Potential Economic Implications for Regional Tourism of a Foot and Mouth Disease Outbreak in North Queensland

D.B. Smorfitt, S.R. Harrison and J.L. Herbohn
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D.B. Smorfitt: School of Business, James Cook University, PO Box 6811, Cairns, Queensland 4870, Australia
S.R. Harrison: School of Economics, The University of Queensland, Queensland 4072, Australia
J.L. Herbohn: School of Natural and Rural Systems Management, University of Queensland, Gatton 4343, Australia

Tourism Economics, 2005, vol. 11, issue 3, 411-430

Abstract: International and domestic tourism are sensitive to disastrous events which make areas inaccessible to visitors, less attractive or more dangerous. One form of tourism disaster is the outbreak of an exotic disease, of which Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) is a prime case. It is now well documented that the 2001 FMD outbreak in the UK had a greater impact on tourism than on agriculture. It has been estimated than an FMD outbreak in Australia would impose a cost of about $13 million. The impact on tourism would be highly dependent on the extent and duration of an FMD outbreak, as well as on any management and containment restrictions imposed by the authorities in their attempt to control and eventually eradicate the disease. Public perception and thus the provision of accurate information and the way in which the media report disasters will also play an important role in determining the impact on the tourism industry. The economy of Tropical North Queensland relies heavily on international visitors, and an FMD outbreak in the region would impose a large cost to the regional economy, conservatively estimated here to be of the order of $200 million per year.

Keywords: Foot and Mouth Disease; tourism impact; feral pigs; feral animals; North Queensland; Australia (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2005
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:sae:toueco:v:11:y:2005:i:3:p:411-430

DOI: 10.5367/000000005774352953

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