Sustainability manifesting as a multi-material and -sited network effect: How boat-sourced sewage management facilities serve as governance artefacts advancing sustainability in nautical tourism

Abstract

Marinas are a part of coastal areas' touristic appeal, but also hotspots for boat-sourced pollution. Considering the manifestation of sustainability in marina operation, we utilize actor-network theory (ANT) in demonstrating a conceptual systems analysis on boat-sourced sewage management (BSSM) as one important socio-eco-technical sub-system of sustainable nautical tourism. We describe a multi-material collective of dynamically interacting human and non-human entities to understand how and under what conditions BSSM facilities advance the sustainability of marina operation. Our analysis insightfully uncovers BSSM facilities as both core marina services and governance artefacts and reveals that managing boat-sourced sewage successfully is an outcome of a multi-sited network of heterogeneous elements that together enable both sustainable boating practices and marina operation. We suggest the presented ANT-based systemic thinking has potential for providing novel perspectives to sustainability analyses in diverse tourism-related contexts.

Keywords: Environmental citizenship; Environmental management; Recreational boating; Small ports; Sustainable tourism; Waste water.