(TITC) - An appropriate tourism approach, prioritising ecosystem conservation, has helped Cu Lao Cham archipelago become a potential destination to attract tourists around the world.
Cu Lao Cham is one of two core areas of Cu Lao Cham-Hoi An recognized as a World Biosphere Reserve by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) on 26th May 2009.
About 20 km from Hoi An, Cu Lao Cham is becoming an attractive destination for tourists because of its rich flora and fauna and historical relics dating back hundreds of years.
After 15 years of conservation and development, the Cu Lao Cham ecosystem has not only been restored relatively intact but has also become an attractive destination on the Vietnam's tourist map.
For a long time, local authorities have always sought to learn the mindset of sustainable tourism development. Cu Lao Cham is an attractive natural destination because of the reasonable distribution of visitor numbers and sustainably managed tourism activities.
Photo: TITC
Cu Lao Cham has a unique and diverse ecosystem, harmoniously connecting humans and nature.
According to research, there are various kinds of creatures living around the marine area of Cu Lao Cham archipelago, including 178 species of fish, 122 species of seaweed, 134 species of coral, 144 species of shellfish, 25 species of crustacean and many other marine species living around the island.
The miracle of island conservation is possible thanks to the participation of local people - who have cleaned up plastic pollution and are serious about implementing fishing activities.
Active participation of local people in ecosystem conservation
Most importantly, instead of fishing activities on coral reefs, many residents have cooperated with local authorities and used boats to transport tourists, which assist MPA into action to protect coral reefs, which face a global threat as warming water causes coral bleaching.
Cu Lao Cham is one of the places in Vietnam that has not used plastic bags and the "3R" program (reduce, reuse and recycle). Strict regulations have also been imposed to avoid overharvesting of land crabs on the island - a mainstay of the island's ecosystem, where the crab population has increased by 75%.
Cu Lao Cham Island has put huge effort in eliminating plastic bags. Citizens in the island gradually give up plastic bags, they say “no” to disposable plastic products. Instead, people use baskets and friendly-material bags for daily shopping. Even better, households here have begun to invent new types of packaging to replace difficult-to-destruct plastic bags. Anything that can be stored can be used, such as banana leaves and newspapers, which are both friendly and clean.
Then, to deal with tourism overload, local authorities provided regulations limiting the number of visitors to only about 3,000 people per day since 2015. Gradually, conservation and a moderate approach to tourism paid off.
Fish species have increased. People are aware of environmental protection in the local community. As a result, Cu Lao Cham is now one of the most attractive islands in Vietnam.
Tourism Information Technology Center
