Queensland's national parks a tourism gold mine, says State Government A STATE Government report has found that the national park estate is a tourism gold mine. Almost one third of all tourist dollars spent in Queensland are forked out by park visitors. And almost two-thirds of all inbound visitors list nature-based activities as the key reason for their visit to Australia, with Queensland's parks swamped by 7.9 million visitors annually. The draft Queensland Ecotourism Plan says visitors to the state's parks - excluding day trippers - contribute $4.5 billion to the economy, or about 28 per cent of total spending. Marine parks too are generating substantial economic benefits, with the Great Barrier Reef Marine park contributing $5.1 billion and 54,000 jobs. The report says tourism opportunities include "unlocking" parks, developing experiences from premium camping to boutique lodges and attracting Chinese and Indian visitors. Challenges are the high Australian dollar, a decline in global visitors and international destinations offering cheaper deals. Great Barrier Reef off the Queensland coast. Picture: Lindsay Moller In an attempt to boost tourism, the Government has opened the protected estate to bike riding and proposes to allow resorts in some parks. National Parks Minister Steve Dickson said the plan recognised that the state's greatest advantage was its natural environment. "We are blessed with more than 1300 national parks, marine parks and other reserves conserving a diverse array of species and ecosystems, our rich indigenous cultural heritage and five World Heritage listed areas - more than any other state or territory," he said. The Government's plan was to increase eco-tourism expenditure to $30 billion by 2020. National Parks Association chief executive Paul Donatiu said visitor figures showed that the Government's mantra that parks had to be opened up was a myth. Figures showed enormous useage, with 70 per cent of Queenslanders having visited a park in the past year. A diver snorkels in the Great Barrier Reef off Queensland's coast. AP Photo/Queensland Tourism "Putting things like resorts in national parks risks killing the goose that laid the golden egg," he said. Queensland Conservation chairman Simon Baltais said the Government's move to carve off parts of such a well-performing public asset to developers was repugnant. Mr Dickson said ecotourism would be guided by ecologically responsible and sustainable practices and parks and protected areas had a big tourism role to play. Queensland Tourism Industry Council chief executive Daniel Gschwind said the organisation recognised the state's natural environment as critical to visitors and the plan addressed critical issues like providing commercially-viable investment to deliver quality tourism.