Intro to Tourism & HospitalityChapter 10

Copyright

Introduction to Tourism and Hospitality in BC by Morgan Westcott, Editor, (c) Capilano University is used under a CC-BY 4.0 International license.

This chapter is by Don Webster and is used under a CC-BY 4.0 International license.

Learning Outcomes

Define commonly used environmental stewardship terminology

Articulate the impacts of climate change on tourism

Identify other environmental impacts caused by, and affecting, tourism and hospitality sectors

(Webster, n.d.)

Learning Outcomes

Describe a variety of initiatives to mitigate the impacts of environmental damage

Explain how the environmental management system in BC functions

Illustrate the conflicts that exist between tourism and resource extraction in BC

(Webster, n.d.)

Environmental Stewardship

Figure 10.1 A foraging black bear is photographed by a tourist on a wildlife viewing trip. Protecting BC’s natural assets is paramount to maintaining the province’s tourism product.

Environmental Stewardship

Environmental stewardship can be defined as “the responsible use (including conservation) of natural resources in a way that takes full and balanced account of the interests of society, future generations, and other species, as well as of private needs, and accepts significant answerability to society” (Worrell & Appleby, 2000, p. 263).

History

Mid 1900’s the works of authors such as:

Rachel Carson (Silent Spring)

Aldo Leopold (A Sand Country Almanac)

Garret Hardin (The Tragedy of the Commons)

(Webster, n.d.)

History

Brundtland Commision defined sustainable development as meeting:

“the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs” (Brundtland, 1987, p. 41).

History

Sustainable development differs from Environmental Stewardship

Environmental Stewardship focuses on the natural world

Sustainable development focuses on the environmental, social and economic aspects of development

(Webster, n.d.)

History

Environmental Management can be defined as:

The natural resources of the environment are managed through policies designed to protect natural values while providing a framework for use

(Mercer, 2004; Williams & Ponsford, 2008).

Climate Change

Figure 10.3 Helms Glacier melting

Impacts of Climate Change

Direct Climate Impacts

Indirect Environmental Change Impacts

See Table 10.1 on page 216 of Introduction to Tourism and Hospitality in BC

(Watson, Zinyowera, & Moss, 1997; World Tourism Organization, 2008a).

Carrying Capacity

Carrying capacity is “the average maximum number of individuals of a given species that can occupy a particular habitat without permanently impairing the productive capacity of that habitat” (Rees, 2001, p. 229).

Carrying Capacity

Figure 10.5 A tourist’s snapshot of a “full moon party” in Thailand, where bottles, trash, and human waste litter the beach for days afterward, and noise and light pollution are common

Carrying Capacity

Tourism Carrying Capacity (TCC):

“the maximum number of visitors which an area can sustain without unacceptable deterioration of the physical environment and without considerably diminishing user satisfaction”

(Salerno, Viviano, Manfredi, Caroli, Thankuri, & Tartari, 2013, p. 116).

The Tourism Paradox

The tourism paradox is concept that is born from the Tragedy of the Commons

Describes the paradoxical nature of tourism’s relationship with the environment (Webster, 2015)

So…….what is the relationship between tourism and the environment?

Environmental Management in BC

Land Use Private Land

Crown Land

BC Parks

Parks Canada

First Nations Land

Protection and Assessment

Ministry of Environment

Environmental Assessment Office

(Webster, n.d.)

Mitigating Impacts

Initiatives that have the potential to implement change:

Carbon offsetting

Energy conservation

Water conservation

Food production management

Waste management

Accreditation

References

Brundtland, G. H. (1987). Report of the World Commission on environment and development: our common future. United Nations. Retrieved from: www.un-documents.net/our-common-future.pdf

Mercer, D. (2004). Tourism and resource management. In C. Hall, A. Lew & A. Williams (Eds.) A Companion to tourism (pp. 462 – 472). Oxford, UK: Blackwell Publishing.

Rees, W. (2001). Ecological footprint, concept of. In Encyclopedia of Biodiversity (vol. 4). Waltham, MA: Academic Press, 229-244.

Salerno, F., Viviano, G., Manfredi, E. C., Caroli, P., Thakuri, S., & Tartari, G. (2013). Multiple carrying capacities from a management-oriented perspective to operationalize sustainable tourism in protected areas. Journal Of Environmental Management, 128, 116-125.

Watson, R. T., Zinyowera, M. C., & Moss, R. H. (Eds.). (1997). The regional impacts of climate change: an assessment of vulnerability. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. Retrieved from www.ipcc.ch/ipccreports/sres/regional/

Webster, D. (n.d.) Environmental Stewardship. In Westcott, M. Editor, Introduction to Tourism and Hospitality in BC (pp. 212-234). Retrieved from http://opentextbc.ca/introtourism/chapter/chapter-10-environmental-stewardship/

Williams, P. W., & Ponsford, I. F. (2008). Confronting tourism’s environmental paradox: Transitioning for sustainable tourism. Futures, 41(6), 396-404.

Worrell, R., & Appleby, M. C. (2000). Stewardship of natural resources: definition, ethical and practical aspects. Journal of Agricultural and Environmental Ethics, 12(3), 263-277.

Attributions

Figure 10.1 Bear Watching, British Columbia, Canada by Travel Junction is used under a CC BY-SA 2.0 license.

Figure 10.3 Helms Glacier melting in the hot sun by Kyle Pearce is used under a CC BY-SA 2.0 license.

Figure 10.5 Full Moon Party by Dav Naginuma is used under a CC BY-NC-SA 2.0 license.