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Oftentimes, revenues derived from non-extractive uses compare favorably with other more damaging uses of the ocean. For example, consider that whale watching globally generates more than 1 billion USD in revenue per year (Greenpeace 2007a). For Iceland in particular, whale-watching generated around 8.5 million USD per year in revenue, as compared to an average of 3.5-4 million USD from whaling in the years before the onset of the IWC moratorium (Greenpeace 2003). In acknowledgement of such economic realities, the government of Iceland announced in 2007 that it would no longer be issuing commercial whale-hunting quotas (Greenpeace 2007b)
Research and Education:
Marine Protected Areas can be a fantastic resource for ocean education. Bringing awareness of ocean and environmental issues through tourism and visitation is an effective form of mass education. For a public that is generally aware of the wonder of the marine ecosystem, an experience with snorkeling or glass-bottomed boats could be truly amazing. If even a few can be truly inspired by an experience with a relatively pristine ecosystem, then the endeavor will have been a success. Such experiences can be formalized and reinforced by knowledgeable park staff, informational displays, and other techniques common to national parks and other environmental areas worldwide.
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Furthermore, MPAs are capable of enhancing marine research as with the Ecological Characterization Project undertaken by the National Marine Protected Areas Center (2006). (NOAA,2007) The creation of a scientific journal dedicated to the dissemination of research undertaken in MPAs and Marine reserves would also be a useful tool for research and education. Additionally the profits of such a journal (from membership fees and subscriptions) could be distributed back to the MPA from which the data were collected.
MPAs are capable of great feats of research and education when used appropriately. With increased exposure to ocean information, mediated by MPAs, public knowledge of the world ocean problem can be commonplace.
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