Differentiating the experience of boater 'Publics'

The intent of this investigation was to study the differences in perceptions of Delaware Inland Bay boaters - permanent residents, seasonal residents, seasonal visitors - towards boating quality, experimental impacts, litter and marine waste, and changes in environmental quality and living resources so as to better plan, manage and market quality recreation experiences. Use data, user characteristics, activities, perceptions and preferences for management alternatives were collected from recreational boaters using on-site interviews, mail surveys and on-water counts. All data were descriptively analyzed. A discriminant function analysis was performed to simultaneously examine differences betwen the three boater groups.