Resolving the nature and variability of the cost-effectiveness of tourism-led coral replanting on the Great Barrier Reef
- Publication Type:
- Thesis
- Issue Date:
- 2023
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Though the implementation of coral restoration is accelerating globally, project cost-effectiveness is rarely evaluated, limiting understanding of economic feasibility, effective budgeting and informed management actions. The goal of this thesis was to identify and understand the cost-effectiveness of tourism industry-led coral restoration efforts across diverse sites and tourism operations of the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) via the Coral Nurture Program (CNP). This thesis evaluated (i) ‘operational’ costs of established activity in the Cairns-Port Douglas region and (ii) ‘implementation’ costs of new restoration activity in the Whitsundays, relative to coral outplant survivorship (realised costs), thereby enabling evaluation of restoration costs at different phases of program establishment and in different reef environments. The findings presented in this thesis revealed high variability in coral outplant survivorship across sites and regions of the CNP, and realised costs ranging from US$3 – 180/coral depending on whether ‘in-kind’ costs, restoration activity (outplanting only vs. costs encompassing planning, training, coral nursery maintenance, monitoring), site-based survivorship, or a combination of these factors, were considered. Collectively, these findings illustrate the complexities of extrapolating coral restoration costs and outcomes across different contexts, underscoring the importance of reporting primary cost data, and considering the cost-implications of specific socio-ecological contexts in restoration planning.
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