influential groups can pressure and sway the interests of the government to their favor. The government and its regulators can become vested in the benefits of the ecotourism industry which they are supposed to regulate, causing restrictive environmental regulations and enforcement to become more lenient.
The model of monopolistic competition states that distinctiveness will entail profits, but profits will promote imitation. A company that protects its ecotourism sites is able to charge a premium for the novel experience and pristine environment. But when other companies view the success of this approach, they also enter the market with similar practices, increasing competition and reducing demand. Eventually, the demand will be reduced until the economic profit is zero. A cost-benefit analysis shows that the company bears the cost of environmental protection without receiving the gains. Without economic incentive, the whole premise of self interest through environmental protection is quashed; instead, ecotourism companies will minimize environment related expenses and maximize tourism demand.[5]
The tragedy of the commons offers another model for economic unsustainability from environmental protection, in ecotourism sites utilized by many companies.[21] Although there is a communal incentive to protect the environment, maximizing the benefits in the long run, a company will conclude that it is in their best interest to utilize the ecotourism site beyond its sustainable level. By increasing the number of ecotourists, for instance, a company gains all the economic benefit while paying only a part of the environmental cost. In the same way, a company recognizes that there is no incentive to actively protect the environment; they bear all the costs, while the benefits are shared by all other companies. The result, again, is mismanagement.
Because the regulation of ecotourism is poorly implemented or nonexistent, ecologically destructive green washed operations like underwater hotels, helicopter tours, and wildlife theme parks” (manatee petting) “are categorized as ecotourism along with canoeing, camping, photography, and wildlife observation. The failure to acknowledge responsible, low impact ecotourism puts these companies at a competitive disadvantage.”
Sounds like Crystal River to me.
References
^ Honeyخذذ, Martha (2008). Ecotourism and Sustainable Development: Who Owns Paradise? (Second ed.). Washington, DC: Island Press. p. 33. ISBN 1597261254 ISBN 978-1597261258.
^ Untamed Path Defining Ecotourism
. Retrieved on 2009-03-24.
^ a b Randall, A. (1987). Resource economics, Second Edition. New York, USA: John Wiley and Sons.
^ also to do with social sustainability Honey, Martha (2008). Ecotourism and Sustainable Development: Who Owns Paradise? (Second ed.). Washington, DC: Island Press. pp. 29–31. ISBN 1597261254 ISBN 978-1597261258.
^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u Tuohino, A., and A. Hynonen (2001). Ecotourism - imagery and reality. Reflections on concepts and practices in Finnish rural tourism. Nordia Geographical Publications. pp. 30(4):21–34.
^ Wight, P.A. (1993). Ecotourism: Ethics or Eco-sell. Journal of Travel Research. pp. 31(3):3–9.
^ Eadington, W.R., and V.L. Smith (1992). The emergence of alternative forms of tourism, in Tourism Alternatives: Potentials and Problems in the Development of Tourism. Pennsylvania, USA: University of Pennsylvania Press.
^ a b Crinion, D. (1998). South Australian tourism strategy and the role of ecotourism. Adelaide, Australia: Down to Earth planning for an out-of-the-ordinary industry, presented at the South Australian Ecotourism Forum.
^ “Hector Ceballos-Lascurain”
. Planeta. Retrieved 2010-12-09.
^ “”. “Conversation with Hector Ceballos-Lascurain”
. YouTube. Retrieved 2010-12-09.
^ The Encyclopedia of Ecotourism, Cabi Publishing
^ Buckley, R. (1994). Research Note, a framework for ecotourism. Annals of Tourism Research. pp. 21(3):661–669.
^ Bar kin, D. (2002). Eco tourism for sustainable regional development. Current Issues in Tourism. pp. 5(3–4):245–253.
^ Kamauro, O. (1996). Ecotourism: Suicide or Development? Voices from Africa #6: Sustainable Development, UN Non-Governmental Liaison Service. United Nations News Service.
^ Vivanco, L. (2002). Ecotourism, Paradise lost - A Thai case study. The Ecologist. pp. 32(2):28–30.
^ Isaacs, J.C. (2000). The limited potential of ecotourism to contribute to wildlife conservation. The Ecologist. pp. 28(1):61–69.
^ McLaren, D. (1998). Rethinking tourism and ecotravel: the paving of paradise and what you can do to stop it. West Hartford, Connecticut, USA: Kamarian Press.
^ Mellgren, Doug (2007-05-16). “Travel Experts See Worrisome Downside to Ecotourism”
. Associated Press. Retrieved 2007-05-21.
^ a b Cater, E. (1994). Cater, E., and G. Lowman. ed. Ecotourism in the Third World - Problems and Prospects for Sustainability in: Ecotourism, a sustainable option?. United Kingdom: John Wiley and Sons.
^ Baumol, W.J., and W.E. Oates (1977). Economics, environmental policy, and quality of life. Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, USA: Prentice Hall.
^ Hardin, G. (1968). The tragedy of the commons. Science. pp. 162:1243–1248.
^ Elper-Wood, M. (1998). Ecotourism at a Crossroads: charting the way forward. Nairobi, Kenya: The final report from the Conference of Ecotourism at the Crossroads.
^ Jacobson, S.K., and R. Robles (1998). Ecotourism, sustainable development, and conservation education: development of a tour guide training program in Tortuguero, Costa Rica. Environmental Management. pp. 16(6):701–713.
^ Ziffer, K. (1989). Ecotourism: the uneasy alliance. Conservation International/Ernst and Young.
