The Negative Effects Of Ecotourism

For decades tourism has degraded the environment by catering to curious travellers. Iconic landmarks like the Great Barrier Reef, Galapagos Islands, Grand Canyon, and Mount Everest, have all been impacted by the presence of tourism. Specifics in the definition of ecotourism vary across scientific literature. Ultimately ecotourism is both a practical and a theoretical construct that ideally works to better the tourism industry making it, and its participants more environmentally aware (Buckley 2009). In some areas ecotourism is effective in helping the environment, however, there are also areas where it has done more harm than good.

The Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge in Florida (U.S.A.) has shown ecotourism to do more harm than good.

In a case where humans persistently disturb an ecosystem, if a rare species inhabits it, there is a chance of species endangerment or possibly extinction. To reduce negative affects on biodiversity, local communities must be aware of its value. This worth is regularly solidified through an increase in local revenue that in turn helps conserve biological value of habitats, species populations, and ecological processes (Bookbinder et al. 1998). To demonstrate this concept, in Nepal (1996), a bylaw was ratified stating that 50% of park entry fees plus a portion of concessionaire taxes are to be distributed to the local communities that are directly affected by park protection policies (Bookbinder et al. 1998). This increase in income positively changed local attitudes towards conserving biodiversity. Without motivation from local residents to preserve what biodiversity is left, policies won’t be made, management won’t be maintained, and ecotourism will harm more than it

The goal of ecotourism is to preserve the land, profit, and educate tourists (about the environment). If an ecotourism site isn’t profiting from tourism, it is difficult to maintain the preservation without government mediation. Notably starting in 1992 Madagascar parks are managed by NGO’s along with the reinforcement of government policy to ensure park entry fees are used for local community and park development (Pawliczek and Mehta, 2008 cited in Buckley 2009). The most effective mechanism is private conservation reserves that are strictly regulated, but profit via commercial tourism ventures. Generally it is difficult to quantify the successful or failure of ecotourism on a large scale due to lack of data