Public–private partnerships for nature-based tourist attractions: the failure of Seal Rocks

ABSTRACT

In 1998, the Seal Rocks Sea Life Centre opened on Phillip Island, Australia. It was a public–private partnership, with a privately funded tourist attraction built on a government-owned protected area. Almost immediately it was beset by problems and court action found in favour of the private developer, who was awarded $A37 million in damages, with ownership of the centre returning to the state. This article fills a gap in the literature examining public–private partnerships by considering this failed venture. It is a qualitative case study, analysing the 2003 appeal court judgement in the case and newspaper accounts from 1995 to 2004. Our findings highlight that deficiencies with the drafting of commercial contracts for public–private partnerships may limit the environmental and economic benefits that are being sought by governments through these arrangements. In this case, the application of a “best efforts” clause was critical, as it required that priority was given to the commercial success of the project over environmental and planning concerns. Furthermore, the development was a centralised decision made by the state government, affording very little input from local parks management and community stakeholders. Such a court finding has important ramifications for future developments of partnership agreements in nature-based tourism.

KEYWORDS:

• Nature-based tourism
• sustainable tourism
• protected areas
• public–private partnership
• collaboration

Disclosure statement

No financial interest or benefit arose from this research.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Warwick Frost

Warwick Frost is an Associate Professor in the Department of Management, Sport and Tourism at La Trobe University, Melbourne, Australia. His research interests include heritage, events, tourism and the media, national parks and nature-based attractions. Together with Jennifer Laing, Warwick is a co-editor of the Routledge Advances in Events Research series.

Jennifer Laing

Jennifer Laing is an Associate Professor in the Department of Management, Sport and Tourism at La Trobe University, Melbourne, Australia. Her research interests include tourist narratives, rural and regional development, the social dimension of events and exploring extraordinary tourist experiences.