The Impact of Climate Change on Nature-Based Tourism on the Alabama Coast: A Provider Side Perspective

Abstract

The Alabama Gulf Coast exemplifies the hallmarks of a thriving nature-based tourism destination. However, climate change poses threats to the natural resources and infrastructure that make the destination attractive and accessible to visitors. Tourism providers are important and unique voices in nature-based tourism due to their observation of, and adaptations to, weather and environmental changes. However, few studies have focused on the perception of tourism providers about climate change, compared to those of visitors. To address this void in the literature, I conducted semi-structured interviews with tourism-related stakeholders (n=33) on the Alabama coast. Interviews covered tourism providers’ background and experience related to tourism in the region, their observations of environmental changes, their implementation of adaptation strategies, and their perceptions about climate change. Data generated through these conversations were analyzed using inductive reflexive thematic analysis. Participants frequently brought up residential development and in-migration unprompted, leading us to explore these topics as an additional research question following data collection. Findings indicate that most tourism providers in our study had noticed long-term changes in weather patterns and environmental conditions, while a minority failed to notice changes. Tourism providers commonly perceived that the ocean and beaches will retain their attractiveness to tourists in the face of a changing climate but expressed concerns about how their personal livelihoods and well-being would be affected, emphasizing the need to aid individual tourism businesses and organizations with adaptation. Many participants were already implementing practical measures to improve their resilience to weather and environmental impacts but did not necessarily frame these measures as adaptation to climate change. Additionally, some tourism providers expressed concern about how rapid residential development in Baldwin County, Alabama contributes to increasing vulnerability to climate change and rising costs of living for long-term residents as well as environmental degradation. Based on these results, municipalities on the Alabama coast should consider the use of zoning regulations and protected areas to minimize the unplanned spread of residential development in Baldwin County.