Ecotourism's support of biodiversity conservation

Ecotourism is often viewed as effective for promoting the conservation of endangered species and habitats in developing countries. By, creating economic incentives for impoverished villagers or their communities, ecotourism is thought to encourage local guardianship of biological resources. To assess ecotourism's effect on the income of villagers living near Royal Chitwan National Park: Nepal, one of the most heavily visited parks in Asia, we randomly surveyed 996 households in 7 of the 36 Village Development Committees adjacent to the park. Despite a 1994 visitation rate exceeding 60,000 tourists-most from industrial nations-the economic impact of ecotourism on household income was minimal and limited to villages closest to the main park's entrance. Of the estimated 87,000 working-age people living near the park, less than 1100 were employed directly by the ecotourism industry. Only 6% of the surveyed households earned income directly or indirectly from ecotourism; the average annual salary of these households from ecotourism was $600. Ecotourism in Royal Chitwan National Park, as it is currently structured,provides little employment potential, has a marginal effect on household income, and offers few benefits for local people. Thus, it is not a panacea for long-term biodiversity conservation in this case New policy changes, coupled with alternative approaches to the privately owned ecotourism industry, however have the potential to redirect an appreciable amount of revenue to local development and strengthen local guardianship of endangered species and habitats We urge that conservation biologists working in other al eas ensure that well-defined mechanisms for profit sharing with local communities are in place before advocating ecotourism development Where ecotourism programs already exist without such profit-sharing mechanisms, we urge conservationists to press for legislation that permits a percentage of profits to be spent on local community development.