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Marine Parks & Tourism

Coastal and marine areas have always been attractive destinations for recreation and tourism due to the diversity of resources, features and settings found along the landwater interface. While traditional beach tourism remains popular, increasingly, visitors are attracted to areas which also offer opportunities to appreciate natural, cultural and social environments different from their own.

Many of the same factors which attract tourists to coastal areas also make them sensitive to over-use and development. Marine parks and protected areas are therefore becoming an important tool in preserving these special environments.

Marine parks can serve many purposes including that of nature reserves where marine species, functions and features are preserved with minimum human interference. While public access may be limited in some more sensitive areas, marine parks can also provide settings for a variety of recreational activities. With careful zoning, marine parks can serve both conservation and tourism functions while being environmentally, culturally and economically sustainable.

Resources

AXYS’ team of planning and scientific professionals offer a complete range of inventory, planning and management services for marine parks and tourism. Their expertise ranges from recreational planning and land capability assessment to biophysical research.

AXYS also offers expert capabilities in environmental impact assessment and regional cumulative effects assessment. These skills are essential in determining how human uses and tourism may affect the long-term sustainability of marine parks and reserves. Many of these methods employ advanced technologies using geographic information systems (GIS) and computer modeling. This combined expertise in a number of disciplines allows AXYS to take an integrated approach to the management of marine parks and coastal tourism areas, considering both biophysical and socioeconomic factors, both at a site-specific and regional scale.

Services

AXYS Environmental Consulting offers a number of services for the planning and management of marine parks and tourism including:

• Resource inventories
• Integrated coastal management
• Land and resource planning
• Geographic information systems (GIS) and database management
• Project feasibility studies and site planning
• Park management plans
• Environmental and social impact assessment
• Cumulative effects assessment
• Policy and program evaluations
• Visitor surveys
• Visitor management
• Design and planning of interpretive facilities
• Public consultation
• Research and report writing
• Restoration and enhancement programs
• Training

Selected Experience

AXYS consultants have many years of experience in marine and coastal settings both nationally and internationally. Recent projects include:

• Preparation of feasibility studies for marine parks in the Caribbean. Each site required site assessments, environmental evaluations, concept designs, visitor management strategies and economic and marketing analyses. Community consultation was essential to the success of the study.
• Data synthesis for coastal/marine areas and marine parks off the coast of British Columbia. This involved the compilation of background
  information, identification of management issues and development of recommendations for visitor management.
• Design of a methodology for measuring tourism and recreation use in Clayoquot Sound, one of British Columbia's most ecologically and culturally rich coastal environments. Using local residents trained in the survey methodology, information was obtained on existing and potential use levels and patterns.
• Identification of research needs for Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve on the Queen Charlotte Islands. Through an expert workshop, AXYS assisted in the formulation of a science strategy for this area.
• Assessment of environmental and culturally sensitive areas in coastal environments in the Canadian Arctic and British Columbia. Information on sensitive areas was used to assist in the development of emergency response plans in the event of an oil or chemical spill.
• Development of a methodology to identify marine sensitive zones in British Columbia. AXYS has also developed several atlases for the British Columbia coastline identifying sensitive areas for shellfish and finfish.