The Green Business

Generations of muppets fans know about Kermit the frog's struggle to deal with his color. But unlike Kermit, Southwest Florida's tourism industry finds it easy to be green-and profitable as well. Ecotourism has become the newest hot button in the convention and visitors' industry, but with Southwest Florida's abundance of natural resources and outdoor activities, it's been a major part of Collier and Lee County's draw for decades.

"Nature-based tourism permeates all that we do in Collier County," says JoNell Modys, the communications manager for the Greater Naples, Marco Island and Everglades Convention and Visitors Bureau. "Over 80 percent of the county's land is preserved in one form or another, so we are surrounded by nature. Most of our attractions involve or are enhanced by nature in some way."

"Ecotourism is a huge component of what we do," agrees Lee County Visitor and Convention Bureau executive director D.T. Minich. "It is the main focus of our advertising. Everything centers around it." With so much emphasis being placed on promoting the natural resources of Southwest Florida, two themes emerge. First, ecotourism is a significant factor in the region's economy. Second, the continuing flow of money from ecotourism depends on maintaining the resources at a level that gives tourists something they will want to see.

The opening page of each CVB's Web site illustrates just how important ecotourism is to each county. Collier County's home page, www.ParadiseCoast.com or www.classicflorida.com, promises, "From world-class beaches, resorts, shopping and recreation to sweeping sawgrass prairies and wetlands with flourishing wildlife, this is truly Classic Florida." Lee County's Web site, www.FortMyersSanibel.com, describes the county as "a place of exotic tropical wildlife, pristine white sand beaches and hundreds of uninhabited islands."

The Business of Ecotourism

Two most important natural resources, in terms of their ability to draw people to Southwest Florida, are the beaches and the area's wildlife. Together, they create powerful incentives for people to visit the area. Beaches, however, are the number-one attraction.

Every county in Florida that has a beach shares a common problem. Beaches are sand, and sand is easily moved by winds and waves. If enough sand moves off the beach, which

is a common occurrence, communities are faced with either losing their beach and the tourists it attracts or spending money to renourish the beach by finding sand from another source and rebuilding the beach. The process is complicated and expensive. "In Collier County," Modys says, "66 percent of the total tourist tax dollars collected go toward beach renourishment." Both Collier and Lee counties have beach renourishment projects continuously in the planning or ongoing.

The Lee County VCB thinks beaches are so important, its advertising catch phrase is, "The Beaches of Fort Myers and Sanibel." Its Web site showcases the county's efforts to avoid grooming the beaches. Rather than being neat and tidy, Lee County is going for the natural look by leaving its beaches alone-no raking, no removal of the natural wrack lines created from what floats ashore at high tide and is left behind as the tide recedes. These natural components of the beach attract birds and other wildlife. "We even have an ordinance that restricts lights along the beach during sea turtle nesting season so that the hatchlings can find their way into the Gulf," says Minich. Collier County has a similar ordinance as well.

While beaches may be what brings tourists to Southwest Florida, once they get here and find out how readily accessible the wildlife is, many tourists will seek out places to see nature. "People are fascinated by nature; they crave it," Modys says. "Watching wildlife is a good way for families to spend quality time together." But Modys adds that most want amenities along with their natural adventures. "They want to be able to get out there, see what there is to see and then be able to return to their hotel, shower, have dinner and sleep on clean sheets," he says. "Fortunately, our location and abundance of natural areas to visit combine the best of both worlds."

Tourists visiting Southwest Florida know that the Everglades are nearby. The massive ecosystem occupies most of the land that is not developed between Naples and Dade and Broward counties along the east coast. While the park's headquarters' main entrance is in Homestead, south of Miami, visitors have access to some of the most scenic parts of the park in Everglades City, just an hour or two's drive from Fort Myers and Naples. A one-of-a-kind ecosystem, the Ever-glades offer visitors a glimpse of a primeval wilderness including wading birds, woodstorks, dolphins, manatees and the must-see alligator.

"We receive many requests about things to do in the Everglades," say Modys. "Visitors consider the area mysterious and want to know how they access the region."

Wildlife watching, which includes bird watching, is big business. From travel, food and lodging to film, cameras and binoculars, nature-loving tourists spend a considerable amount of money, much of it in the local economy. Van ecotour businesses are becoming increasingly popular. These small operations often pick up and drop off at the most popular hotels. Tourists can take a day trip to the Everglades where they can choose from boat tours, airboat rides or a walking tour of the Big Cypress Bend. If less time is available, they may choose half-day trips to the region's bird-watching hot spots, Audubon's Corkscrew Swamp Sanc-tuary or Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge on Sanibel.

Keeping Things Natural

Most visitors and residents know that Southwest Florida has been, is and will continue growing. Thousands of new residents move here each month. People require space, water and other resources. Environmental scientists understand that in an ecosystem, everything is connected. When one part of the ecosystem suffers or is damaged, the effects ripple through all the levels.

In Southwest Florida, nearly every square inch of higher-elevation land that is not government owned and preserved was developed decades ago. What is left is land that is, or was, wetland. There is an ongoing debate over how much wetland we can lose before creating environmental problems that have an adverse impact on the people and visitors to the area. Problems already exist for some of Southwest Florida's wildlife. Because of loss of habitat, the Florida panther, woodstork and manatee are all on the endangered species list. While panthers are rarely seen, woodstorks and manatees can be spotted by visitors, and this is why some tourists come to the area.

Growth is not going to stop in Collier or Lee County, but it is receiving more attention. Periodic water shortages and the increasing frequency of red tide events, possibly related to water pollution, have local governments and citizens thinking about ways to solve what could become problems affecting human welfare. Polluted beaches or lengthy red tides could be serious problems for the tourist industry because visitors whose beach romps are spoiled by the irritants might not return, and they will tell others, says Minich. He advocates closer scrutiny of the Caloosahatchee to help control nutrients and the fresh water it dumps into the Gulf.

More businesses, especially the large land developers, are taking action to work towards a sustainable Southwest Florida. The goal is to accommodate the growth while not sacrificing any more of the natural environment and cleaning up any existing problems.

Neither county tracks the exact economic impact of ecotourism. But given the heavy emphasis both counties place on promoting ecotourism activities and applying that to the gross dollars generated by tourism, it is a safe bet that tourism in Southwest Florida would be a shadow of what it is now if there were no beaches, Everglades or the region's other natural areas.

More Ecotourism Ahead

The future for nature-based travel is very positive. New areas of interest are also on the rise. "In the last five to seven years in Lee County there has been a huge increase in kayaking," Minich says. "We now have the Great Calusa Blueway, a canoe/kayak trail in Estero Bay that has become very popular." Many businesses now rent kayaks in both counties. "One of the more interesting twists to kayaking is Chokoloskee Charters," says Modys. The company takes anglers and kayaks by power boat deep into the Ten Thousand Islands, so anglers can paddle into the small, seldom fished backwater creeks not accessible by any boat.

With the local CVBs promoting tourism to Collier and Lee counties, more tourists will be coming to the beaches and exploring the region's other natural areas. Considering the economic importance of ecotourism to the area, beach renourisnment efforts will continue. More attention will have to be paid to overusing our natural resources. Once lost, bringing them back is costly and there is no guarantee of success.