The Jamaican tourism industry has exploded since the early 1970s. It is now the largest source of foreign exchange earnings in Jamaica. The importance of tourism is reflected in the Tourist Board Budget, which increased 300 percent between fiscal years 1979-80 and 1992-93. The major tourist areas are Negril, Montego Bay, and Ocho Rios. In 1986, there were 1,560 hotels, and the number had increased to 1,758 in 1992. Despite this growth in tourism, its socioeconomic and ecological implications have not been carefully assessed.
The industry has developed as a series of tourist enclaves of wealth surrounded by poverty. Housing and other facilities have not been made available to adjoining communities, a situation that has given rise to squatter settlements, which contribute to unsanitary conditions. Within these areas are large numbers of unemployed and underemployed youth who seek to make a living by providing various services to tourists. In extreme cases, these efforts can result in the harassment of tourists. A visible source of enclave tourism is the deteriorating infrastructure in Ocho Rios, Montego Bay, Port Antonio, and other popular tourist areas.
The development of all-inclusive tourism ensures that the visitor is provided with a variety of services without necessarily interacting with the community. As a result, small businesses and taxi owners no longer derive business from the tourists. Problems also arise from the fact that many hotels do not allow adjoining communities to use their beaches freely. Other problems include the blasting of coral reefs to provide channels for small craft and for boating basins. In addition, many hotels are without proper sewage treatment facilities, and raw sewage is often dumped in ocean waters; the result is fecal coliform and other bacterial contamination of the surrounding water.
In general, the environmental problems associated with the growth of tourism in Jamaica are the destruction of reefs, water pollution, and poor sewage disposal. These problems cannot be tackled in a piecemeal fashion but have to be solved by planning and regulation. There is need for private parties and the government to invest in infrastructure for communities adjoining the tourist areas. Such infrastructure as roads, schools, and public parks help forge an alliance between those within and outside the industry and encourage better environmental practices. Lack of affordable housing in communities adjoining tourist areas creates the growth of squatter communities along with population growth.
This article is part of a study conducted and written by Alfred Francis, Dillon Alleyne, and Ian Boxill of the Institute of Social and Economic Research, University of the West Indies, with support of Anil Markandya of the Harvard Institute for International Development
