Queensland Sustainable Tourism Development Action Plan
Actions, Responsibilities, Time Lines
As noted earlier in this Plan, Queensland is well placed to develop and expand its ecotourism industry. However, this must occur within the context of careful management of growth to ensure that ecological and cultural sustainability is achieved, appropriate infrastructure is provided, a more diverse range of high quality ecotourism products is provided and matched to visitor needs.
The implementation of this Plan will be strategic, consistent with management plans and give initial priority to the following key areas:
- developing a more systematic, consistent and coordinated approach to management of ecotourism in Queensland;
- maintaining and, where necessary, providing infrastructure at popular ecotourism destinations that are under the most pressure from visitation;
- identifying and using in an ecologically sustainable fashion, coastal and other areas which are relatively undeveloped for tourism purposes but have the necessary infrastructure to add to the diversity of ecotourism opportunities;
- developing ecotourism opportunities which, as far as possible, use existing road, rail, marine and air transport networks;
- further developing ecotourism opportunities close to Queensland’s international gateways; and
- encouraging development of ecotourism activities on privately owned lands to broaden the range of ecotourism products and divert some of the growth in ecotourism away from protected areas.
The key objectives and strategies outlined in the previous Chapter and these priority areas will be implemented through the following 36 actions. Implementation will occur over one of the four time frames: 0-2 years, 2-5 years, 5 or more years or ongoing.
Tourism Queensland will be the agency responsible for coordinating the implementation of this Plan. Each year, this agency will develop an operational plan in conjunction with the agencies and groups with major implementation responsibilities. These groups and agencies have been identified in relation to their policy, management and operational roles and are the first listed next to each action. Their implementation role will include consulting with the other relevant groups and agencies in Queensland.
Government departments and agencies identified as having responsibilities for implementation actions will, to some extent, be able to incorporate these within their current programs. New activities not currently included in departmental plans will need to be included in the development or review of corporate plans and budgets or applications for new funding. Tourism Queensland will work with other agencies to ensure this occurs.
Implementation will need to be flexible to account for changes in priorities and available resources and will include a process of monitoring and annual reviews. Progress of implementation of the Plan will be reported annually to the Cabinet by Tourism Queensland.
Action Plans
Key Objective One: Environmental Protection and Management
Strategy 1: Identification of areas with high natural and cultural value
- Develop a consistent methodology for all natural resource management agencies that assess natural and associated cultural resource values in relation to ecotourism operations (DoE, DNR, natural resource managers) 0-2 years
- Develop a database and inventory of areas with ecotourism potential and identify possible routes to link these areas (Tourism Queensland, natural resource managers) 2-5 years
- Study the impacts of ecotourism to improve the information base for planning and decision making (Tourism Queensland, ecotourism industry, natural resource managers) 2-5 years
Strategy 2: Management planning
- Establish consistent, State-wide guidelines for the inclusion of ecotourism in management plans (Tourism Queensland, DoE, DNR) 0-2 years
- Incorporate ecotourism into regional and local land use and tourism plans (Tourism Queensland, RTAs, DLGP, local governments) Ongoing
- Incorporate ecotourism into management plans for State forests, marine and national parks, other protected areas and unallocated State land with ecotourism potential (natural resource managers, ecotourism industry) On-going
- Develop impact monitoring guidelines (see background Information Towards Ecotourism Best Practice ) (DoE, DNR, Tourism Queensland) 0-2 years
- Monitor impacts and assess sustainable levels of use (DoE, DNR, natural resource managers) Ongoing
- Develop guidelines on allowable activities on State-managed public land (DoE, DNR, Tourism Queensland) 0-2 years
- Develop integrated systems of permits and fees to contribute to funding for natural area management and encourage best practice ecotourism (DTSBI/Tourism Queensland, natural resource managers) 0-2 years
- Establish mechanisms for government/industry cooperation, such as consultation and advisory forums (Tourism Queensland, ecotourism industry, natural resource managers) 0-2 years
- Provide advice and publications on planning and approval processes background information (information for ecotourism planning ) (Tourism Queensland) Ongoing
Key Objective Two: Ecotourism Industry Development
Strategy 3: Product development
- develop and deliver appropriate training in management, business, environmental interpretation, safety and service skills (TTQ, ATSIC, ecotourism industry) Ongoing
- Encourage best practice through information provision, support for best practice projects and awards (Tourism Queensland, ecotourism industry) Ongoing
- Support the implementation of the National Ecotourism Accreditation Program, encourage ecotourism operators to seek accreditation and use accreditation as a marketing tool (Tourism Queensland, ecotourism industry, RTAs) 0-2 years
- Develop a database of assistance of schemes for the ecotourism industry (Tourism Queensland) 0-2 years
- Investigate the potential of industry-wide insurance schemes (Ecotourism industry) 2-5 years
- Develop a methodology to measure the economic contribution of ecotourism at regional and State levels (Tourism Queensland, Treasury) 2-5 years
Strategy 4: Marketing and promotion
- Identify the factors that make Queensland ecotourism unique and position the Queensland ecotourism product (Tourism Queensland, RTAs, ecotourism industry) 0-2 years
- Identify ecotourism markets, assess level of demand for ecotourism and identify opportunities for cooperative marketing (Tourism Queensland, ecotourism industry) 0-2 years
- Prepare marketing strategies that specially include ecotourism and package ecotourism (Tourism Queensland, RTAs, ecotourism industry) 0-2 years
- Undertake market research on visitor motivations, expectations and level of satisfaction (Tourism Queensland, RTAs, ecotourism industry) 0-2 years
Key Objective Three: Infrastructure Development
Strategy 5: Infrastructure development
- develop guidelines on the role of ht public, private and community sectors in ecotourism infrastructure provision and encourage coordination in provision of infrastructure (Tourism Queensland, DoE, DNR, ecotourism industry) 0-2 years
- Develop guidelines on appropriate infrastructure for different classes of State-managed public land and for different styles of ecotourism see background information (information for ecotourism planning ) (Tourism Queensland, DLGP, natural resource managers) 0-2 years
- Provide information on, and encourage the use of, low-impact technology and design (Tourism Queensland, natural resource managers, ecotourism industry) 2-5 years
- Develop guidelines on types of low-impact accommodation appropriate for different natural areas (Tourism Queensland, DoE, DNR) 2-5 years
- Provide infrastructure appropriate to the type of natural area, style of ecotourism and level of current and projected visitation (Natural resource managers) Ongoing
Key Objective Four: Community Development
Strategy 6: Local community development
- Encourage local community involvement in ecotourism planning, management, operations and employment and local provisions of goods and services (Tourism Queensland, natural resource managers, ecotourism industry) Ongoing
- Encourage Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander involvement in ecotourism and land management (Tourism Queensland, DFYCC, ATSIC, natural resource managers, ecotourism industry) Ongoing
- Promote benefits of ecotourism to local communities through a range of initiatives, including workshops and publications such as ‘Benefits of ecotourism for local communities’ (Tourism Queensland ecotourism industry) 2-5 years
- Produce a ‘How to get into ecotourism’ publication (Tourism Queensland, ecotourism industry) 2-5 years
- Assess local community attitudes to ecotourism and monitor the social impact of ecotourism (Local government, RTAs, ecotourism industry) Ongoing
Strategy 7: General community development
- Develop educational materials for ecotourists, operators and the general community to minimise environmental impact and raise environmental awareness (Tourism Queensland, DNR, ecotourism industry) 2-5 years
- Publicise and distribute the QEP (Tourism Queensland) 0-2 years
- Develop codes of practice for visitors, operators and government (Tourism Queensland, ecotourism industry) 2-5 years
- Provide environmental education and interpretation materials for non-English-speaking people (Natural resource managers, ecotourism industry) 2-5 years