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PROCEEDINGS OF RAMKHAMHAENG UNIVERSITY
INTERNATIONAL RESEARCH CONFERENCE 2010
JANUARY 13 – 14, 2011
AT KIN G RAM KHAMH AENG THE GREAT AU DIT OR IUM
RAMKHAMHAENG UNIVERSITY
PUBLI S H ED BY
Re sea rch and D evelopment Institute
Ra mkhamha eng Unive rsity
DESIG N E D BY
PORN C H AI WO N G W AS AN A
© Copyright 2011 by Ramkhamhaeng University, Thailand
Ramkhamhaeng University International Research Conference (RUIRC2010) January 13 – 14, 2011
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25
I-Sc-02
A S US TAIN ABLE M OD EL F OR R ES OU RCE MANAGEM EN T AND
PROTECTION ACHIEVABLE THROUGH EMPOWERING LOCAL
COMMUNITIES AND BUSINESSES
Chad M. Scott1 and Wayne N. Phillips2
ABST R AC T
Often, resource management in small South East Asian communities is ineffective due to a lack of
support from governmental agencies or non-profit groups. Even where problems are identified or solutions
imposed, short or unpredictable funding methods can lead to the non-sustainability of programs aimed at
addressing environmental or social problems. This paper presents a case study of this concept from the island of
Koh Tao that was designed to bring awareness to communities and tourists, decrease human impacts on coastal
ecosystems, and revive restoration efforts in the Gulf of Thailand. This conservation model utilizes consumer
interest in environmental activism to provide educational diving courses that also raise money for broader
environmental and social projects. This model can potentially provide a framework for the protection and
restoration of coastal areas in developing communities where alternative forms of funding are difficult to acquire
or less effective than localized efforts. Through more dispersed and localized efforts at the community level, it is
possible to create an efficient system to monitor, protect, and restore coral reefs around the world and raising
awareness amongst government officials, the public, and tourists. This same funding model can be applied to a
wide range of environmental projects to create more localization and community involvement in research and
restoration. The utilization of eco-tourism and other funding techniques can help to shift extractive economies and
activities towards more sustainable methods of development and growth.
Ke ywords: coastal resource management, responsible travel, community groups, research and restoration
programs
INTRODUCTION
Koh Tao is a small, 19 km2 island in the Gulf of Thailand, part of the province of Suratthani. Twenty
Years ago Koh Tao consisted of little more than a few families living off of fishing or coconut plantations. Today,
with its abundant and diverse reefs surrounding the entire island, Koh Tao sees between 300,000-400,000
visitors per year, with an estimated 90% of those visitors trying snorkeling, and 60% trying SCUBA diving
(Larpnun et al 2010 in press, SKT unpublished data). Koh Tao has become the center of dive training for SE
Asia, it was responsible for 46% of all the PADI diving certifications issued in Thailand in 2009 (PADI
international, Personal Communication). With 45 dive schools on the island, plus day-trippers and dive boats
coming from Samui, the reefs of Koh Tao experience over 3,000 dives per day (SKT, unpublished data).
When asked in a recent survey, most tourists listed ‘natural beauty’ as their top reason for coming to
Koh Tao (SKT, unpublished data). However, over the last few years the reefs of Koh Tao have been increasingly
impacted by many local and regional disturbances which have reduced the health and abundance of corals and
reef organisms around the island (Phillips et al, in prep). These threats to the reefs are, in turn, threatening the
local tourism industry and related economies (i.e. hotels, tour groups, restaurants, bars, etc). The three largest of
these disturbances were Hurricane Gay in 1989 and the global thermal bleaching events of both 1998 and 2010.
2010 was one of the warmest years on record for ocean surface temperatures in SE Asia, with 98% of the reef
corals around Koh Tao bleaching (Scott et al, in prep). Recovery is possible from bleaching events and other
disturbances, but mortality rates quickly increase with compounding threats such as sedimentation and pollution
(Hoegh-Guldberg 1999, Rogers 1990). Climate change over the next few decades will further accelerate
environmental and economic decline on Koh Tao through increased occurrence of droughts, higher intensity
storms and typhoons, sea level rise, and coastal erosion (Rongrongmuang 2010).
If local threats on coral health such as development, deforestation, waste water disposal, oil drilling, and
over-fishing in the Gulf of Thailand are not addressed immediately, the ecological and economic value of the local
reefs could be lost in the face of climate change. In a 2006 report by Yeemin et al. the popularity of Koh Tao and
the threats to its reef resources was identified. But unlike other areas in the region, there was no mention of
environmental or social activities taking place to address the problems. Only 4 years later, Koh Tao has become
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1 Save Koh Tao Community Group/New Heaven Reef Conservation Program, 48 Moo 3, Chalok Ban Kao, Koh Tao, Suratthani, TH, 84360.
MarineConservationKT@gmail.com.
2 Mahidol University International College, 999 Phuttamonthon 4 Road, Salaya, Nakhonpathom 73170, Thailand
Ramkhamhaeng University International Research Conference (RUIRC2010) January 13 – 14, 2011
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one of Thailand’s most active communities in taking resource management into their own hands while
simultaneously calling for more government action.
Koh Tao is unique in that very few people were born or are actually registered as living on the island,
and land ownership is unstable or unrecognized by the government. The official Population of Koh Tao was listed
as 1554 in 2008, but actual numbers, including unregistered Burmese and other foreign workers is likely an order
of magnitude higher. (Department of Provincial Administration, Population by District: 2008,
http://www.dopa.go.th/xstat/p5184_02.html). This has led to a lack of funding for the local government or help
from the provincial government in guiding the development of the island. Indeed, many services such as fresh
water and electricity cannot be supplied to the entire island year round, leaving essential waste and resource
management severely neglected. For the last 15 years, Koh Tao residents have been witness to the
environmental and social problems stemming from rapid and unplanned development, and many efforts have
been made to curb or mitigate those problems. Community groups such as the Koh Tao Dive Operators Club
(KTDOC), or international non-profit organizations such as the Coastal Preservation and Development
Foundation (CPAD) have made headway in organizing interested community members and implementing
environmental projects, but both groups were short lived and made little long-term impact. Up until 5 years ago
most conservation efforts failed, due to a lack of funding, group solidarity, clearly defined goals and objectives
and little or no government involvement. In 2005 local Thai community leaders, businesses, and the large
international community of Koh Tao dive operators started the Save Koh Tao Group with a clear mission of
addressing local environmental and social problems through the activities of the three branches of the group:
Education, Land Conservation, and Marine Conservation.
A unique business model has been implemented within the Marine Branch to bring together reef and
coastal management and protection with for-profit ventures that act as the working body of the group. The
conservation-business model is structured such that the Save Koh Tao Marine Branch provides education to
locals and businesses and develops the start-up of projects which are then carried out through local dive
businesses. This model provides a mechanism for grass roots and community based changes which are
essential for areas of South East Asia lacking strong government programs or policy enforcement. Different
levels of the model have been adopted across the island, with 4 schools on the island leading the way with daily
and long term marine resource management courses. This funding model can be applied in a variety of industries
to boost local economies while at the same time improving the health of the ecosystems they rely upon.
MAT ER I ALS AND M E TH OD S
Save Koh Tao Marine Branch’s methods for resource management and environmental protection is
based on a bottom-up, or grass roots, effort to establish projects without the requirement of outside funding. The
projects rely largely upon free market incentives, often coupled with donations of time and/or money from the
local community to aid in initial project development. This means that long-term, sustainable projects must be
made economically attractive to local businesses, and be marketed in such a way as to attract tourists and
international volunteers alike. The initiation of the original program was based on three presumptions:
1. Much scientific research as well as restoration and management programs have been conducted and
developed globally by researchers and academics ( the ‘Professionals’) but most of that information
does not get widely publicized or become available to local communities
2. The local community and business (the ‘Locals’) are aware of many of the social and environmental
problems, but lack the knowledge or resources to address them Furthermore, as locals, they have the
most intimate knowledge of the dynamics of the island and the most invested in its economy and
environment.
3. Visitors and tourists (the ‘Consumer’) really shape the local economies and markets, but often are
unaware of their impact or do not know how to reduce their impact or actively engage in projects to
benefit the areas they travel to. Increasingly, a market has opened amongst young adults and retirees of
‘Responsible Travel’ in which their goal is to learn about and improve the destination they travel to.
The Save Koh Tao Group’s primary method to ensure sustainable development of the island is to
investigate the interests and goals of the stakeholders; namely the Locals, the Consumers and the Professionals.
By obtaining a thorough understanding of the latest scientific knowledge (achieved through the activities of the
Professionals) concerning reef protection, conservation, management and rehabilitation – the Save Koh Tao
group can pass on this knowledge to the communities who will benefit most – the Locals. Briefly, the scale and
scope of an identified problem is explained to the Locals in monthly meetings and solutions proposed by the
Professionals are also presented and considered by the group. The group reaches a consensus as to which
methods would be suitable for the island and a project is proposed which incorporates the participation of the
Consumers.
Because tourism industries are entirely shaped by the Consumers, any changes made would have to be
economically practical or advantageous in order to be successful and sustainable. For-profit or cost neutral
programs are developed and implemented into existing business models to create free market potential. After the
market has been realized through marketing and the programs adopted, the consumers then provide the
Ramkhamhaeng University International Research Conference (RUIRC2010) January 13 – 14, 2011
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involvement and financial support for the projects, leading to increased participation, awareness, and
contributions to scientific understanding of how human activities impact reef ecology and proper functioning.
This model theoretically should work in a wide range of unique situations, but in our experience works particularly
well within the SCUBA diving industry. This is probably due to the fact that diving adds a unique component to
volunteering, and most consumers will pay a higher amount while SCUBA diving than land based activities due to
the thrill of working underwater. Dives can be offered at a premium or at a reduced price, and if the value of the
project is worth the cost incurred by the Consumer then participation grows alongside monetary support. The
price paid by the Consumer ideally covers the dive shops’ overhead costs for the participants, at the same time
allowing a profit to be made by the instructors and the dive shop owner. Additionally, the fee includes money to
be used for materials involved in the environmental and social projects. Through this system, the program can
self-generate the funding needed for research and environmental projects.
For example, The EMP program has had over 200 participants over 3 years. Participants in the EMP
program are required to join for a minimum of 4 days. During that time they are given 6 lectures covering reef
ecology, threats to reef health, survey techniques, bioindicator species, coral genus/health ID, and water testing.
They learn and participate in multiple research techniques, and after an evaluation contribute data to the online
database. Their course fees cover all costs, and allow for a salary for the instructors which is the same as would
be received for teaching a normal dive course. Satisfaction from the participants has been high, and interest in
the program is constantly growing.
RES U LTS
Since we began operating under this model within the SKT Marine Branch, conservation and
rehabilitation projects are not only sustainable, but continually evolving and improving. Since our efforts began, 4
dive schools on the island have started their own marine conservation programs or centers to teach coral reef
ecology, research, restoration, and other resource management concepts. Through the model and these dive
schools, we have been able to conduct over 4 years of regular ecological monitoring of 10 sites around the
island. Our monitoring system is detailed and precise; utilizing permanent 100 meter transects to assess the
abundance and diversity of ecologically important fish, invertebrates, and living or dead substrate. We have
conducted monthly land and underwater clean-ups for 3 years, with an average of about 80 divers per month plus
many more on land, totaling well over 7080 kgs of rubbish (due to logistics most rubbish is not weighed). We
have been able to construct 3 alternative dive sites/artificial reefs around the island to reduce pressures caused
by diver activities on natural reef areas. We monitor and maintain over 50 coral nurseries located in various areas
around the island that have been “adopted” by a local dive school. In addition to the above listed regular projects,
we also conduct many yearly projects, or projects to address problems such as erosion control or mooring buoy
installations.
CONCLUSION
This model has worked for 4 years on the island of Koh Tao, and at this time is growing in popularity
amongst the local dive businesses. All of the maintenance and monitoring of past projects is currently carried out
by dive schools utilizing this model, doing so with a complete lack of outside funding assistance. The main reason
that we are able to keep our costs to the Consumer so attractive is because we do not need to pay a percentage
of profits to larger organizations, but all revenues stays within the local economy. The dues paid to large
organizations such as PADI are usually most of the market price of a dive course. By operating independently of
these organizations, we are able to provide a more involved and extensive course to the public and offer it at a
lower price. Being independent allows us to specialize the course to the region or particular areas of concern,
and allows more flexibility in project selection and implementation. Our course, however, does not currently give
an internationally recognized certification in any of the projects expect for the EMP program and the ECOlogical
Diver both through Scuba Schools International (SSI). With the PADI and ReefCheck courses, part of the course
fee goes towards a certification card that can be presented and recognized at other dive shops around the globe.
To sell the course independent of certifications, it is marketed on lower prices, more in-depth and up to date
course material, and the inclusion of the long-term local environmental projects.
We found that, amongst the tourist population, there is a high willingness-to-pay for the protection of
natural systems (SKT, unpublished data), especially when the person contributing funds is also able to actively
participate in the protection of those systems. By training non-professionals the methods used by marine
scientists to assess the health of coral reefs and the techniques used by resource managers to protect, conserve
and rehabilitate reefs awareness about potential solutions to problems is raised and Consumers become more
conscious of their actions and the impacts of the choices they make. By turning resource management based
projects into a learning activity, Consumers learn new skills and information at the same time as providing the
funding that allows the Locals to implement and sustain the projects.
As is evident on Koh Tao, by taking coral reef projects entirely to the local level, individuals and
communities can decide what is necessary for the reefs in their area. The level of funding received is a direct
reflection of the services provided through the free market using standards and ideas of ‘eco-tourism.’ This
Ramkhamhaeng University International Research Conference (RUIRC2010) January 13 – 14, 2011
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project can potentially provide a framework for the protection, restoration and rehabilitation of coastal areas in
developing communities where alternative forms of funding are difficult to acquire or less effective than localized
efforts. Through more dispersed and localized efforts at the community level it is possible to create an efficient
system to monitor, protect, restore and rehabilitate coral reefs around the world and raising awareness amongst
government officials, the public, and tourists. This same funding model can be applied to a wide range of
environmental projects to create more localization and community involvement in research and restoration. The
success of this model in adapting to various economies or situations will depend upon the desire for responsible
business practices and creative project implementation and sustainability schemes. With the proliferation of this
method it is believed that traditional governmental or non-profit resource management projects can become more
productive and sustainable with the inclusion of Consumer and Local level participation.
AC KN O W LED G E ME NT S
Thank you to all of the dive schools who have successfully adopted this responsible business model:
Ban’s Diving, Big Blue Diving, BlackTip Diving, Crystal Diving, and New Heaven Dive School. Thank you
especially to Devrim and Mallephan Zahir for their continuous active involvement and support, and for being the
first to develop this program and offer it to the other businesses. Thanks also to Wimm and Virit Vadakan of the
CPAD Foundation for paving the way and providing the basis of the knowledge and techniques used in many of
the programs.
REF E RE N CE S
Hoegh-Guldberg, O. 1999. Climate Change, Coral Bleaching and the Future of the World’s Coral Reefs. Marine
and Freshwater Research, CSIRO Publishing, Vol. 50, pp. 839-66.
Larpnun R. Scott C., Pinsak S. 2010. Practical Coral Reef Management in the context of ICM: Challenge of
sustainability of Koh Tao, Thailand. MFF Case Study.
Rogers C.S. 1990. Response of Coral Reef and Coral Reef Roganisms to Sedimetnation. Marine Ecology
Progress Series 62: 185-202.
Rongrongmuang W., 2010. Climate Change Perception of Dive Tourism Industry in Thailand. Masters Thesis:
Albert Ludwig University, Freiburg Germany.
Yeemin, T., Sutthacheep M., Pettongma R. 2006. Coral Reef Restoration Projects in Thailand. Ocean & Coastal
Management. 49: 562-75.
