Perception of the local community towards the establishment of Delft as a National Park and its impact on tourism

Abstract

National Parks (NP) are protected areas in Sri Lanka and are administered by the Department of Wildlife Conservation (DWC). Part of Delft Island (36.92 % of the total area~1,800 ha), called “Vellai,” situated at the center part of the island, was declared as a NP in 2015. A two-day questionnaire survey was conducted in Delft to assess public perception towards the newly established NP and their interest in tourism activities. Based on the list provided by the Divisional Secretariat inventory, a total of 29 questionnaires (~80 %) were collected among 37 locals who own land in “Vellai” and presently reside in another area of the village. The study revealed a complex historical, cultural, and economic relationship shaping the community’s relationship with the NP. While most locals (55.17 %) were unaware of the official establishment, they recognized the DWC boundary marker. Almost all respondents indicated that the part declared as the NP is inevitable for their daily activities, such as fishery, seasonal agriculture, and religious activities. Even though this NP is limitedly accessible, it has high tourism potential, and there is a growing interest in it as a potential economic driver. Currently, 37.9 % of their family members work in the tourism field in Delft, and they believe that 74.55 % will find employment in the tourism industry in the near future; 62.10 % have positive impacts on the tourism while ~80 % believed tourism did not affect their cost of living, and 90 % indicated there are no tourism economic leakages to outsiders. The study discovered that 83.30 % of respondents conciliate with tourists, and the rest do not interact with tourists. Most respondents (~100 %) indicated that Delft’s iconic wild horses (Equus caballus) face challenges due to the accumulation of the horse population within the NP, like inbreeding depression, disease spread, and resource unavailability, particularly water and fodder. Moreover, they indicated that this could be the reason for their decreased height. The research revealed that 80 % of the respondents observed no human-wildlife conflict. It can be concluded that declaring Delft a sanctuary rather than a NP could improve its status for residents and wildlife. The biggest obstacle to establishing ecotourism is the economic instability among the locals. However, if the locals identify the potential to execute small-scale ecotourism, they can overcome this.