Towards sustainable environmental experiences for the live-aboard diving industry on the Great Barrier Reef (B2.9S)

Task leader: Mr Dean Miller, James Cook University.

Task associate:
Mr Col McKenzie, Association of Marine Park Tourism Operators
Mr James Innes, Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority.

Past studies of visitor SCUBA diving experiences on day-trips to the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park (GBRMP) have concentrated on the less experienced end of the diver history spectrum, i.e. first time and beginner divers. Limited data have been collected on those divers with extensive history including those who participate in more specialised dive operations (live-aboard dive boats, longer trips).

These divers may represent a very different sub-sample of the tourist population. It might be expected that the more history a diver has, and the more coral reef locations previously visited, the more discerning they are when it comes to environmental quality. It is unclear how expectations of environmental quality and diversity change with variations in diver history, and whether varying interpretation within the pre-dive briefing can affect these experiences, as well as modify divers’ in-water behaviour.

This study will contribute to the body of knowledge concerning high quality environmental experiences for a range of users in natural settings, and to understand specifically what this means in a tropical coral reef context. The role of interpretation as a tool for managing diver behaviour and enriching experiences will also be examined. The theoretical framework under development extends the specialisation and expectation theories from their application in the Recreation Opportunity Spectrum (ROS), a highly successful application in terrestrial environments. However, this study will apply these theoretical frameworks to a very different scale and construct in the marine setting.