The impact of climate change on reef-based tourism in Cairns, Australia – adaptation and response strategies for a highly vulnerable destination

Australia's Great Barrier Reef (GBR) is the world's most spectacular coral reef ecosystem and is a major international and domestic tourist destination. It is recognized by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site and is frequently cited as one of the eight wonders of the natural world. However, despite the level of protection afforded by its World Heritage status and high level of management through its status as a marine park, it is not immune to the impacts of climate change. It is recognized as a critical tourist destination under threat from anthropogenic induced climate change and other human pressures, including nutrient and sediment runoff from adjacent river catchments into the GBR lagoon (Lewis et al., 2007; Scott et al., 2007; UNESCO WHC, 2007). In this chapter we present a synthesis of existing knowledge on anticipated biophysical changes to the GBR due to anthropogenic climate change over the next 10, 40 and 60 years with implications for the reef-based tourism industry based in the Cairns region. On the basis of the existing knowledge of likely biophysical impacts of climate change on the GBR, we present fi ndings of stakeholder interviews and a social learning workshop used to identify and prioritize adaptation strategies and responses for the Cairns tourist industry for the three timeframes into the future