Edition 45, June 2007

Improved safety standards in WA adventure tourism

Outdoors WA, the peak industry body for outdoor adventure activities in Western Australia, is developing a set of Adventure Activity Standards designed to protect tourists visiting the Western Australian outback.

Expected to take up to two years to implement, the standards introduce better accreditation standards, set guidelines for outdoor adventure operators, and provide practical steps for operators to tighten safety controls.

The Adventure Activity Standards project is a government/industry partnership involving the Department of Sport and Recreation, Tourism Western Australia and key industry bodies Outdoors WA and Tourism Council Western Australia.

Tourism Council Western Australia received $333,000 in government funding to assist with developing the Adventure Activity Standards. The funding will be used to improve the National Tourism Accreditation Program, obtain ISO 9001 endorsement, expand the customer feedback system, and provide greater verification of accredited businesses to ensure they deliver high service standards.

Some of the project's key objectives include:

  • fostering a safe and environmentally sustainable outdoor adventure activity industry
  • promoting consistency between groups conducting adventure activities and agencies responsible for managing and monitoring their impacts
  • developing clear industry standards for the provision of leadership and management of outdoor adventure activities
  • positioning industry standards so they are supported and accessed by land managers and other agencies providing consistency and benchmarking across the outdoor industry regarding the skill and competency of leaders, the pre-planning of activities, safety and emergency procedures, equipment and a commitment to environmentally sustainable practices
  • providing a benchmark easily understood by the community to assist decision making about outdoor adventure activity programs.

For more information visit www.outdoorswa.org

This page was generated on 14 January, 2010

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