Common Themes Regarding Issues of Destination Governance in Regional Destination Areas
Theme 4: Impact issues
Achieving Effective Community Destination Governance 59
be shown in Hawaii, which has seen confl ict in the area of coastal/mountain management and land use, with disputes over diverse regional interests includ-ing conservation community groups, government agencies, private landowners and private residents (Nitz, 1989; McLaren, 2003).
Population and pace of development
Population growth also puts great pressures (e.g. due to overpopulation, crowd-ing and other social problems) on tourism- and leisure-oriented community development (Edmunds, 1981; Richins, 2009). In US cities such as Monterey, California and Charleston, South Carolina, there have been large increases in visitation as well as residential development. In the USA, South Africa and Mexico, accelerated growth in coastal, lake and mountain populations and the resulting pressures of urbanization and developments have resulted in losses in marine and other ecological systems, dislocation of residents, losses of open space for use by the public and/or further losses in living and quality-of-life factors (Burns et al., 1993; Ommer, 2007).
Loss of traditional lifestyle
Traditional cultures and lifestyles have also been an important issue to some communities (Smith, 1989; Uniyal et al., 2003). An Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (1975:27) paper on government policy in the development of tourism over 30 years ago acknowledged the need to safeguard
‘… traditional cultures and ways of life …’ in local communities which were becoming involved in tourism.
60 H. Richins
Lack of balance in the community
There has been a lack of emphasis by policy makers regarding the environmen-tal, economic, social and cultural needs (especially social needs) of communities with, instead, attention given primarily to purported economic benefi ts (Craik, 1991; Richins, 2009). More recently, this perceived balance has begun to change, with a greater emphasis on more harmonious relationships between the environ-ment and the sociocultural as well as economic factors (Murphy and Price, 2005;
Mowforth and Munt, 2008).
Diffi culty in researching impacts of development
A number of circumstances have created great challenges for the management of regional communities, but assessing the breadth and depth of these issues concerning the impacts of development is fraught with diffi culty. An emphasis on only easily quantifi able economic factors is in contrast with the view that
‘many of the impacts that concern communities are qualitative, ideological and ethical issues, which do not conform to the assumptions about “knowledge” that underpin techniques of “scientifi c” measurement’ (Craik, 1991:82).
The defi ciencies of subjective measurement in tourism regarding environ-mental and social effects (primarily) have been acknowledged (Thompson and Thompson, 1994; Gerberich, 2005). The diffi culties in quantifying the costs of tourism development have been due primarily to the intangible nature of these costs (Goldin, 1993; Briassoulis, 2002).
Dependency of physical environment
The physical environment of a tourism- or leisure-oriented destination both affects and puts constraints on the types and extent of development in a region (Mathie-son and Wall, 1982; Ommer, 2007), and ultimately the degree of tolerance tour-ists or residents have to perceived overbuilt environments (Butler and Waldbrook, 1991; Green, 2005). Indeed, developments are often seen as signifi cantly depen-dent on the physical environment, both in terms of attraction as well as impact.
Unrealistic views on impacts of tourism and development
Two primary views have been put forward regarding tourism impacts. Critical analysis of tourism industry and destination development has been advocated in response to a type of ‘triumphalism’ of the tourism industry, and the sometimes, unquestioned acceptance of development by governments and the general pub-lic (Pattullo, 1996; Harrill and Potts, 2003). A strong criticism can be put forward, however, for an emphasis on tourism success in communities based on the con-cept of ‘more’ (i.e. more tourists, more development, more jobs, more growth, more settlers). This ‘boosterism’ platform may lead instead to social, ecological and political decisions which have a negative rather than a positive impact on quality of life (Richter, 1990; Wahab and Pigram, 1997).
Instead, the impact of destination development on communities from the perspective of the cautionary platform indicates that:
Tourism is, to a large degree, a resource-based activity, with a capacity to initiate far-reaching changes to the physical and human environment. Many forms of tourism are seen as contributing to environmental degradation, and
Achieving Effective Community Destination Governance 61
tending to be self-destructive. Erosion of the resource base, impairment of the built environment, and disruption of the social fabric of host communities are common indicators of the undesirable impacts which can ensue from the predatory effects of a mass infl ux of tourists.
(Ding and Pigram, 1995:2)
Conclusion
The above typology has explored various issues and pressures communities have faced regarding community destination governance. The four major themes are development issues, structural and management issues, community issues and impact issues. Destination communities may be affected substantially by any of these issues. This chapter has acknowledged the great challenges in under-standing and addressing issues and pressures which affect the characteristics, circumstances, management and governance of the future environment in which regional destinations exist.
As has been illustrated through the exploration of this typology, community destination issues which regions have faced are widespread and provide signifi -cant governance challenges. The numerous confl icts, lack of control and com-mitment, issues of coastal, lake and mountain access and land use and the pace of population increase and development, as well as the numerous other issues indicated, may all play a part in the concerns tourism-oriented communities face when creating a progressive or sustainable process for their future.
It is anticipated that this typology of the issues and pressures which commu-nities may have to address may provide a positive basis or set of tools for the development and implementation of more integrated solutions to complex coastal, lake and mountain management and tourism development related problems. By reviewing these pressures and issues for each community, the approaches for dealing with these questions may be understood more clearly and be more effectual, both in development and implementation and in the outcomes which result.
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