Positive Benefits
The
positive benefits of tourism to Fraser Island are manifold and widely
extolled and promoted as a raison d’etre for continued
growth of tourism by those who are the main beneficiaries:
Economic benefits are widely recognized. Fraser Island is conservatively
estimated to be worth more than $250,000,000 to the Queensland
economy when it takes into account the many spin-offs, Apart from
the actual expenditure to actually visit the island (access,
transport, accommodation and food and recreation equipment) there is
a multiplier as this expenditure percolates through all sectors of
the economy and a much larger community. There is also the inspired
spending based on Fraser Island. The number of television and other
advertisements based on Fraser island is testimony to this.
Understanding
the Environment: The public campaigns to protect Fraser Island’s
outstanding natural values relied heavily on developing tourists’
appreciation for the whole island. Tourism significantly helped stop
sandmining and logging. It also raised public awareness of
environmental values in other Australian regions. Fraser Island
tourism has contributed to greater Australian environmental
understanding.
Education:
Many intangible benefits flow from Fraser Island into many aspects
of education which is already being used increasingly by
educationists. As more student groups visit the island, these
student experience are being utilized in all parts of the curriculum.
Aesthetic
/ spiritual: The value of inspiration cannot be overstated.
This benefits all forms of the arts — visual, literary, and
performing arts. Fraser Island has inspired visual artists from the
famous such as Sir Sydney Nolan to people yet to make a name.
Writers such as Patrick White to some of their most acclaimed works.
It has inspired also musical composers such as Peter Sculthorpe to
write symphonies. Photographers, poets, film-makers and other
artists have all been inspired. The value of Fraser Island to the
evolving Australian culture is very important.
Recreation:
The range of recreation activities is well known. Bush-walking,
recreational driving and fishing are the better known activities. It
is the money spent on this recreation and recreation equipment which
makes the greatest contribution to the Queensland economy.
The
value of recreation on Fraser Island to personal health, self-esteem
and overall personal productivity needs to be taken into full
account. Long after a visit to Fraser Island the experiences endure
in memories. Such values cannot be calculated in economic terms.
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Negative Benefits
There are also many negative impacts of tourism on Fraser Island. These
are not as obvious but they need to be addressed by management.
Because of the need to minimise negative impacts in order to make
tourism sustainable in the longer term these issues are addressed
here in much more detail:
Establishing
Unsustainable Recreation Patterns: The most demonstrable adverse
impact of tourism on Fraser Island results from recreation patterns
which are unsustainable. These include the four following factors:
- Target Destinations: Certain Fraser Island areas are identified
and marketed by tourist interests with the result that they draw
tourists to them like bees to a honey pot even to the extent that
they become needlessly degraded and overused. Eli Creek, Lake
McKenzie and Central Station are such sites. Daily hundreds of
tourists from the Noosa area spend needless hours to drive past
equally outstanding natural features in the Cooloola National Park so
that commercial tour operators can capitalize on the “marketing
of these well known products”. This focus is unsustainbale.
Such sites are being overused and yet tourists are reluctant to be
redirected to other alternative areas which could sustain some
increase in visitation.
-
Means of Access: Once tourism becomes established, it is
difficult to change. Tourist guide books tend to be based on past
experience. Recommendations to intending visitors are largely based
on past practice. Thus although there are better ways to see Fraser
Island than in largely lumbering four wheel drive buses or self of
four wheel drive vehicles, this method of visitation has become so
entrenched that it is difficult to change.
The most serious adverse environmental impacts now being experienced on
Fraser Island are result of this form of transportation. This aspect
is separately elaborated elsewhere in this paper.
-
“Traditional” Visitation Practices: It takes very
little time for modern society to claim that certain practices are so
“traditional” that practioners claim they can’t be
changed. This has been used by commercial fishers to demand to camp
in the same site contrary to the Recreation Areas Management Act and
to have vehicular access to beaches closed to other vehicular
traffic. Likewise the “tradition” of free range camping
has become so entrenched that although this practice has been shown
to be unsustainable there is a reluctance to phase it out despite
compelling evidence that this form of tourism should be ended.
Similar conservatism allows Fraser Island tourists to continue to
squander resources and degrade the environment through open
camp-fires
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Surface disturbance: On Fraser Island, the impact of
surface disturbance of any sort is more critical than most other
natural areas which have a much more robust substrate (ground
surface). The susceptibility of the substrate to any disturbance
magnifies the impacts of tourism on Fraser Island more than most
other natural areas. (Coral reefs and semi arid areas with
cryptobionic crusts may be as susceptible to disturbance). The
reason for this fragility is due to the fact that exposed sand
surfaces in vegetated areas of Fraser Island have a very high degree
of water repellence which makes them very susceptible to water
erosion. Vegetated sand surfaces are much less susceptible.
If
the visitors can be carried in such a way that they do not disturb
the substrate surface by such means as board walks or by light rail,
then the surface disturbance and thus the environmental impact of
visitation is contained and reduced.
Erosion of Wilderness Values: Wilderness is an important emotional and
notional need of humans. The concept of wilderness is based on
remoteness from concentrations of other people and the artefacts of
modern civilization. While few people actually need to physically
challenge wilderness, this does not remove the necessity to zealously
preserve it as knowing that it exists is important for our
well-being. Tourism erodes wilderness values through its
infrastructure — motor vehicles, roads, modern buildings and the
sounds of modern engines. The increasing penetration of more people
into parts of the island previously exempt from intense visitation
erodes wilderness. Aircraft overflying remoter parts of Fraser
Island and other intrusive modern noise also erodes wilderness
values.
Spread of Injurious Agents: Injurious agencies which impact on other
values of Fraser Island include the spread of weeds, feral animals
and pests, new pathogens, wild fires and litter. Tourism has the
potential to facilitate the introduction and spread of these
injurious agencies. In the end the impact of injurious agencies
resulting from tourism have a greater potential to degrade Fraser
island than some other industries.
Diversion of Management Resources: Managing tourism is responsible
for diverting much of Fraser Island’s very limited resources from
natural resource management (control of fires, weeds, feral animals
etc. and resource monitoring) to recreation management (including
access, waste management, behaviour control, provision of
infrastructure, maintenance for roads, etc.). Tourism produces a
great deal of waste and human waste and this is resulting in some
water pollution particularly as a result of inadequate treatment of
sewage.
Increasing numbers of tourists also impede natural resource management
strategies such as fire and dingo management because of the high
priority given to public safety and property protection over resource
management and protection.
Perversion
of political priorities: Pandering to perceived tourist demands
has resulted in political decisions which have over-ridden the
Management Plan for Fraser Island such as relocating the Toyota
Fishing Expo and reopening the dangerous Orchid Beach airstrip. Many
politicians are motivated more by pursuing popularity than with
implementing a Management Plan which some vocal dissidents with
vested interests disagree with.
Motor Vehicle Impacts
The
impact of four wheel drives on Fraser Island are extremely
significant affecting roads, wildlife, habitat and recreation
amenity.
Roads:
The largest impact is on the roads. Road traffic accelerates
erosion. During every heavy downpour of rain thousands of tonnes of
sand wash off the roads to fill lake basins and streams with sediment
and smother many natural habitats. N February, 1999 over two metres
of sand was deposited at the intersection of the Pile Valley and
Wanggoolba Creek Road burying a large stump. Sand from adjacent
roads is being sluiced into Lake McKenzie, Lake Allom, Lake
Boomanjin, Lake Birrabeen and more.
Opening
of the canopy over the roads results in desiccation resulting in
considerable changes to the micro-flora and a reduction of epiphyte
numbers.
Wildlife:
Shore bird numbers have been decimated by the unchecked growth of
four wheel drive beach traffic. Oyster catchers, Red-capped
dotterels and Beach thick-knees have been most affected.
Eroding
habitat: Roads occupy space, a space which takes a long time to
revegetate after the roads cease to be used. Roads also act as
barriers to the movement of wildlife. Distribution of many ant
species and frogs is affected by roads. Some won’t cross roads
to identical habitat on the other side.
Pollution:
Now there evidence is starting to appear that vegetation adjacent to
“black holes” in the roads are suffering.
Noise:
The aesthetic impact of noise is well known and understood yet it is
largely ignored. The impact of the noise from traffic on the road
above Wanggoolba Creek on the walking track beside this icon of
Fraser Island significantly degrades this experience.
Distortion of Priorities: Because so much of Fraser Island tourism is
vehicle based, roads have been cannibalistic, consuming a
disproportionate share all the financial and staff resources. This
stopped any progress towards a walking track management plan for the
island for more than six years. Vehicle based tourism has also been
responsible for preventing closing tracks due to be closed under the
Management Plan for more than 6 years. Preoccupation with roads has
stalled progress towards the establishment of a more ecologically
sustainable light rail proposal.
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