About 25 million visitors drive, fly and sail into Rhode Island each year. Mansions, restaurants, theaters and historical sites attract their fair share of guests, but the warm-weather crowds flock to the water.
And it could be the water that starts pushing them out.
Rising sea levels are a real threat to many of the Ocean State’s tourism draws. Some waterfront vacation spots, homes and tourism-driven businesses along the coast are likely to be submerged or flooded as the effects of climate change worsen, some experts say.
According to a report released this year by a team of coastal researchers, seas are expected to rise by 9.8 feet by 2100 along the northeastern U.S. seaboard.
In “The Narragansett Bay Watershed Economy: The ebb and flow of natural capital,” the researchers, led by Emi Uchida, associate director of the Coastal Institute at the University of Rhode Island, concluded that with just a 7-foot sea-level rise, 3,918 buildings in the Narragansett Bay watershed would be destroyed.
The effect could be devastating to tourism in some areas.
“Given that a number of tourist destinations in the Narragansett Bay Watershed are located along the coast, such as the Newport mansions, these destinations or their supporting infrastructures, such as hotels and restaurants, could be flooded or submerged when the sea level rises,” the report said. “Additionally, lighthouses, which serve as a tourism staple in the Narragansett Bay Watershed, are especially sensitive to rises in sea level.”
What’s the Rhode Island tourism industry to do?
The answer might be found in sustainable tourism, a global movement that is, in part, about preserving authentic environmental and cultural attractions. In Rhode Island, that would mean the coastline and the state’s Colonial, industrial and Native American heritage, along with providing hotels, buildings and transportation that cater to environmentally friendly interests.
[caption id="attachment_305860" align="aligncenter" width="696"]
PROTECTING HISTORY: Mark Thompson is the executive director of the Newport Restoration Foundation, which owns 27 homes in Newport’s The Point neighborhood, where Colonial-era homes are a draw for tourists. The waterfront neighborhood is vulnerable to sea-level rise. / PBN PHOTO/DAVE HANSEN[/caption]
A NEW REALITY
The state has had its eye on sustainable tourism for more than a decade.
In 2007, it became a member of National Geographic Society’s Center for Sustainable Destinations. As part of that partnership, former Gov. Donald L. Carcieri signed Rhode Island’s Geotourism Charter, aimed at shaping tourism with an emphasis on preserving the state’s natural, historic and cultural assets.
True sustainability requires attention to the environment but also considers the well-being of residents and businesses around the destinations, said Bob Billington, executive director of the Blackstone Valley Tourism Council and longtime sustainability advocate.
“In Blackstone Valley, the natural environment was always in the back seat; that is why my thinking on sustainable tourism is so aggressive,” he said, adding that “a healthy community, the social and cultural part of it. … How we live, how we’re educated, our health; all of those things are a part of sustainability.”
Sustainable tourism has become a talking point for the industry across the country, but a broad, defined approach to shielding destinations from the effects of warming temperatures and strain caused by tourists on natural resources and historic sites – what is known in the industry as “overtourism” – is hard to come by.
There is no collaborative push toward sustainable measures in Rhode Island’s tourism industry yet.
Rep. Lauren H. Carson, D-Newport, led the Special Legislative Commission to Study Methods for Growing Tourism, a 19-member group that spent two years analyzing the industry. One of its recommendations, listed in its final report released in April, was to create a plan for sustainability.
The commission did not have time to research the issue before it dissolved in March, Carson said, but she added that if lawmakers grant an extension, sustainability will be among the commission’s focuses.
In Newport, the neighborhood known as The Point embodies many concerns that are central to sustainable tourism.
The roughly 400 well-preserved or restored Colonial homes that make up the neighborhood aren’t open to the public, but the area is a tourist draw all the same.
Perched next to Narragansett Bay, The Point’s location lent to its grand stature as the home of some of Newport’s wealthiest residents in the 1700s and 1800s. Now its waterfront location is a liability.
But how to protect against rising waters while preserving centuries of history?
Elevation has increasingly crept into the discussion. Newport’s Historic District Commission held a public-information session earlier this month on guidelines and policies for elevating historic properties.
[caption id="attachment_305863" align="alignleft" width="300"]
WALKABLE TOURISM: A new walkway along the Woonasquatucket River in Providence is part of R.I. Coastal Resources Management Council’s network of Urban Coastal Greenways. / PBN PHOTO/MIKE SKORSKI[/caption]
But raising homes off the ground is expensive and will alter a building’s appearance dramatically.
“People are hoping that [elevation will] protect their investment, but it’s also a neighborhood that’s very attentive to the integrity of its houses,” said Mark Thompson, executive director of the Newport Restoration Foundation, which owns 27 homes in The Point and more than 70 on Aquidneck Island. “All you need to do is walk around The Point neighborhood to understand that the residents there care about preservation. There are few places in America that you can walk down and … readily feel that you’ve almost been taken back to Colonial times.”
Any answer, Thompson said, should look beyond The Point as well.
“We don’t have any question that climate change is coming,” he said. “We’re not thinking only about what we need to do to save our houses. The solution should be one that we share with everybody.”
‘A LOWER TOLL’
Tourist destinations can be especially vulnerable to a changing climate and wear and tear from crowds, but the communities around those destinations still depend on visitors for economic support.
This is especially true on the 10 square miles of Block Island, where the year-round population of roughly 1,000 is dwarfed each year by waves of summer visitors. Tourists are the island’s lifeblood, but there has to be a limit, even as it seeks tourism growth, according to the island’s chief tourism official.
“It really is a big issue, but it’s very hard to pinpoint,” said Jessica K. Willi, executive director of the Block Island Tourism Council. “We have a finite level of resources. We’re really looking at increasing revenue versus increasing visitation.”
[caption id="attachment_305865" align="aligncenter" width="696"]
MORE VISITORS: R.I. Commerce Corp. Chief Marketing Officer Heather Evans, sitting second from right, speaks with her staff. Evans says she is intent on attracting more visitors to the state during the fall and winter, when business is slow for many in the tourism industry. / PBN PHOTO/MIKE SKORSKI[/caption]
Heather Evans, R.I. Commerce Corp. chief marketing officer, has the same goal statewide.
She is intent on attracting more visitors during the fall and winter, when business is slow for many in the tourism industry.
“Our focus is on getting people to stay longer and spend more money,” Evans said.
In August, Commerce RI began advertising Rhode Island’s fall and winter charms in Chicago, Charlotte, N.C., Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., New York City, Hartford, Conn., and Boston.
To complement that campaign, Evans created walkable itineraries on visitrhodeisland.com, where guests can find guides for hiking, biking, bird watching and exploring Providence and Newport.
“The emphasis on the winter and fall is a big change. It’s a lower toll on the environment,” Evans said. “Our goal going forward is to make sure [that] as we continue to develop this tourism economy, we do it in a responsible way.”
Environmentally friendly tourism efforts in the state are piecemeal.
Many hotels have installed upgrades to match green-minded travelers’ expectations. And last summer, the R.I. Department of Environmental Management did not make trash bags available to beachgoers at Westerly’s Misquamicut State Beach, part of an effort to reduce the amount of bags left on the beach and in the parking lot.
Restaurants have a chance for involvement as well. In partnership with the DEM, the Rhode Island Hospitality Association relaunched a voluntary program that grants certification to eateries that meet standards on plastics and food-waste reduction.
Still, relatively small practices can form a strong foundation, Billington said.
Science shows there is urgency, but he points to the Blackstone’s postindustrial landscape to emphasize the importance of creating a structure that prioritizes sustainability for residents and natural resources.
“Our landscape has been through that. We’ve been through where business mattered, the environment didn’t matter, people didn’t matter,” he said. “In its wake, we are paying millions upon millions of dollars to repair land. We have to lower or change our sights and allow nature to do what it needs to do to balance itself.”
[caption id="attachment_305866" align="aligncenter" width="696"]
LIMITED RESOURCES: Block Island Tourism Council Executive Director Jessica K. Willi, talking with John Cullen, owner of B.I. Tees, says her group is examining the best ways to increase tourism revenue while keeping summer visitations to the island under control. / PBN FILE PHOTO/K. CURTIS[/caption]
ACCEPTING CHANGE
The challenge lies in pushing businesses to make effective changes, when those changes collide with what customers expect, said Sarah Bratko, Rhode Island Hospitality Association vice president of advocacy and general counsel.
For example, some restaurants were apprehensive about cutting back on plastic straws until it was clear that customers were able to adjust, she said.
“Becoming a sustainable business is always going to be an ongoing process because once you tackle one issue, there’s always going to be something else,” Bratko said. “The industry is looking at creative ways they can tackle this because a lot of this is looking at consumer habits, and consumers don’t change their habits overnight.”
Change is hard, said Bryan Lavin, an assistant professor in the International Travel and Tourism Studies Department in Johnson & Wales University’s College of Hospitality Management. He cited public outcry before the 2016 construction of the Block Island Wind Farm, which some residents feared would ruin oceanfront views.
In reality, the offshore wind farm may have fueled an uptick in tourism, according to a URI report released this past spring. Analysis of Airbnb Inc. rental data found a 19% increase in island occupancy rates during the summer after the turbines were in place.
“It feels like it’s been a very slow creep towards sustainability initiatives, and that’s how I think sustainability typically goes,” Lavin said. “It’s kind of hard to flip the switch, it’s a multitude of things all happening at once to slowly bring it to an environmentally friendly place.”
Not all new things breed discontent, though. The new pedestrian bridge in Providence over the Providence River, connecting the city’s East Side to the Jewelry District, is an eco-friendly addition that’s been widely applauded, even though the $22 million price tag caused some sticker shock.
“The buzz in the tourism space about our new pedestrian bridge is wild,” Lavin said.
GREEN BOOST
[caption id="attachment_305862" align="alignleft" width="225"]
LEVELING UP: Mark Thompson, executive director of the Newport Restoration Foundation, says residents in The Point neighborhood in Newport are considering elevating historic properties to protect against flooding from rising sea levels. / PBN PHOTO/DAVE HANSEN[/caption]
The state hospitality association set its sights on restaurants this year, by relaunching its Green Hospitality Program, a partnership with DEM that was originally formed about 10 years ago.
The groups created a checklist for restaurants to help curb plastic and food waste. The association has enlisted its 350 members for a preliminary rollout of the program, which is expected to officially launch early next year.
Restaurants that comply with the voluntary checklist will earn a Green Hospitality Designation status, and can use the title in their own marketing, Bratko said.
Kristen Adamo, CEO and president of the Providence Warwick Convention & Visitors Bureau, recently attended a gathering of professionals in the meeting and convention industry who say that carbon offsetting, or a move to reduce carbon footprints, has grabbed a lot of attention.
“It’s really new in the meetings industry. … I don’t know of any destinations that are doing a lot yet because it’s so new,” she said.
Visitors-bureau officials have just started brainstorming on ways to offer groups options and activities that are better for the environment, Adamo said. “In the meeting and convention world you have to do things that set yourself apart. … Those green alternatives will help us do that.”
Hotels, a crucial part of the tourism industry, are making improvements on energy efficiency and waste reduction.
The Providence Marriott Downtown recently finished a series of clean-energy upgrades that were featured at the Rhode Island Infrastructure Summit this fall. Forty 1 North, a boutique hotel in Newport, asserts that it is the first LEED-certified – Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design – hotel in Rhode Island.
Neither the Marriott nor Forty 1 North immediately returned calls for comment.
Their efforts are in line with a shift toward environmental awareness in Rhode Island’s hospitality industry, said Dale Venturini, Rhode Island Hospitality Association executive director.
“Energy usage and its impact on our environment is a top area of focus, with many hotels using alternative forms of energy, lighting and temperature-control systems to limit their carbon footprint without sacrificing overall guest experience,” she said.
The R.I. Convention Center and attached Dunkin’ Donuts Center have been using wind-generated electricity since late last year. A $5 million upgrade to the heating and air conditioning systems is expected to cut energy use by 20%. Sensors were also installed in both venues to turn off lights automatically in empty rooms, including in the parking garages.
The upgrades are thrifty and good for both the environment and marketing, said R.I. Convention Center Authority Executive Director James McCarville.
“We can say, ‘We’re concerned about the environment; your group belongs here,’ ” McCarville said. “For some groups it’s a qualifier; if you’re not going to do it, they’re not coming.”
IS IT ENOUGH?
According to the DEM, in the spring of 2018 Rhode Island was the first state in the U.S. to sign the Clean Seas pledge led by the United Nations. DEM’s Zero Plastics Marina Initiative launched around the same time. So far, Cove Haven Marina in Barrington has earned certification in the Zero Plastics program.
Still, some say that the state and its tourism industry are not doing enough.
Lavin, of JWU, praised Rhode Island’s efforts in conservation of beaches and other natural resources, but said tourism-related businesses, especially hotels, are middle-of-the-road on their efforts to cut environmental impact.
“No one’s doing anything that’s going to be a gold standard. That’s almost the standard of doing business now,” Lavin said of energy-efficiency upgrades. “You’re seeing that come up a lot more, using less cleaning agents … giving guests the option to not have their room refreshed every day. I don’t think that’s enough.”
Often, though, hotels are hampered by their own buildings, many of which weren’t originally built with the environment in mind.
[caption id="attachment_305861" align="alignright" width="241"]
LOWER TOLL: R.I. Commerce Corp. Chief Marketing Officer Heather Evans has been promoting fall and winter tourism, which she says has a lower toll on the environment. /
PBN PHOTO/MIKE SKORSKI[/caption]
“Taking on a full sustainability initiative within a structure that wasn’t built for that purpose is often very expensive or just not feasible,” Lavin said.
Promoting eco-friendliness as part of a brand can lull travelers into thinking they’re consuming less energy than they actually are, said Amelia Moore, assistant professor of sustainable coastal tourism and recreation at URI.
Moore, author of the recently released “Destination Anthropocene: Science and Tourism in the Bahamas,” has been working in the island nation for more than a decade on various sustainability projects.
She’s witnessed varying levels of efforts aimed at pushing back against climate change.
“You see a lot of ‘green washing,’ trying to make a lot out of very little, trying to brand yourself as sustainable. It gives the illusion that things are happening when nothing is really changing at all,” Moore said. “If hotels are not also thinking about transportation and their guests and the goods that are required for them to function, I don’t think it’s fair to market themselves as sustainable.”
Effective action, especially in addressing rising water levels and water quality in Narragansett Bay, is less glamorous than green amenities at fancy hotels, researchers say.
Managing and preventing sewer and wastewater runoff into Narragansett Bay, its estuaries and freshwater bodies of water could help head off some of the threat, according to URI’s report on Narragansett Bay’s watershed economy.
Taking such action “may help maintain these waterbodies for recreational and tourism purposes” and will be “imperative for ensuring the future of the tourism sector and its important contribution to the economy,” the report said.
Elizabeth Graham is a PBN staff writer. Contact her at Graham@PBN.com.
