K'gari at risk of being ‘destroyed' by overtourism, world heritage advisory committee warns

The Guardian

10-02-2025

K'gari's world heritage advisory committee (KWHAC) has advised the Queensland government the island's ecology risks being 'destroyed' by 'overtourism', putting pressure on the LNP's promise not to cap visitation to the island.
The recommendation was contained in the body's world heritage strategic plan released on Friday and contradicts the policy adopted by the new government.
The environment minister, Andrew Powell, announced last month that he did not intend to set limits on visitation on the 20 busiest days of the year, as planned by Labor.
According to the plan, poor management would 'destroy not only the environment, but the very experience being sought by visitors and has implications for visitor safety.'
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'Even maintaining the current level of overtourism will require major changes to management,' the report read.
There has been a continuing spate of attacks on tourists by the island's protected population of dingoes, known as wongari . Many of the victims are children.
The committee chair, Sue Sargent, said overtourism directly increased the risk of attack, by contributing to the number of animals habituated to humans.
At peak periods, the island is visited by tens of thousands of tourists. Its handful of park rangers are sometimes unable to maintain rules designed to mitigate habituation of dingoes, like bans on food in prescribed areas, she said.
'The habituation that occurs during those peak days is, unfortunately, then maintained by that animal, and can result in another event later in the year,' she said.
The committee also warned overtourism would dramatically increase in years to come. The department estimates 400,000 people visit K'gari annually, though the number is disputed and committee report estimates the true number at between 800,000 and one million. They expect it to double in the next decade, particularly during the 2032 Olympics.
A spokesperson for the department of the Environment, Tourism, Science and Innovation said the number of camper nights and vehicle permits recorded had declined since 2022 to 328,673 in 2024.
'We have no plans to introduce a visitor cap to K'gari. The capacity of our camping areas already provides a cap on visitation,' the spokesperson said.
The department does not measure the number of tourists travelling with private operators, nor the number of people in a permitted vehicle.
He said 'visitor numbers provided by the BAC [Butchulla Aboriginal Corporation] and the KWHAC are estimations and not based on factual evidence'.
Lorraine Woolley from the Butchulla Native Title Aboriginal Corporation said they support the idea of a cap or a fee.
'It needs more protection,' she said.
'If the island's left alone, it'll rejuvenate itself. We don't have enough rangers to do the work that needs to be done.'
Sargent also proposed a $10 fee for visitation.
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She said the state is effectively subsidising tourism, because it costs the taxpayer more to maintain the island than it receives in fees.
Tourists who travel with a tour already pay a permit fee through the operator. But the committee laid much of the blame at so-called 'free and independent' visitors, who travel to the island in their own vehicle.
'It's about making a system that's equitable, so that everybody going as a visitor to K'gari is contributing to the management of the island,' she said.
The advisory committee contains experts in fields like geomorphology, archaeology, geography, ecology and representatives of the tourism industry, local community and Butchulla native title holders.
It provides expert advice to ensure that Australia continues to meet its obligations under the World Heritage Convention.
Sargent said Australia has not been a good steward of its world heritage at K'gari.
'As Queenslanders, we are very blase about the incredibly rich heritage that we have as a state. We take it for granted … not taking responsibility is a big problem,' she said.
K'gari will be the subject of a World Heritage Outlook Report prepared this year.
The report judged that overall threats to K'gari were 'high' and 'significant negative effects on the site's values and integrity are probable' unless management resources are increased.
'Increased visitation, biosecurity concerns and impacts of climate change are the major threats to the property,' it concluded.
The department is drafting a new management plan for the island – the first since 1994 – due at the end of the year. The plan was last updated in 2005.
The three-year term for the advisory committee ended on Monday.