Journal of Tourism & Hospitality
Open Access

Abstract

Economic and Environmental Impact of Tourism on Coastal Areas Based on Mirissa

Dharmasena M.D.M, Dharmaratne D, Lankeshwari S and Siriwardena S*

Coastal tourism in Sri Lanka is a popular typology among the locals and the international tourists. The Southern coastal line from Beruwala to Tangalle is the most popular coastal line of the country. Mirissa is a popular tourism destination as an attraction which offers options like coconut tree hills and secret beach and activities like whale watching, snorkeling, surfing and partying. The objective of the study is to identify the economic and environmental impact of coastal areas based on Mirissa. The study is conducted using an exploratory approach and the data is drawn from Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA) website, different publications, newspaper articles, websites and newspapers. The number of tourists arrived at Sri Lanka and the foreign exchange earning along with the percentage of arrivals for different typologies of tourism have been taken from the yearly report of the SLTDA. The positive and the negative economic and environmental impact have been identified using the secondary sources such as from the journal articles, websites and newspapers. Tourists spending will be high when more tourists attracted to Mirissa costal area. With the increase of spending of tourists, the disposable income of the community members increases, and new employment opportunities raises which impact on income distribution leading to the increasing of their living standards. Mirissa which is known as the “whale watching capital of Sri Lanka” is facing currently over tourism due to the expeditions like whale watching which attracts lot of tourists resulting in negative environmental impacts. The finding of the study manifests that the implementation of the online booking systems is mandatory in order to avoid overcrowding in the expeditions. Awareness program and constant monitoring system is required to establish to minimize the negative environmental impact and a competent authority need to take initiatives to develop the informal sector entrepreneurs to make formal by regulating them and offering subsidies to grow their business and escalate their living standard in to a much better level.

Published Date: 2023-05-24; Received Date: 2023-03-10