Regulating commercial tourism in national parks

Submission note: [A thesis] submitted in fulfilment of the requirements of the degree of Doctor of Philosophy to the School of Marketing, Tourism and Hospitality, Faculty of Business, Economics and Law, La Trobe University, Bundoora.

The fundamental objectives of National Parks are to provide long-term conservation of natural and cultural assets and to provide a natural setting for recreation. Commercial tourism operators (CTOs) have a long established history of delivering visitor services within National Parks, and it is well recognised that government regulation is necessary to control their activities in order to ensure National Park objectives are achieved. In Victoria, Australia, CTOs have been limited to the operation of existing infrastructure or the provision of low-impact activities such as bushwalking or camping. In 2013, the Victorian Government passed the National Parks Amendment (Leasing Powers and Other Matters) Bill 2013 to allow for private investment to build commercial tourism infrastructure within National Park borders. This thesis explores the efficacy of existing, proposed and potential regulatory strategies that control commercial tourism activities in Victorian National Parks, with a focus on these legislative changes and the regulation of potential new developments. A theoretical framework was designed using Baldwin, Cave and Lodge’s (2011) regulatory strategy approach. Media articles, government documents, and interviews with key stakeholders were used to determine National Park stakeholders’ perceptions of commercial tourism in National Parks and regulatory efficacy. Four elements were found to influence stakeholder perceptions of regulatory efficacy: 1. Stakeholders desired outcomes; 2. Creating regulations; 3. Regulatory strategy performance and system design; and 4. Monitoring and compliance. These elements, and the overall level of trust a stakeholder had in government and the tourism industry to deliver outcomes, strongly influenced a stakeholder’s ‘opposition’ or ‘support’ for commercial tourism inside of National Parks. Findings implied the Victorian Government and tourism industry could improve stakeholder trust by: engaging in genuine stakeholder consultation; creating a clear vision for tourism in National Parks which acknowledges conservation as priority; and developing a comprehensive regulatory system which supports this vision.