Hof, T. van 't

This case study of the Bonaire Marine Park (BMP) in the Caribbean is a combined ecological and economic analysis. It has become increasingly obvious that, rather than selecting the extremes of strict preservation or unmanaged development, balanced use of marine resources for both economic and ecological functions is central to their sustainable management. This study estimates the benefits and costs associated with dive tourism, as well as the willingness-to-pay for park protection. The BMP study explicitly considers the link between the production of ecological and economic benefits, and identifies the limits to increasing use. For details see Scura & van’t Hof (1993) and Dixon, Scura & van’t Hof (1993, 1994). 

The four marine protected area (MPA) cases treated in this study have a number of features in common They are relatively small in size, they are entirely or mostly marine, they are multiple-use areas, they were established for the protection and management of important marine ecosystems, and they provide a range of recreational opportunities. The Wreck of the Rbone Marine Park in the British Virgin Islands forms somewhat of an exception in that the wreck of the Royal Mail Steamer Rhone is the main feature of the park.
The recreational opportunities in these MPAs attract a large number of - mostly overseas - visitors, who engage in a variety of activities (the most important of which is SCUBA diving) while visiting the areas and most of whom stay for only a few days. About half of these visitors were unaware of the existence of the MPAs prior to their arrival and consequently, the existence of the areas was not very important in their decision to visit the destination. Yet the existence of the MPAs was important or very important to most visitors in their decision to engage in recreational activities in the areas.
Although visitor spending varies widely among the four MPAs studied, the visitation associated with the existence of the MPAs has an undisputed economic impact. The case studies demonstrate that there is a consumer surplus: 45-50% of the visitors would spend l0-20% more on the costs related to their visiting the areas before they would decide to visit a less expensive destination. This willingness to spend more appears to be related to a large extent to features connected with the protected status of the area (quality of the environment and marine life). Also, a considerable portion of the visitors might not return if the quality of the environment were to degrade. A considerable percentage of visitors would furthermore pay higher fees than the present fees, In order to optimize revenue for protected area management and economic impact in general, MPAs and their special features need to be better marketed.
Although the MPAs that are the subject of the case studies can generally be considered successful, there is much room for improvement. In some cases the economic benefits are not evenly distributed among the different sectors in the community, while certain user groups feel disadvantaged by the restrictions imposed on them. Conflicts between different user groups exist in some cases, while crowding and overuse are also seen as existing or imminent problems.
In all cases there appears to be a need to improve or expand education programmes to increase awareness and support among the local population. There is also a need to carry out more biological, economic and social research of marine protected areas, in addition to resource monitoring and statistical information collecting. The results thereof will enable protected area management agencies to demonstrate the value of these MPAs and to increase political and community support.

Short case study prepared for the CANARI Workshop on Revenue Generation for Protected Areas, Saba, Netherlands Antilles, June 5-9, 1995. The Saba Marine Park (SMP) was created in 1987. Prior the establishment of SMP few divers visited Saba. Dive operators at the time estimated the number of divers at 500 in 1984 and 1,000 in 1986. Following the establishment of SMP the number of visiting divers and snorkellers increased rapidly: from 2,600 in 1988 to well over 5,000 in 1994. Despite the fact that Saba is not among the popular yachting destinations in the northeastern Caribbean, the increase of yachts visiting SMP proved to be even more dramatic. In order to become self-financing, SMP embarked on a three-pronged revenue generation strategy: visitor/user fees, souvenir sales, and donations. One may conclude from the 1994 and 1995 budgets that the Saba Marine Park has achieved its goal to become a self-financing entity within the Saba Conservation Foundation. A number of important lessons which will have applications elsewhere have been derived.

The purpose of this survey was to describe and map the natural and cultural resources of the marine environment with a view to sustainable development of these resources for tourism.The following main habitat types were identified: coral-encrusted rock, true coral reefs, sand with algal beds, and artificial habitat (wreck sites). The most important areas for recreational use and further tourism development are the reef complex south of the city pier, the reefs of Jenkins Bay and the archaeological sites in Oranjebaai.
In addition to describing and mapping the resources, an inventory of uses of the marine environment was made, being fisheries, diving and snorkeling, anchoring and ship's traffic. Individual uses were mapped and these maps were overlayed to show areas of conflict between uses. The overlays formed the basis for a zoning plan for the marine environment. This plan identifies certain zones for different uses, so as to avoid conflicts between users. The zoning plan proposes two marine park
zones, two archaeological zones, a large anchorage/harbor zone, traffic zones and a fisheries management zone. Since the institutional structure for managing the marine environment and enforcing the regulations of the zoning plan is not available at present, creation of a new non-governmental body is recommended for management. All interest groups should be represented in such a body. Once the Island Government approves the recommendations and the proposed zoning plan, a detailed
project proposal and budget need to be drafted and submitted for funding.