Does quality of scuba diving experience vary according to the context and management regime of marine protected areas?

Autor(es)

Marconi, Marina ^[1] ; Giglio, Vinicius J. ^[1] ; Pereira Filho, Guilherme H. ^[1] ; Motta, Fabio S. ^[1]

Afiliação do(s) autor(es)

^[1] Univ Fed Sao Paulo, Marine Ecol & Conservat Lab LABECMar, Rua Dr Carvalho de Mendonca 144, BR-11070100 Santos, SP - Brazil

• Tipo de documento: Artigo Científico
• Fonte: OCEAN & COASTAL MANAGEMENT; v. 194, AUG 15 2020.
• Citações Web of Science: 0

Resumo

Sustainability of scuba diving tourism should be assessed not only in environmental terms, but also concerning the quality of the diving experiences. Through the application of semi-structured questionnaires, we assessed differences in the scuba diving experiences from three subtropical Brazilian marine protected areas (MPAs) with different contexts and management regimes. We found that MPAs of more restrictive categories attracted mostly divers motivated by their natural attributes. We also found that satisfaction levels were significantly lower in the no-take MPA, where public use planning is stricter. Although we could not replicate the MPAs' contexts, our findings highlight the importance of management strategy as well as the influence of MPA age and socioecological context on scuba diving experiences. In this regard, managers and dive operators are encouraged to assess user characteristics and the context in which the MPA finds itself to plan and develop sustainable tourism. (AU)

• Processo FAPESP: 17/22273-0 - Efeitos ecológicos do mergulho recreativo em áreas marinhas protegidas subtropicais
• Beneficiário: Vinicius Jose Giglio Fernandes
• Modalidade de apoio: Bolsas no Brasil - Pós-Doutorado
• Processo FAPESP: 19/19423-5 - Ciência aplicada à gestão do uso público e fronteiras do conhecimento de Áreas Marinhas Protegidas: da experiência dos visitantes à biodiversidade de recifes mesofóticos subtropicais
• Beneficiário: Fabio dos Santos Motta
• Modalidade de apoio: Auxílio à Pesquisa - Programa BIOTA - Regular