Environmental management plan as a tool for tourism development within
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Date
2011
Authors
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Journal ISSN
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Publisher
University of Zululand
Abstract
The study on the Environmental Management Plan as a tool for Tourism Development
within uMkhanyakude District Municipality was conducted in consideration of
tourism industry being the tourists' destination as well as the major source of income
in the region. There are various factoid that contributed immensely toward the growth
of tourism in the study area. This study has identified that Environmental
Management Plan (BMP) as one of the factors that played a significant role in
ensuring authenticity of natural environment which forms the basis for tourism
development. The objectives of the study are an important component of this research
because they paved the direction that this study followed. The objectives of the study
were as follow:
• Objective 1: To investigate the strategies used for protection and conservation of
environment and natural resources for tourism development;
• Objective 2: To find out if the Environmental Management Plan (EMP) serves as
tool for tourism development;
• Objective 3: To establish the status quo of tourism development within
uMkhanyakude District Municipality;
• Objective 4: To investigate the level of implementation of Environmental
Management Plan (EMP) of uMkhanyakude District Municipality.
Data were collected through the use of questionnaires which had both open and close
ended questions. After the data were collected, it was analysed using SPSS. This
programme was used to fomiulate frequency tables, graphs and related analysis.
There were vanous findings that were deduced from the responses of the
interviewees. The findings of the study depicted that strategies and methods for
protection and conservation of environmental resources exist in the study area. The
strategies linked the importance and value of environmental resources towards
tourism development. It prevailed that the inhabitants of uMkhanyakude District
Municipality value the nature and its role in providing tourism related opportunities as
well as other benefits to the local people. There are organisations and departments that
played a major role in ensuring that the environment remains the first priority in the
operations of local communities. According to respondents' perceptions,
organisations such as Reperial Reforestation, WWF, WESSA, Ezemvelo KZN
Wildlife, DEAT, Water Affairs and Forestry have played a significant role in
inculcating the essence of the environment in the local communities of the study area.
The findings of the study led to several recommendations that would assist in
enhancing the implementation of BMP. The proper implementation of BMP will
positively influence tourism development and directly contribute to economic growth
of the study area. Recommendations included the following: (a) that methods and
strategies to protect and conserve the environment should be reinforced, (b) that
stakeholders (including government, private sectors and community) should be
involved in developing and implementing BMP in their local municipality, (c) that the
EMP should be developed taking into cognizance both environmental and tourism
issues, as these two aspects are assumed to be intertwined, (d) uMkhanyakude District
Municipality should provide personnel that will monitor the implementation of the
EMP in the local municipalities and finally (e) that tourism as a subject should be
introduced and promoted in schools.
Description
A dissertation submitted to the Faculty of Arts in
partial fulfillment of the requirements for Master's degree in
Recreation and Tourism, in the Department of Recreation and
Tourism at the University of Zululand, South Africa, 2011.
Keywords
Environmental management -- South Africa -- KwaZulu-Natal -- Umkhanyakude, Tourism development -- South Africa -- KwaZulu-Natal -- Umkhanyakude