Quantifying Values: A Sampling Methodology for use in Assessing the Impacts on Tourism, Local Community, and Businesses of Victoria's Marine Protected Areas

Abstract

A sampling methodology has been devised to facilitate the selection of a purposeful sample of marine parks and sanctuaries for the investigation of their impacts on tourism, local community, and businesses. The methodology is based on multiattribute utility theory used for comparing complex alternatives in decision making and takes into account those key attributes of Victoria's 13 marine national parks and 11 marine sanctuaries that have been identified through both published and draft management plans, government policies, and relevant strategies. The attributes are: tourism services, activities, community engagement, visitation, values, interpretation, access, location, conservation significance, and regional context. Values of each marine protected area are quantified and establishment of a total attribute value score for a "typical area" enables the comparison between individual marine parks and sanctuaries. To strengthen the methodology, a panel of independent experts representing tourism, local government, and community organizations were invited to express their views with regard to these attributes, and their responses have been incorporated into the research.