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New Research: Expanded Protection of World’s Scuba Diving Sites Would Safeguard Biodiversity, Bolster Food Supply and Generate Billions in Revenue
Reviving marine areas can unlock scuba diving’s potential as an economic engine; currently, some 33 million dives take place in the ocean each year, but only 15% of dive sites are fully protected from fishing and other destructive activities
Washington, D.C. (February 11, 2025) — New peer-reviewed research identifies the positive effects of protecting the world’s most popular scuba diving sites. Safeguarding recreational dive hotspots around the globe, according to researchers, would deliver a host of benefits to tourists, local communities and marine life.
Most notably, the study finds that more fully protected dive sites would generate $2 billion in direct diving revenue in communities where the dive sites are located and another potential $2 billion in user fees paid by divers to the entities managing the reserves. As a result, better protecting the areas frequented by scuba divers could not only help marine life bounce back, but also generate a new source of income for coastal economies. The Global South — host to some 62% of recreational dives — is poised to gain the most.
“If you protect a marine area, more recreational divers will show up — and they’ll pay more for the privilege of seeing sensational underwater life,” said Reniel Cabral, a senior lecturer at James Cook University and the study’s lead author. “Communities and businesses are leaving money on the table by overlooking the benefits of marine sanctuaries.”
The study, “Marine protected areas for dive tourism,” which appeared in Scientific Reports today, estimates that 33 million dives take place in the ocean worldwide, but that only 15% of sites where those dives take place are strictly protected from fishing and other damaging activities. According to the authors, expanding marine protections for these spots — which constitute less than 1% of the entire ocean — would make them far more attractive to divers and lead to greater profitability for the dive tourism sector.
As a result of expanded protections, recreational scuba divers would have more and bigger marine life to marvel at. A growing body of research shows that fully protected areas can help restore fish populations by 500% on average, yield bigger fish over time and help replenish fishing grounds around the MPAs because of the spillover of marine life.
Harnessing dive tourism could jumpstart an economic engine for coastal economies, particularly in the Global South. What’s more, the billions in tourism profits could quickly offset the cost of creating and maintaining marine protected areas in a region with the highest marine biodiversity in the world, the authors found.
“Bottom line: Ocean protection benefits marine life, coastal communities and businesses,” remarked Enric Sala, founder of National Geographic Pristine Seas. “Protecting diving sites from fishing and other damaging activities can generate new streams of income and benefit more people. It's increasingly clear that efforts to protect 30% of the ocean by 2030 are even more beneficial than we thought.”
According to the research, Egypt, Thailand and the U.S. host the most scuba dives — close to 3 million every year in each location — while Indonesia, Egypt and Australia host the most dives in fully or highly protected MPAs. It finds that the Philippines, United States and Indonesia, which host the largest number of dives in unprotected waters, would benefit most from designating sanctuaries in popular diving spots.
“The moment a diver comes face-to-face with the ocean’s vast beauty, they understand the importance and urgency of protecting it,” said Drew Richardson, president & CEO of PADI – the world’s largest scuba diving organization, whose 6,600 dive centers and resorts in over 180 countries provided data sets for the study. “By safeguarding dive sites with more marine protected areas, we can reinvigorate the diver experience and regenerate hope for the ocean. The more people that are inspired to explore the ocean, the more torchbearers we will have to further advocate for safeguarding its future.”
To arrive at their conclusions, researchers assembled a database of dive shops, dive sites and prices from thousands of locations worldwide to estimate the number of dives annually, the extent to which protection would increase biomass and biodiversity in an area, and divers’ willingness to pay access fees for diving in a marine protected area. They found that 67% of all dive sites are located within the boundaries of MPAs — although only 15% are located within highly or fully protected areas. They then determined that enforcing highly and fully protected MPAs within existing recreational diving locations would increase the demand for diving and the number of dives by 32% (or 10.5 million more dives per year) and dive industry revenue by $616 million annually.
The authors found that the consumer surplus — the measure of what someone is willing to pay for a scuba diving experience versus what the actual cost is — is $2.7 billion per year. In other words, divers would willingly pay more for the experience, driving up the profitability of the sector.
"In Mexico alone, the diving industry generates annual revenues comparable to the country’s entire fisheries sector, making marine conservation not just an environmental necessity, but an economic imperative," said Octavio Aburto-Oropeza, professor at Scripps Institution of Oceanography and co-author of the study. "From the vibrant reefs of Cozumel to the fully protected marine reserve of Cabo Pulmo, this industry welcomes up to 1.7 million divers each year. Strengthening conservation efforts and fostering small-scale, community-led ecotourism will not only elevate the diving experience, but will also ensure the long-term sustainability of marine tourism worldwide."
There are many examples from around the world that show that MPAs produce spillover of fishes and invertebrates that increases the catches of species from small and sedentary (lobsters, scallops) to large and migratory (tuna). A recent study shows that fishing catch per unit effort increases on average 12-18% near the boundaries of large fully protected MPAs.
The research calculated that the operation of additional MPAs (including enforcement) that total 1% of the global ocean would cost up to $1.2 billion and that scuba divers’ access fees could generate more than enough revenue to cover those costs. In contrast, in 2020, countries in the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and other large fishing nations spent over $10 billion of public money on supporting their fisheries.
The new study builds on a body of research highlighting the underutilized role scuba diving can play in ocean conservation.
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About National Geographic Pristine Seas
National Geographic Pristine Seas works with Indigenous and local communities, governments, and other partners to protect vital places in the ocean through research, policy, and filmmaking. Since 2008, Pristine Seas has helped establish 30 marine protected areas, spanning more than 6.9 million square kilometers of ocean.
Pristine Seas is part of the global non-profit, the National Geographic Society. Our mission is driven by science and filmmaking — we are fully independent from National Geographic publishing and its media arm.
Pristine Seas' work is made possible through the generous support of the Beagle Charitable Foundation, Allison Bennington, Bezos Earth Fund, Bloomberg Philanthropies, The Campbell Foundation, Disney Conservation Fund, Don Quixote Foundation, The Heinz Family Foundation, Anne K. Howson, Levy Foundation, LGT Venture Philanthropy, Lindblad Expeditions– National Geographic Fund, Look and See Foundation, Ann Luskey, Oracle, Philip Stephenson Foundation, Postcode Lottery Group, Rituals, Serventi Family Foundation, Tanka Foundation, Ted and Michele Waitt–TTMMC Fund, UBS Optimus Foundation, Walmart Foundation, an anonymous donor, and other individual donors.
About The National Geographic Society
The National Geographic Society is a global nonprofit organization that uses the power of science, exploration, education and storytelling to illuminate and protect the wonder of our world. Since 1888, National Geographic has pushed the boundaries of exploration, investing in bold people and transformative ideas, providing more than 15,000 grants for work across all seven continents, reaching 3 million students each year through education offerings, and engaging audiences around the globe through signature experiences, stories and content.
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