A Study on Resource-Dependent Park Administrative Structural Reform: A Case in Scenic Lijiang River ()
1. Introduction
In August 2011, the National Tourism Administration conducted a thorough investigation on the Scenic Lijiang River which is a national 5A scenic area, which showed organized excursions disorder, management confusion, substandard quality of service, food safety and sanitation, excessive use of resources are the main problems. As requested, the local Tourism Administration has to operate comprehensive reformation, otherwise, the scenic will be no more 5A qualified. After two years of hard work, a change in the date of the Lijiang River Scenic status, management gradually comes into the track. The problems that happened in Lijiang River Scenic, to a large extent, represent similar resource-dependent parks all over the world, especially these early developed. This approach to the problem helps to avoid making the same mistakes and leads to healthy development.
Resource-dependent park refers to the river as the main carrier and attraction to meet tourists’ expectations [1]. In addition to the basic features of other scenes, its main feature is the river as the main body and the main attraction. Secondly, the territory of resource-dependent parks is normally across different administrative areas, involving the complex relationship of stakeholders and administrations.
2. Background Analysis
As one of 13 national key protected rivers, Lijiang is a branch of the Pearl River system with the length of 214 km totally, and watershed area of 12,669 km2. Most river basins cover the downtown of Guilin, Xin’an County and Yangshuo County where are over 60 villages and over 2.07 million people related [2].
As one of the world’s largest and the most beautiful karst landscape scene, over 10 millions tourist has been visited which included dignitaries and celebrities from over 150 countries since its opening in 1973. Authorized one of the first batch of national key scenic spots and national 5A scenic spot list, Scenic Lijiang River has passed ISO9001 international quality management system, ISO14001 environmental management system, OHSASI8001 occupational health and safety and other international management system certification. Annually, there are about 1.8 million tourists travel by three legal routes approved by the government in Scenic Lijiang River between 2008 to 2013 and tourism tax revenue is between the RMB 0.34 billion to RMB 0.47 billion.
Currently, there are 29 enterprises control the boat excursion in Scenic Lijiang River which are over 200 boats and above 1000 bamboo rafts. Main tourist products of it are one-day boat excursion, Impression Liu Sanjie River Park, urban water system cruise and so on and so forth. Therefore, how to make these resource-dependent parks benefit the society, tourists and community is the problem to be solved.
3. Management System X-Ray
The current management system of Scenic Lijiang River was formed in 1988 named Four-Unity, as primarily characterized by unified control, unified ticketing, unified price and unified billing. Four-Unity played a significant role on maintaining market order meeting market demand comparing the situation of disorderly competition before 1988. It was jointly put forward by the Municipal Transportation Bureau, Municipal Price Bureau and the Municipal Tourism Bureau. With rapid development in tourism industry in the past 24 years, the difference between domestic and international tourists getting vague and higher service quality are needed urgently. Four-Unity management system no longer fit the needs of the development of the tourism market.
Firstly, Coordination between bureaus is difficult and management efficiency is low due to lacking of main shareholder. The management of Scenic Lijiang River involving the construction, transport, tourism, water conservancy, agriculture, forestry and other bureaus, which turn out from multiply leading to no one care at last. Consequently, the management in the Scenic shows hard to organize, regulatory and law enforcement.
Secondly, organize excursions chaos due to obstacles on boat upgrade and bamboo rafts management standardize. On the one hand, navigation management shows lifeless because there are no scientific and rational boat entry and exit regulations based on market economy. Under control of Lijiang Navigation Management Center, the boat enterprises have to sell the tickets by queuing instead of tourists needs. With the staff costs and oil prices are rising, boat tickets price maintain the same in the past 8 years, financial loss make the enterprises cannot afford boat upgrade. On the other, motivated by profit, the villages in the coastal villagers import the large scale motor-powered rafts without supervising and management which dramatically exacerbated excursions chaos.
Thirdly is the low quality of service and difficulty on scenic supervision. Because of Four-Unity strategy, priority products only can be issued by Lijiang Navigation Centre, which have limited rights on the market order, sanitation, infrastructure matters and so on. Eventually unqualified landscape quality and services makes the development of the Scenic Lijiang River unsustainable and disharmony.
Fourthly, valid ecological compensation mechanism is lacked [3]. Due to lacking of environmental awareness and appropriate compensation mechanism, upland farmers are not enthusiastic on forest for water resource conservation. The phenomenon of sand dredging alone the Lijiang River, forest and water destruction continue despite repeated prohibition. Ecological protection and compensation mechanisms have to be made.
Based on all the problems above, numbers of tourists in Scenic Lijiang River drops to RMB 1.5 million in the year of 2011 comparing the RMB 2.3 million in 2007. Enterprises profits and government revenues are affected dramatically. Meanwhile, tourists cannot receive high-quality service.
4. Management Reform and Innovation
The tourism resources have been classified into two, resource-dependent and resource-independent [4]. This is the key to solve the problem in the tourism world for two reasons. On one hand, the essence of the attraction has been revealed. Take Li River as an example, itself belongs to the country and all common people no matter how much money you have been invested in it. On another, the initial driven of tourist is the resource itself who is located in the community and natural ecosystem.
4.1. Innovation Management System as Breakthrough
Innovation plays a significant role on Scenic Lijiang River management system reformation. Without this support, effects of ticketing system exploring will be reduced greatly. On the one hand, scenic needs one voice to clear responsibilities that specify not only the right but also the obligation. An Inter-departmental Scenic Lijiang River Administration (ISLA) recommended authorized from Guilin municipal government, who responsible for co-ordination within the scenic relevant functional departments of administrative matters and to co-ordinate management and service industry. To integrate cruise companies on the other hand, through the original merger, reorganization and transformation into stock company, promotes boats upgrades. Disclosure mechanism by introducing quality control, then authorized these franchise to ensure quality of service.
Guiding the current over 20 boat enterprises integrated into two categories. One category is Zhujiang dock-based personalized cruise company, a traditional cruise company category is Mopanshan dock-based. In order to carry out a variety of operating under the premise of competition, configure high, medium and low-grade boat, avoid sailing time, meet the tourists’ need of MICE, wedding, charter, multi-day tours, ect. ensure that visitors can enjoy the service based on spends. In addition to scenic tickets, tourists would pay the reasonable purchase costs, in accordance with the boat grade, sailing time, catering level and different additional services.
4.2. Diversify Tourism Products as Implementation Path
Rationalize the relationship between these two categories of cruise company operating under the premise, to achieve diversification travelling. General scenic tickets need to spent, and then promote repeat consumption for different tourism products which based on different block of the river
First, Yangti-Xingping-yangshuo Part mainly supplies raft-based tourism projects. To protect the rights of visitors, increasing the income level of residents along the river and standardize market supervision, carry on strict corporate system as village unit. Implementation guidance rafts prices at the beginning.
Second, development of two upstream parts which one is carrying on a city tour, while the other is not yet developed a business part. In order to protect the urban environment and the ecological environment, the development of these two parts focus on ecological energy-based power and high-end antique wooden leisure tours.
Third, Conduct interactive amusement projects on the wider downstream Lijiang River.
Fourth, develop trekking product alone the bank. Combined with coastal topography, grading recommended hiking trails of different intensity, set up the basic services and ambulance facilities, maintain original ecological well.
4.3. Reform Ticket System as Core Driver
At present, Scenic Lijiang River carry out one-ticket policy that is tourists pay RMB210 and RMB 270 departing from Mopanshan and Zhujiang dock respectively. As Lijiang river water levels drop and flow speed, cruise the river only passenger downstream, bareboat return which causing a great waste.
Proposals of Ticket system reform the current tour to Two-Ticket Policy (TTP). General tickets received by the ISLA, which mainly for infrastructure construction, maintenance and routine office expenses. General tickets are purchased by real-name system with one month valid to increase the consumption. Second tickets for boating, rafting, hiking and others guided by free market competition. The Administration regulates businesses and local residents’ service quality by publishing corporate integrity conditions and grades of tourists’ satisfaction.
Implement TTP in Scenic Lijiang River, institutional reform must be to operate as a prerequisite. In the specific implementation of it, researches on how to implement mergers and acquisitions, how unified administration, how to solve the public park, how to allocate income and other topics needed commenced. There are many featured natives; arts and crafts can be fine processing, such as pomelo, kumquat, paintings, painted fans, talc crafts, bonsai landscape, stone chapter, woodcarving, hydrangeas, etc. Development of the popular special tourism projects, such as timeshare real estate, cave climbing adventure, wellness hotel, exquisite MICE, honeymoon wedding and yachts.
4.4. Extend the Industrial Chain as Driven Engine
Besides tourism development of Scenic of Lijiang River, agriculture, catering and accommodation, exhibition, real estate and other related industries needed concerned as cooperation development, Tourism products, such as handicrafts, MICE, tourism real estate, tourism wedding, medical tourism, adventure and other content more forms should be put into shelf. With Services, such as food, lodging, transportation, travel, shopping and entertainment should provide to visitors.
4.5. Establishing Ecological Compensation Mechanism as Safeguard
Over the years, people on both sides to protect Lijiang River paid a very high price, but most people did not really enjoy the fruits of its development. To completely solve the problem, be sure to bring along the resident’s survival and development issues in a very important position. Without their support, it cannot become a harmonious, rich and civilized attraction.
Develop and implement the Act of Scenic of Lijiang River Compensation Ordinance (ASLRCO), which establish a diversified, multi-level, multi-channel raised ways and variety shareholder including the government, the community and beneficiaries to protect the compensation fund system.
Implemented the ASLRCO to coastal towns and villages by policy compensation, financial compensation, the project compensation, compensation in kind, knowledge and technology compensation, employment compensation, travel compensation and other forms that including the establishment of public property budget funds and scenic area protection special protection fund levy resource protection tax (fee) and resource protection margin and so on.
If indeed a great effort to put together the unified management of Scenic Lijiang River, more than 3 million tourists and 600 million Yuan each year are expected. After deducting the Government the income of 150 million Yuan, can increase more than 450 million dollars. Increasing part, villagers along the 100 million Yuan of subsidies (in accordance with the conditions of permanent residents) and the village collective, 200 million dollars grants coastal counties, municipalities can still increase more than 150 million. The other hand, the ticket price guide implementation, can encourage business by raising the boat level, multiple ways to achieve inclusion, thus creating conditions for listing.
5. Epilogue
Scenic Lijiang River, as one of the typical resource-dependent parks, is the core resource and the most attractive main brand in Guilin. The tourism industry in Guilin is basically starting from Lijiang River. The management development of Scenic Lijiang River influenced the tourism development pattern of Guilin Tourism in a certain way. Therefore, optimizing the use of resources, giving full play to the Lijiang River in Guilin tourism as the flagship of the brand, implementation of the Lijiang River Scenic intensive to create economies of scale, would have a profound impact on Guilin tourism development and directly related to the future direction of Guilin and development. All studies provide a new path of reform for the Resource-Dependent Park management system.
Acknowledgements
This work was supported by Guangxi Ethnic Tourism Research Center, Study on the Collective Memory Construction of Ethnic Groups in Tourism Destination (MZLY08).