Reykjavík Grapevine - 04.04.2014, Síða 14

14The Reykjavík Grapevine Issue 4 — 2014
Chantal Porthault
Switzerland
Should it cost money to go to nature sites in Iceland?
No. We paid recently to see Geysir and we think it’s
not right. I don’t want to pay to see something from
nature. If I go to see a museum, or houses with grass
roofs, it’s normal to pay, because humans have to do
something to make sure it looks clean and okay. But
for nature sites? No, that’s not normal.
If the hot dog stand was a part of the Nature Pass
package, would you be more or less likely to buy
a pass?
What? If I have to pay? We’re from Switzerland. If
this place was in the national parks? No. It’s good,
but it should stay here. You can’t put a hot dog stand
in a national park.
Rúnar Sigurðsson
Iceland
What do you think about charging for entry to nature
sites in Iceland?
I don’t like it. I don’t like the way they charge for it.
They want to charge money at each site; that’s crazy.
A pass is good, so everybody can pay without being
charged everywhere. That’s so crazy. The tourists
would be so upset if they were taking money every-
where.
How much would you be willing to pay to visit a site?
I don’t want to pay to visit Gullfoss, I don’t want to.
I understand it costs money to run the toilets, so
somewhere they must charge money, but I don’t
want to pay when I go visit Gullfoss. Simple as that.
Andrew Shirbin
Australia
Do you think it should cost money to visit nature
sites in Iceland?
I guess it depends on what the money goes to. If it
goes to support the sites themselves, then yes, abso-
lutely, to ensure they’re maintained and kept good
for people to visit in the future.
Should tourists and Icelanders pay the same
amount?
I guess so. If they visit, then they are theoretically
running down the sites. It’s just my suspicion, but
maybe some of their taxes go to natural upkeep, so
in that case, maybe they should pay less. I guess
there’s more than one way to skin a cat.
If the hot dog stand was a part of the Nature Pass
package, would you be more or less likely to buy a
pass?
Much more! I’d probably pay about five times the
price. I really like the hot dog stand. It’s the first
place we came to yesterday, and we’re back today. We
each had like two or three hot dogs yesterday, and
my friend Joe is working on another couple here.
Serena Fiacco
Switzerland
If you had to pay to visit nature sites in Iceland, how
much would you pay?
A lot, actually, because it’s worth it.
Would you rather pay at each site, or buy a card that
gives you access everywhere?
I think I would prefer the card, because you feel like
you have the opportunity to go everywhere.
Should Icelanders and tourists pay the same
amount?
Well, Icelandic people probably shouldn’t pay so
much, since it’s their country. I think it’s okay if
tourists pay a little more, but not three times what
the local people pay.
If the hot dog stand were a national park, would you
pay to visit it?
Um, I am kind of paying to visit it, because I could
have a cheaper hot dog somewhere else.
Sólkatla Ólafsdóttir
Iceland
Do you support the Nature Pass?
Yes, I just think it’s a great idea. We have to charge
for these things, and this is a great way for tourists
to pay rather than to be charged for each and every
place.
Should Icelanders have to pay?
No.
If you had to pay, would you?
I would hesitate. If it was something like 500 ISK I
would pay, but no more.
Do you think the facilities and infrastructure at the
nature sites are in good shape?
Yes, they are probably okay as they are now. But I’m
Icelandic, so I don’t go there all the time.
If the hot dog stand were a national park, would you
pay to visit it?
Yes, probably.
Vox Pop: The People Speak At Bæjarins Beztu Pylsur
Pay
Per
View
Icelande
rs put a
price ta
g on
their na
ture for
the firs
t time,
ever
Up until this point, Icelanders en-
joyed nearly unrestricted access to
both privately and publicly owned
nature sites, be they volcanoes,
glaciers, waterfalls, rock forma-
tions, or geysers—due in large
part to the spirit of one short, but
powerful paragraph in the coun-
try’s “Nature Conservation Law.”
Although it speaks specifically to
freedom of movement, this law
underlines an intrinsically Ice-
landic principle: a parcel of land
might be privately owned, but the
country and all its natural won-
ders belong to all Icelanders.
The actions of the Kerið land-
owners were historically and
socially significant. However, it
was not until this year, when the
landowners of more high-profile
tourist spots such as Geysir and
Dettifoss announced their own
similar plans, that people—in-
cluding representatives of the
tourist industry, members of par-
liament and average citizens—be-
gan to protest.
Many (if not most) people agree
that the spike in foreign visitors
travelling to Iceland and visiting
natural sites puts the country’s
pristine nature at risk and that
preservation efforts need to be
stepped up if anyone—whether
Icelandic or foreign—is going
to enjoy it in the future. But they
are far from unified on how to ad-
dress this issue. While other land-
owners plan to follow in Kerið’s
footsteps, the government is mov-
ing forward with an altogether
different and equally unpopular
fee-collection method called the
Nature Pass.
This is a complex issue encom-
passing many voices and moving
parts, and one which has yet to
be fully examined by the media.
So the following is our attempt to
deconstruct it, looking at the legal
precedent, alternative methods of
implementation, public opinion
and more.
It seems clear that people now have to pay for the privilege
of gaining access to Icelandic nature. What’s not clear, how-
ever, is if this is actually legal. The potential hang-up is one of
Iceland’s oldest laws, dating back more than 700 years. Today
the law is contained within Iceland’s Nature Conservation Law
(“Lög um náttúruvernd”).
Chapter 4.18 states: “People are permitted, without ex-
pressed permission from landowners or rights holders, to
walk, ski, skate and use a non-motorised sled or travel in a
comparable fashion through non-cultivated land and stay
there. Under special circumstances though, it is permis-
sible to put up signs on gates and steps to restrict or ban
people from passing through or staying on fenced off, un-
cultivated land in the country if it is necessary for utilising
or protecting it.”
Aside from former Minister of the Interior and current MP
Ögmundur Jónasson encouraging the public to join him at
Geysir to protest what he deems illegal fee collection based on
this law, it has received little attention in the debate about how
to best raise funds for the preservation of Iceland’s nature.
Is This Even Legal?
Examining Iceland’s Conservation Law
In June last year, something unprecedented happened here in Iceland: a group of pri-
vate landowners erected a barrier fence and started charging people to gain access to
Kerið, a volcanic crater lake located on their property in Grímsnes, South Iceland. Their
claim was that the boom in foot traffic has damaged Kerið and that they needed to
charge admission to protect and preserve it.
— By Anna Andersen, Ben Smick, Jonathan
Pattishal, Larissa Kyzer, Tómas Gabríel Benjamin
& Yasmin Nowak Axel Sigurðarson