Posted on: Tuesday, July 9, 2002
3 firms hired for tourism study
By Katherine Nichols
Advertiser Staff Writer
After a one-year delay, the state has hired three Honolulu consulting firms to conduct a $1.2 million comprehensive analysis of tourism in an effort to assess the environmental and economic impact visitors have on the Islands.
The money was allocated from the tourism special fund in the 2001 legislative session. But the study was first proposed nearly 18 months ago as the state's visitor count soared to a record 6.9 million visitors in 2000, and looked as though it would surpass 8 million by 2005.
The process of selecting the firms to conduct the analysis began in March and was completed about a week ago. The Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism, which is spearheading the study, cited Sept. 11 and other variables as the reason for the delay.
The objectives of the analysis — the initial phase of which is scheduled for completion Sept. 16 — are comprehensive and lie beyond determining the number of tourists Hawai'i can sustain without the deterioration of quality of life, visitor experience or natural resources.
"Our goal is not to come up with any number, but basically to provide a framework for analysis," said Pearl Imada Iboshi, the state's chief economist.
Carter & Burgess, a planning, architecture, engineering and geographic information consulting firm, was hired in March to execute the portion of the study focusing on Hawai'i's infrastructure assessment and environmental review. The firm has begun assessing nearly 1,200 previously completed studies on topics ranging from transportation, water supply and sewage to endangered species. It will compile the information into a report for the other two entities to use as a foundation.
RM Towill, an engineering and planning firm, will insert additional data and variables into Carter & Burgess' report and use mathematical formulas to create a model, or predictive analysis.
Also hired about a week ago was independent contractor John Knox. The planning and economics specialist will use Carter & Burgess' report to assemble the public input component of the study. He will create a Web site, conduct surveys, and organize public meetings to get information and feedback — especially regarding cultural issues not covered in previous research.
The last two elements will be finished in 2003, according to Pericles Manthos, vice president and manager of Hawai'i operations for Carter & Burgess. Manthos' firm also will assist RM Towill and Knox throughout the study.
Analyzing carrying capacity is not a new concept. Sustainable tourism — how to nurture a visitor industry without crushing its assets — has been the source of debate in industry circles for decades.
Still, few states have attempted a report as ambitious as this one, according to Manthos, who declared Hawai'i's efforts relatively cost-effective. A similar carrying-capacity analysis conducted in Florida cost that state $6 million to $7 million, he said.
Jeff Mikulina, director of the Sierra Club's Hawai'i chapter, is forwarding many existing environmental studies to the firms.
Though pleased that the assessment has finally begun, Mikulina said the Sierra Club had long pushed the Tourism Authority to initiate this type of study.
Tourism Authority vice chairman David Carey said he was frustrated with the delays as well.
But Carey said he also doesn't want the results to be rushed. "It should be done right and it should be done well," he said.
Mikulina expressed hope that the long-awaited review would put essential information into a usable format to initiate change.
"We don't want this to turn out to be another bureaucratic report that gets put onto the shelf and collects dust," he said.
Despite the limited resources, Iboshi is hopeful.
"I think that we will come up with something that is reasonable and good with that money," she said. "It will be a very good first step."
