Maori’s gift gave lead on scenic care

Press, Volume CXV, Issue 33814, 10 April 1975, Page 3

Maori’s gift gave lead on scenic care

(Ade Zealand Press Association ■ WELLINGTON. April 9. New Zealand was early in the field to show concern to protect its greatest natural areas, a seminar on tourism and the environment was told in Wellington today.

Mr P. H. (’. Lucas Assistant DirectorGeneral of Lands, and chairman of the National Parks Authority, sail that Tongariro became a ; national park as the result of a gift from the i Maori leader, Te Heueu, in 1887, “So the Western concep I of a national park with con | trolled use came to New Zea land' through the initiative ol la Polynesian leader only If ; years after Yellowstone, anc I at a time when the population of the North Island was | a mere 290,000,” he said. “But Tongariro was just the beginning. Ensuing years - have seen continuing efforts to set. aside the country’s finest natural areas, either on a grand scale as national ; parks, or on a lesser scale las scenic reserves.” “A FAILURE” ; Mr Lucas said he thought I the only failure might be in allowing key areas of shoreline to be pre-empted by substandard and often unplanned development. Tourism and nature conservation. properly balanced, should be mutually beneficial. But setting aside natural areas in parks and reserves was not enough once visitor pressure came. Environmental safeguards were being increasingly built into New Zealand’s way of life. The country’s great natural areas must not be allowed to become oases in a desert, of pollution, said Mr Lucas. BRIGHT OUTLOOK ' Dr C. C. Herrmann, of San Francisco, gave a warning against the destruction of the environment, which would in turn destroy the market for tourism. Tourism was the fastest and most efficient way to help j the balance of trade, and I New Zealand already had an ‘outstanding record in tourism last year — a year of no growth for many other countries, he said. The 1976 tourist market in the United States was “wide; open if you go after it.” BEST POTENTIAL Although Japanese tourists! were only - 2.3 per cent of! arrivals in New Zealand last! year, they showed the great-! test potential gain of any! nation. An investigation to determine the environmental impact of tourism in San Diego, California, found that visitors had a limited impact on air pollution. Congestion of public recreation facilities tended to occur only during the peak summer season, and then, typically, only at week-ends. It also found that only 8 per cent of people moved to the city as a direct result of a holiday spent there, said Dr Herrmann. Mr W. E. Cooper, Mayor of

Queenstown, said that the .! tourist industry should look 11 more seriously at the idea ■of staggered holidays. They I worked in Australia and they 11 were a way of avoiding J “people pollution.” ,! An environmental problem J was the New Zealander’s de'jsire to have a holiday home, ■ | which was probably not ; landscaped and which was I used for maybe 10 to 15 per 11 cent of the year. It was ■ wasteful to continue to allow ■ such development in some ( resort areas, said Mr Cooper, j Ihe Minister of Tourism l (Mrs Tirikatene-Suilivan) said ■ that extra money was being 'allocated to the industry. Ithis year. Part of this would; Ibe spent on introducing al questionnaire to ; travellers to New Zealand to; find out why they had chosen i this country, ' how they! learned of it, and how long! it took them to make up I their minds to buy their! ticket. I CHARTERS WARNING ■ The Minister said she dis-' agreed that tourism was! inaturally destructive to the; environment. I “Certainly, it may be, but! lit is not necessarily so,” she; said. However, she strongly! rejected mass tourism and! thought that over-emphasis i should not be placed on char-; ter flights into the country. I A warning against visual; pollution in the tourist in-i dustry was given by the; general manager of the; National Bank of New Zealand (Mr J. Mowbray). ; “Our scenery is a gift of I I nature. It may be necessary! Ito impose restrictions which; (prevent man from spoiling |it,” he said. ! Tourism had an importance; ithat went beyond being a, !money-earner. “It can pro-! !mote understanding between I i ourselves and our visitors. It 1 can reduce our own tendency toward insularity and it can encourage the development of craft industries which enI rich our entire community. “There is already some evidence of this, particularly on the West Coast, where some towns now have craft industries of exceptionally high standards,” said Mr Mowbray.