Coral reefs grow rare beauty — and agreement

A surprise emerges from one of the first studies of the attitudes of tourists and recreation enthusiasts towards coral reef ecosystems. Almost everyone holds a strong core belief that coral reefs should be protected in perpetuity, even if it means human beings must be kept out altogether. The team's surveyed 3,500 residents and tourists visiting seven coral reef sites in the Hawaiian Islands, including state marine protected areas, fisheries management areas, and a county beach park. The surveys were designed to measure attitudes about overuse and crowding, as well as opinions about management needs. According to the team scientists, the opinions and attitudes expressed by the study's participants reflect core beliefs and are unlikely to change much, making the results useful for future public policy planning. Mark Needham, an assistant professor of forest ecosystems and society at OSU says that he finds it was "really quite astonishing, almost shocking," considering how many conflicts usually arise over management of natural resources for economic value versus environmental preservation or protection, that most study participants wanted coral reef ecosystems protected for their own sake badly enough to endorse whatever amount of management is necessary. "Our surveys found overwhelmingly that people visiting coral reef areas did not think that human use and access were the most important issues when it came to these areas," he said. "And if anything was to have a deleterious effect on reef ecosystems, they would want it stopped." That attitude is also of interest, Needham said, because in Hawaii coral reef ecosystems are a major draw for the tourism industry – seven million visitors a year spend more than $11 billion. Past research has focused on physical damage or other stresses placed on coral reefs, and in some cases results have led to steps being taken to reduce human use or educate visitors on reef protection. This study is different, according to Needham, because it gives resource managers the first indication of how much public support there might be for such interventions among the hobbyists and tourists who use this natural resource the most. Needham says that while opinions about coral reef conservation varied from less to more extreme, the differences were mostly about how much protection might be needed, and almost no one wanted expanded use of coral reefs. He believes this study shows that acceptance of potential future management strategies will be driven more by perceived health of coral reefs and changes to these ecosystems and less by issues such as crowding and litter that typically influence attitudes toward management of parks and protected areas on land. "In a marine context," adds Needham, "it appears that environmental conditions may be more important." He says that further studies are needed in other states and countries and with other segments of the public, especially those who favor managed use over recreation or environmental protection. Needham is now working with Brian Szuster, an assistant professor of geography at the University of Hawaii, to examine this topic further in other areas of Hawaii and in other countries. This study was supported by the Hawaii Coral Reef Initiative and State of Hawaii Division of Aquatic Resources. Reports of the team's findings are available on the web at this URL: http://www.hawaii.edu/ssri/hcri/research/needham.html On the Net: More Hawaiian coral reef photos by Oregon State University scientists.