recreational activities

The island of Aruba predominantly has a ‘sun, sea and sand’ tourism destination image. The Arub Tourism Authority (A.T.A.) aims to diversify the Aruban tourism product by developing tourism niche markets. One of the opportunities lies in the development of mountain biking (MTB), which is considered a popular and growing sport amongst tourists and locals. In November 2018, the A.T.A. received a proposal from an experienced trail building company in Colorado (USA) titled: Aruba MTB Trails. Developing a niche market for mountain biking in Aruba. The proposal aims to design and build some 54 km of bike optimized MTB trails.

Although the plan matches with the ambitions of A.T.A., the Authority questions whether the plan is really as sustainable as stated in the proposal. This environmental impact assessment (EIA) assessed this issue by answering following research questions:

• What are the impacts of the proposed MTB-trails on the (ecological) environment in the project area?
• What are the cumulative impacts (indicative) of other user groups on the (ecological) environment in the project area?
• What measures should be implemented to mitigate or compensate any ecological impacts assessed?

These questions were answered based on a thorough literature study, a field visit in November 2019, a field study of the Aruban Burrowing Owl and interviews with local stakeholders and experts. It could be concluded that: The proposed MTB-network is, in theory, an improvement for the ecological environment when compared with the present MTB-network, though additional measures are needed before speaking about a ‘sustainable’ MTB-network.

The length of the present 50+ km MTB-network is not so much different from the proposed MTBnetwork. The main difference lies in the fact that MTBs are assumed not to ride off-road anymore in the proposed situation. Off-road riding leads to the creation of informal roads and paths and results in soil erosion, habitat degradation and fragmentation, nest disturbances and (fatal) collisions with (ground) breeding birds and snakes, which are the most vulnerable species groups. Some of these impacts were observed while visiting the area.

In the proposed situation there are still species that would show moderate or substantial vulnerability to MTBs. This has to do with the fact that proposed MTB-trails are too close to potential breeding habitat of the Aruban Burrowing Owl and Least Tern as well as the potential for MTBs to collide with snakes between dusk and dawn. This requires rerouting of the proposed MTB-trails (spatial zoning) or closure of ‘problem’ trails at least during the most vulnerable months (breeding season owls and terns) or time of day (between dusk and dawn). These measures indicate, among others, that a trail network within the Tierra del Sol nature area, which is a stronghold for the endangered Aruban Burrowing Owl, is not realistic. Our use of ‘in theory’ in the conclusion above is intentional, as the sustainability-issue goes much further than the MTB-network. The main conclusion of this ecological impact assessment is therefore that: Sustainable development of Aruba’s wild north coast, can only be achieved with a nature and visitor
management plan (including MTB) for the area as a whole, that matches with the ambitions in Aruba’s Spatial Development plan 2019.

Present ecological impacts in the project area are substantial and concern habitat loss and fragmentation, damage to vegetation and soils, disturbance of fauna and to a lesser extent also the loss of individuals due to collision and pollution. Though these impacts can partly be attributed toMTBs, it is nothing when compared to the cumulative impacts of the multiple ATVs and UTVs which dominate the area (especially the lower terrace) with their numbers, speed, noise, off-road driving erosion and dust creation. The scope of these impacts goes beyond the project area and does not only relate to the ecological carrying capacity but also to the social (local community) and even psychological carrying capacity (tourists).

This situation is contradictory to the Aruba Spatial Development Plan 2019. This plan classifies the project area in two categories nature (e.g. Tierra del Sol) and nature and landscape with characteristics like silence, low-impact visitor-use, driving on formal paths and roads as well as restoration, conservation and development of natural values. This contradiction confirms the selfevaluation by the Ministry of Nature and Environment (Min. ROIM, 2018) in which the lack of law enforcement for the conservation of nature is regarded as one of the weaknesses, while not taking into account the ecological carrying capacity of Aruba risks the creation of an unlivable environment for generations to come. These observations make clear that sustainable development of the project area can only be achieved with a nature and visitor management plan for the project area as a whole. A list of 15 actions and measures is included in this report, which it is recommended should be integrated within the nature- and visitor management plan.

The number and type of diver contacts with coral reefs on Bonaire and Klein Bonaire’s fringing reefs were studied in fall 2006. The goal of this study was to observe the number of contacts recreational SCUBA divers are making with the local reefs. Twenty four divers were chosen haphazardly and followed for 30 minute observation periods on three shore dives and seven boat dives. Forty-one percent of observed divers came in contact with the reef substrate at least once during the observation period for a total of 84 contacts. Contacts were categorized as fin taps, body bumps, skin contacts, sediment upsets and equipment dragging. The majority of observed contacts were fin taps, followed by skin contacts, sediment upsets, equipment dragging and body bumps. The following diver attribute categorizes were analyzed to determine the relationship between contact rate and diver attributes: dive access type (shore vs. boat), gender of the diver, skill level of the diver (beginner vs. advanced), and presence or absence of camera equipment. Shore dives, female divers, beginner divers and underwater photographers all demonstrated higher numbers of contacts than their counterparts with female divers contacting the reef nearly twice as often as males. A one-way ANOVA was used to analyze the number of contacts between the divers in each of the above categories. There were no statistically significant differences in number of contacts within any of the categories. The lack of statistically significant differences may be a result of the relatively small sample size, short study period, or a combination of the two.

This student research was retrieved from Physis: Journal of Marine Science I (Fall 2006)19: 7-12 from CIEE Bonaire.

Seagrass beds are important habitats associated with coral reefs. Seagrasses are nursery areas for juvenile fish, and they act as buffering zones by dissipating wave energy (Kemp, 2000). In the proposed study, human related impacts on seagrass beds were studied. Many issues affect seagrass beds health, such as water quality decline due to pollution, water temperature rise due to global warming, dragging of fishing nets, dredging, and human recreational activities (Kemp, 2000). This study aimed to measure the potential effects of human recreational activities on the seagrass beds in Sorobon on Lac Bay, Bonaire, an island of the Netherlands Antilles. In the first part of the study, the activities of windsurfers, swimmers, waders, kayakers, and others were monitored, and quantified. The intent was to determine which of these recreational activities may result in damage to seagrass beds in the study area. The second part of the study compared seagrass beds in areas exposed to high human activity to areas where human activities are less frequent, with the intent to assess the relation of health of the beds with high and low levels of human activities. The results of this study show that there is a relationship between human recreational activities and the health of seagrass beds. In areas of high human disturbances, both seagrass percent cover and number of leaves are lower than in areas of low human disturbance. This study also shows that not all human interactions interact with the seagrass habitat in the same amount; different recreational activities interact with the seagrasses in different amounts.

This student research was retrieved from Physis: Journal of Marine Science III (Spring 2008)19: 37-41 from CIEE Bonaire.

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.