Climate Change and Tourism - Australia Capital Territory - Case Study Example

Table of Contents Introduction 02 Climate Change and Tourism 02 Current State of the Industry 03 Strategic Challenges for its Sustainability 04 Stakeholders and Partners 05 Strategic Responses and Actions 06 Indicative Timeline 07 Conclusion 09 References 10 Introduction Tourism serves a major support for the living of many all across the world. It has served as a major contributor if the total revenue that a state or country incurs in any accounting year. With the people becoming more curious and travel loving the industry is set to be the most important one in the upcoming years. But the industry has been hit by the changing climate in the recent years and this has taken a toll on the business. The coastal areas are facing the problems of rising water levels and the snow covered areas the problem for fast melting of snow which ultimately has reduced the effective period of the business. The same is the problem with Australia Capital Territory (ACT), where the need for sustainability for the tourism industry in light of climate change has been discussed in this project. We also come across the current state of the industry, the strategic challenges for its sustainability, the stakeholders, possible strategies and actions, the timeline and the measures to be taken behind the proper implication of the strategic plans. Climate Change and Tourism Tourism is affected by climate change and it is itself considered as a significant contributor to climate change. Tourism business is facing perturbation from climate change and the business is also impacting climate change. Climate change is likely to affect tourism operators in a number of ways, like: Increased temperatures resulting in sun stroke and likelihood of bushfires. Reduced rainfall can reduce water levels in natural waterways making access to water difficult. Rising sea level could result in damaging costal tourism and recreation. More frequent weather issues could directly affect the effective business period. The changing climate is forecasted to have a variety of impacts on tourism in Australia Capital Territory (ACT). Depending on the nature and the scope of the impacts, tourism could be under the threat of some significant changes in some destinations. There is various knowledge gaps around climate change, changes in landscapes, improvement in the communication system across all sectors of government involved with the tourism industry, larger operators with better resources, proper adaptation and implementation of strategies are required to be seriously looked at to maintain a sustainable level of tourism. Sustainable in tourism is considered as developments which help in meeting the present needs without affecting the ability of future generations to meet their needs. The tourism industry has already assessed the need for adaptation in tourism sector and has started making necessary adjustments for the same. Even the tourists have become much more aware of the climate changes. The ACT has incorporated the climate change issues among their major problems and strategy making. Tourism in Australia represents a large sector of the economy and it operates in a globally competitive market experiencing tight and improving conditions (Hennessy, Webb, Korono and Ricketts, 2008) Current State of the Industry Tourism in ACT is facing some serious challenging circumstances as the global financial crisis has resulted in international travellers to stay back home and with the advantage of high dollar a record number of Australians have travelled abroad. Also the aggressive airline discounting has further declined the profit margins of the industry. There is maximum dominance of domestic tourism in terms of percentage to the revenue of the industry and a very small part is filled by international tourist. ACT has also been hard hit by the international crisis domestically as many Australians have cancelled their family holidays. The industry is basically dominated by small operators and has very low capital intensity. The tourism industry is also bounded by the unavoidable costs that are to be incurred due to the changing climate making this much more difficult for operation. The ACT attracts international tourists to Australia and also encourages domestic travellers to travel both for leisure and business events. It does so with the help of advertisements, PR and media programs, trade shows and industry programs, consumer promotions, online communications and consumer research. Strategic Challenges for its Sustainability Sustainability for any business is very necessary and tourism is no exception from the others and it requires a great deal of attention to help fight the existing threats and also face the strategic challenges which are arising against it in the future. Tourism has been hard hit by the rapidly changing climatic conditions and as studied earlier tourism itself has caused a major share in the same. Climate change has become a major issue in Australia as there have been drastic changes like extremely high temperatures and widespread droughts. Although rainfall has increased, in some areas the ACT has faced some serious shortage of rainfall and water. Australia also has the highest per capita green house emissions making the country and some specific regions warmer. The Federal Government the State Governments, including that of ACT, have explicitly recognised the greenhouse gas emission as the major contributor to climate change. The rapidly changing climate and the conditions is making sustainability in the region very difficult as it has affected the ecosystem of the region. Climate change has threatened the water supply in ACT through reduced rainfalls and rising temperatures and the decline could be up to a substantial percentage by 2030. The recent drought and bushfires, due to rising evaporation, in the region have added to the existing problem of water shortage (ACT NRM Council, 2009). As the number of very hot days has increased, the number of illness and heat-related deaths has risen in ACT. This has impacted the tourism industry as the tourists have started choosing other regions of the country or the world as their preference over ACT. With the ACT’s high vulnerability to projected climate change, it has become important that appropriate actions are taken by the local government, businesses and communities and individuals for effective adaptation for the changing environment. Stakeholders and Project Partners The major project partners are Municipality of Ancona, Municipality of Bullas, Municipalty of Patras, Forum of Adriatic and Ionian Cities and ISPRA. The Australian Federal Government and the Tourism Authority of the country are also the active stakeholders of the region. The Federal Government of Australia has also taken major active participation in supporting the region. Their role in the ACT is to ensure proper management and implication of all the policies derived for the betterment of the territory. Their overall objective is to provide successful coordination and management of individual actions to help accomplish project goals. The project partners look after the working of the different aspects of the area to ensure proper availability of water to the local residents and also make sure that the tourism of the industry does not suffer. They develop capacity by comparing existing models and climate forecasting scenario. Local impact assessments are developed by each authority for each city by taking into account the economic, social and environmental issues. Each municipality establish their own local adaptation board for the development of actual local adaptation plan. The results are evaluated as per certain guidelines and then communicated and disseminated to the public (TFC, 2011). With the responsibility to control the local problems of their respective municipality they are also concerned with the proper development of sustainable plans for tourism against climate changes as it is a major industry of the region. Strategic Responses and Actions Like different parts of Australia and other major tourist cities of the world, the region also region also is facing the global challenges posed by population, growth and climate change. To ensure a sustainable scenario for the tourism industry and also to achieve a better future for the region some strategies have been developed (Green Building Council Australia, 2011). They aim at development of the infrastructure plan, social plan, economic development strategies and actions to tackle the climate change for ensuring better life of the people and support the tourism of the territory. They take regional focus into account and build a diverse economic base to help both tourism and the local people (Regional Development Australia, 2010). A preferred approach by the partners in the area, to attain sustainability, is through mitigation and adaptation. This approach looks to minimise or eliminate the causes of negative environmental and social impacts of business using some approaches like regulations, market approaches and soft tools for encouraging sustainability. A commonly used method by all governments globally is the through regulation where they use legislative and administrative means to set up and enforce standards, permissions, control behaviour, etc. the panning regulation helps getting permission regarding any matter until a minimum criteria of set standards is met. Similarly the environmental impact assessment focuses on set environmental standards. The legislation of the government restricts certain behaviours, access or use through some legal bounding. Another approach in the direction of mitigation is the market approach where the focus is on manipulating the market rather than using the government legislation and regulatory powers to command the market. Using this approach they operate inside the market using a number of tools to influence the market conditions to encourage the producers and consumers to likewise adjust their behaviour. Some of the tools that are used are ownership and rentals, taxes, subsidies and grants, tradable rights and permits and deposit-refund schemes. For example the tradable rights and permits allow the government to set limits on the use of any resources like the atmosphere. These rights are sold to the firms and aim at encouraging use of resources within an agreed maximum use level. Use of soft tools is a voluntary approach which helps in changing the behaviour through information, persuasion or through some formal special networks. This tool does provide any force through government regulation or the economic signal of market approach. Some examples are tourism product eco-labelling, tourism product certification, code of conduct for operators and consumers, guidelines, consumer education and advertising. The use of soft tools is very much preferred for mitigation as the use of this tool is very convenient and the basics are all the same for all tourist places globally. Also the current generation is becoming very much aware of the general knowhow regarding the following of guidelines through better education, the use of internet and social knowledge. Indicative Timeline A specific measure of correct period of time is required to be used to measure the volume of the work achieved and the remaining to be done. All projects are basically targeted with an achievable period ranging from 5 years to 10 years with a specific set guideline to be compared with. Measures to be taken: The basic step in this direction is to find and understand the solutions for its adaptations. This policy of adaptation can be successful only when the impacts can be reduced to the non-impacting levels. Climate change for example has been considered as a major cause for altering the planetary climate caused due to greenhouse gas emission (ACT NRM Board, 2004). The current attempts towards encouraging mitigation are not sufficient as the cost behind reallocation and evacuation of people from seriously affected regions are becoming very high and also hampering the tourism of the region. Steps in the direction of this effort have to be more specific and binding on the industry. Installation of solar panels on all tourist hotels and resorts for saving electricity has to be used. The government of the region has to develop more of wind farms and renewable sources of energy keeping in mind the perceived social and environmental costs. The measures have to be shifted from the existing to the others in the following manner. MOVE FROM MOVE TO GNP Gross National Welfare Short Term Planning Long Term Planning Others Problem My Problems Material Growth Sustainable Growth Private Benefits Social Benefits Local Awareness Planetary Awareness Passive Action for Change Awareness among the people is very much required to follow basic norms like dumping waste into the garbage, avoid excessive use of existing resources and plan for tomorrow, organising sing boards at all convenient locations to keep the picture alive in the minds of the tourist and also the people associated with the industry. The role of the government and the stakeholders is becoming very much necessary for the planet to adapt the measures of mitigation and develop sustainability for the industry in the ACT against the curse of climate change. The way of looking at the world in terms of the economic, social and environmental issues has to be assessed for a paradigmatic shift. The departments and the stakeholders involved with the same are not only required to just implement or formulate plans and policies but also ensure the perfect mode of implication and proper carry out of work. The funds are to be correctly allocated to the working committee set by the government and the partners of ACT for smooth operation of the above mentioned moves. Conclusion The project has focussed very clearly on the sustainability of the tourism industry for the ACT with proper acceptance of measures for mitigation and making sure that the correct tools are implemented in the correct direction for the betterment of the industry. The strategic challenges for the industry and the best possible measures that the stakeholders have considered as the best solutions for the industry have also been discussed. The indicative setting of timeline for a better tomorrow also shows a positive sign where the correct intentions to fulfil the tasks are reflected. References ACT NRM Board (ACT Natural Resource Management Board) 2004, ACT Natural Resource Management Plan 2004–2014. ACT NRM Council (ACT Natural Resource Management Council) 2009, Bush Capital Legacy: Plan for Managing the Natural Resources of the ACT, Lyneham, Canberra. Green Building Council Australia, 2011, retrieved on 13-07-14 http://www.gbca.org.au/government-policy.asp?sectionID=230&docID=1956 Hennessy, K., L. Webb, D. Korono and Ricketts, J. 2008. Climate Change Scenarios for Five Australian Tourism Regions, CSIRO, a report prepared for the Sustainable Tourism CRC. Regional Development Australia, 2010. ACT Regional Strategic Plan – A framework for economic, social and environmental development initiatives in the ACT and region. TFC (Tourism Forecasting Committee), 2011, Forecast 2011 Issue 2, Tourism Research Australia, Canberra. Read More