Implications of climate change on the experience of glacier visitors

As discussed by Gössling and Hall (2006), the main impacts of climate change for recreation and tourism include those caused by variations in temperature and precipitation, as well as other climatic variables such as snow depth, wind speed and humidity, which will all have a direct effect on the experiences and activities of tourists and recreationists. In terms of the glacier experience specifically reported in the current study, favourable atmospheric conditions are crucial for both the satisfaction of visitors and the success of the commercial glacier operations. A common example that emerged from the interviews was the difficulties that flight operations are experiencing as a result of the changing climate. Ski plane operations, in particular, have been struggling with the warmer weather resulting in a lack of snow during certain periods of the year. Many interviewees claimed that this had severely limited ski planes, to the point where operators are now predominantly using helicopters to ensure that they are not so restricted by weather patterns and snow levels. This is also the case for Westland Tai Poutini National Park aircraft operators, who use helicopters for almost all of their services (Wilson et al., 2014).

Conversely, the increase in the size of the pro-glacial lakes has allowed tourism operations to take advantage of the diminishing resource. Based on the interview data, as well as field observations, the boat tours at the Tasman Glacier are extremely popular among tourists and spoken of highly in most cases. Given that the West Coast glaciers are becoming increasingly less accessible because of climate-induced change, most key informants discussed the fact that Aoraki/Mount Cook National Park is likely to witness an increased demand for glacier experiences, which will undoubtedly put additional pressure on park managers and operators to cater to the visitor growth. This switch from the West Coast glaciers to Aoraki/Mount Cook

was also talked about in relation to the potential request for additional aircraft landings in the Park, which has implications for the management of mechanical noise and associated visitor experience issues such as those previously reported at the West Coast glaciers in recent years (Espiner & Wilson, 2013; 2015) years. According to the Park’s Management Plan, DOC only has a direct influence on aircraft use through concessions management and monitoring, however landing restrictions and working alongside operators to adjust flight paths and altitudes are listed as plausible tools for managing the effects of aircraft use as well (DOC, 2004, section 4.3). The Plan also states that the biggest complaint raised surrounding this aircraft issue is “the noise they generatein an otherwise undisturbed mountain environment” (p. 36). Although aircraft operations are a well-established and long-standing visitor service in the Park, it can be said, therefore, that they do need strict control in order to minimise the impacts.

An aim of this study was to determine the extent to which glaciers are a factor in tourists’ decisions to visit the Park, and whether or not they would still visit if the glaciers were no longer able to be easily accessed. As discussed in the limitations section of the methods chapter, many thought that the climate-related scenario questions were asking them to indicate how willing they would be to take a flight or boat to see a glacier as opposed to how willing they would be to visit a glacier if they had to use one of those modes of transport to see one, as was used for the survey based on the West Coast glaciers (Wilson et al. 2014).

drawcard for visitors. In fact while answering this question, many survey respondents stated that there is still plenty of other things to see and do in the Park that do not include glaciers. Additionally, most also reported that they would be willing to go elsewhere in New Zealand to visit a glacier if they were unable to see one at Aoraki/Mount Cook National Park. This finding was consistent with the West Coast results (Wilson et al., 2014) and may also indicate the potential for destination substitution, a finding that was also revealed in Dawson’s et al. (2010) study on polar bear viewing and Bürki’s (2005) study on skiers traveling to other countries for better and more reliable skiing conditions.

Similarly, activity substitution may also be high among tourists as well. According to Jenkins and Pigram (2004), the concept of substitutability proposes that if the satisfaction level of a person drops below a certain point, they will look for alternative “activities, products, or services that offer a better return for the amount of time, money, and energy spent” (p. 489). Given that very few commercial glacier tourists were recruited for this study, it is difficult to determine whether or not it is common for these visitors to undertake other activities in the Park as well as their chosen glacier-related ones, however of the commercial tourists who did complete a survey, all were recruited on one of the walking tracks. Based on this, it can be suggested that tourists will continue to visit the Park regardless of whether the glaciers and their associated activities were to become less accessible.

This is not necessarily the case for backcountry recreationists, however. Based on the interview data, it is clear that the patterns in mountaineering have altered significantly in recent years and are likely to continue in this trend. Climbers have already demonstrated changes in the length of their trips and in the way they access the mountains, although it is acknowledged that changes in climbing styles are not only the result of altered climate

conditions. According to the key informants interviewed for this study, most mountaineers today are chasing weather windows and doing shorter, more targeted trips and utilising the helicopter operations to get in and out of the mountains. It is also likely that factors such as changes in technology, increased time constraints, and the availability of helicopters have had an influence of some of these changes, particularly in terms of trip lengths and where climbers go. However, glacial recession has made it increasingly more difficult for climbers to access the mountains by walking in, and it has also meant that a number of backcountry huts have been removed due to their unstable position. Both of these factors have made mountaineering much more difficult and dangerous, which has seemingly led to many climbers either choosing to climb elsewhere or, in some cases, giving up climbing altogether and taking up other sports.

Although winter tourism and recreation has been consistently identified as being particularly vulnerable to climate change, and has received greater research attention than any other tourism sector, it has been the ski industry that has been the particular focus of impact assessments, particularly in Europe and North America (Koenig & Abegg, 1997; Elsasser &

Bürki, 2002; Scott et al., 2003). Much of the literature provides evidence that experienced

skiers are choosing to travel to other countries in search of better snow conditions (Koenig & Abegg, 1997; Bürki, 2005), while some have indicated that they would discontinue skiing entirely if conditions did not improve in their home countries, especially those wanting to visit