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GEO-6 Regional Assessment for Asia and the Pacific


Coastal tourism


Tropical coastal tourism is a major industry in the Asia and the Pacific region, contributing significantly to economic growth and local employment. Earlier development of coastal tourism in the region was largely unplanned, resulting in detrimental environmental and socio-cultural impacts (Wong 2013). The coastal tourism industry is, however, increasingly aware of the need to preserve coastal ecosystems, particularly in niche areas of eco and dive tourism (Wilson andTisdell 2015). InThailand,KohTao grants the second highest number of dive certificates in the world after Cairns on the Great Barrier Reef region of Australia (Wongthong and Harvey 2014).


Southeast Asia has advantages compared with other areas, with Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand being successful coastal tourism destinations while theCambodia,Philippines and Viet Nam have enormous potential (Mazumder et al. 2013). While cruise tourism is one of the world’s fastest growing tourist activities, the Asia and the Pacific share of 6 per cent of globalmarket is small and remains in the product- introduction phase (UNWTO2012).


Coastal tourism continues to be highly vulnerable to weather, climate extremesandrising sea levels.Reef tourism is also sensitive to ocean temperature and acidity.Within the tropics, developing countries and small island states relying on coastal tourism are most vulnerable to present and future weather and climate extremes, future sea-level rise, and the additional impacts of coral bleaching and ocean acidification (Wong et al. 2014).


Shipping and port development


Seaborne trade has been a driver of economic development of Asian-Pacific countries and sea lines of communication to regional countries have increased. The region has two significant sea lines of communication, one passing through


the South China Sea to the Indian Ocean and the Middle East, the other passing through the Sea of Japan to the Pacific Ocean and the Pacific coast of North America.


For ship movements, Asia remained the main global loading and unloading area in 2013, with a 41 per cent share of total loading and 58 per cent of unloading. Of global seaborne trade, dry cargo accounted for the largest share, 70.2 per cent, followed by tanker trade (UNCTAD 2014). Asia had 15 of the world’s 20 leading container ports in 2011–2013. All the top ten ports are located in Asia and 11 of the top 20 in China (UNCTAD 2014).


In contrast, the Pacific island states face shipping-related challenges resulting from their size, remoteness, exposure to natural hazards and vulnerability to the impacts of climate change. Their remoteness from main global trade routes is a major disadvantage in terms of cost and time. Furthermore, as open small economies, the Pacific small island developing states are also vulnerable to global economic and financial shocks (UNCTAD 2014).


Deep sea mining


Deep sea mining for minerals represents a new driver in the waters of Asia and the Pacific. Three main kinds of deep-sea mineral resources (Figure 2.5.4) – sea-floor sulphide deposits, manganese nodules and cobalt-rich ferromanganese crusts – have been discovered within the national jurisdictions of several Pacific island states.


Massive sulphide deposits have been found in the EEZs of a number of island states, presenting a challenge and an opportunity for Pacific island nations, who are new to deep- sea mining. Papua New Guinea has issued a pioneering lease for deep seabed mining, the Solwara 1 Project (SPC 2013). Plans for mining in the Bismarck Sea, off Papua New Guinea, are already at an advanced stage, and partners expect mining operations to begin in 2018 (Goddard 2015).


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