Al Morrison on Cathedral Cove

DOC Director-General writes in the Herald:

Without commercial activities, nobody would get the chance to enjoy our unique outdoor spaces says Al Morrison.

The Department of Conservation’s decision this summer to allow a discreetly placed stall selling sandwiches and hiring out snorkels at Cathedral Cove on the Coromandel has attracted strong debate.

Our critics claim it is “opening the floodgates to hawkers on the beach” and setting the stage for “icecream stalls in paradise”.

In fact, the stall is simply part of a long-standing and important relationship between conservation and commerce. It recognises that conservation and business can, and do, co-exist. Conservation is good for the economy and DoC is focused on activity that is good for both.

Hooray. So nice to have someone make the case that commerce and conservation can work together.

Cathedral Cove is an example of how we go about ensuring that business and conservation can support each other. The operator has a short-term permit to erect a small tent set back from the sand in a popular recreation reserve. He is offering sandwiches, cold drinks, sunblock and snorkelling gear (note: no icecreams) to some of the 120,000 people who visit the cove each year.

One of the conditions of the permit is that he cleans up the rubbish others leave on the beach each day. Feedback is being gathered from both locals and visitors, and the permit will be reviewed at the end of the summer.

Looks to be a win-win.

Far from putting the environment at risk, such commercial activity on public conservation land strengthens the protection of conservation values in practical ways. By enabling responsible local businesses to flourish we encourage more people to experience our unique public spaces. And that makes conservation more relevant and increases the value that people see in it. …

Conservation is not about shutting the gate and throwing away the key – it is about getting people, including business, engaged with the natural environment that is so critical to their prosperity.

Enabling people to enjoy a cool drink and a snorkelling trip at Cathedral Cove – at the same time as the beach gets cleaned – is just another small way of doing that.

Indeed.