The Economic Value of Water and Ecosystem Preservation

3. Characterization of Ecotourism in the San Antonio Bay Region of Texas
3.1. Introduction
The San Antonio Bay lies in one of the most ecologically complex and
biodiverse regions in all of North America. As more people become aware of the
ecological treasures that exist there, ecotourism has developed into a rapidly
growing sector of the regional economy. Tourism is among the top three
industries in Texas, and ecotourism makes up a significant share of total tourism
in the state (Dean Runyan Associates, 2004). One of the most popular
ecotourism activities is birding. Texas is the number one birdwatching
state/province in North America, and various protected areas within the San
Antonio Bay offer excellent locations to view birds and other wildlife. Birding
organizations often list Aransas National Wildlife Refuge among the top ten
birding locations within the United States. There have been over 495 bird
species recorded in the Coastal Bend region – more than all but four states
(Coastal Bend Bays and Estuaries Program, n.d.).
Ironically, while the ecotourism industry is growing, the Bay’s fragile
estuarine ecosystem is facing pressure from other economic activities.
Potentially, the largest problem that threatens the overall health of the Bay is a
marked change of natural freshwater inflow that it receives. The increased
pressure on both surface water and groundwater resources upstream by
agricultural production, industry, and a rapidly growing urban population in San
Antonio has altered the timing and volume of river inflow to the Guadalupe
estuary. A large increase or decrease of incoming freshwater can affect “fish
spawning, shellfish survival, bird nesting, seed propagation, and other seasonal
activities of fish and wildlife (Environmental Protection Agency, 2005).” This
delicate estuarine system is deteriorating because upstream water users rarely
consider the water needs of an ecosystem.
“An important obstacle to more widespread recognition of the ecosystem’s
water needs is that the economic value of using water to sustain the regional
ecosystem has never been quantified. Without ‘economic representation’ of this
value, it is difficult for water managers, planners, and users to consider the
ecosystem, along with agriculture, industry, and municipalities, when making
water use decisions. A detailed understanding of the San Antonio Bay’s
ecotourism sector and the role water plays in supporting it can help establish the
ecosystem as an economically important user of the river inflows into the Bay.
Without sufficient water, the region’s ecosystem will continue to decline, with
potentially detrimental effects on the ecotourism industry. Within this overall
context, this paper serves to characterize the ecotourism sector and its role in the
regional economy of the San Antonio Bay (Mathis, 2004a).”
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