Sardinia : sustainable dolphin watching in Aranci • EnezGreen

Combining dolphin watching with sustainable tourism: an imperative

Gulf Aranci, situated 20 km from Olbia, in the north of Sardinia, is one of the few places where there is a colony of bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncates) attending including a protected area prohibited to boats near the ‘Figarolo island where they can be quiet. Local operators who organize boat trips guarantee visitors 80% chance of observation.

The World rise, non-governmental non-profit organization, has written the first regulations on dolphin watching, in collaboration with four local players: the diving center of Figarolo, CDS diving and marine services, social cooperative Figari, as well as a team of divers and snorkelers.

Well managed, dolphin-watching is a great public awareness vector and contributes to the local economy

The regulations refer to international guidelines according to sustainable criterias. Dolphin-watching operators must now comply with very specific rules that ensure environmental sustainability such as speed boats throughout whale watching (maximum 5 knots), the safety distance (should not approach within 60 meters of the dolphins), the obligation to keep the engine in neutral position, and the absolute prohibition of giving food to animals and to swim with them.

The initiative, whose effective sustainability is validated by certification “Friend of the Sea”, an international certification program for sustainable whale watching and dolphin watching activities is active since last week, to promote not only regulatory compliance but also intensifying the education of tourists towards cetaceans’ knowledge ; a way to combine the environment and responsible tourism, create jobs, wealth and benefits for the region.