If the folks from Pew and the Bahamas National Trust have their way the Bahamas might be declared a shark sanctuary sometime soon.That would be a good thing.
What is the current value of shark tourism to the Bahamas?
An industry study done in 2008 revealed the value of shark tourism to the Bahamas was roughly $78 million per year with over 44 thousand safe human/shark interactions per year by dive industry members.
That's where this recent article by the Tribune and associated quotes that went with it had us concerned. Not one shark diving industry member was mentioned in it, and no statistics concerning our industry either regionally or internationally were mentioned.
The shark diving industry has a lot to do with the perception of sharks and to tourism in the Bahamas. In short, regional industry players must be front and center with this push to protect sharks.
Perhaps it is time for Bahamas operators to get quoted and get out in front of this issue?
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