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Man-made marine structures (MMS) are commonly used to describe any artificial structure in the marine environment, encompassing oil and gas infrastructure and pipelines, artificial reefs, jetties, piers and shipwrecks. MMS are increasingly proposed to address issues facing marine planners, including augmenting fish stocks through the creation of artificial reefs and the repurposing of redundant offshore oil and gas infrastructure (‘rigs to reefs’). Marine spatial planning is a highly contested process, characterised by multiple stakeholders with often divergent priorities due to competing objectives and values. Understanding stakeholder perspectives in relation to MMS is therefore critical in formulating appropriate policies. This review presents the first systematic and comprehensive integration of information from academic journals and ‘grey’ literature relating to social and economic values and perceptions of MMS. The review identifies that, despite advocacy for research on social and economic values of MMS, there are significant gaps in knowledge, in particular relating to comparative assessments of stakeholder values across different types of MMS. Priority areas for future research are highlighted.

Shark-diving tourism is a fast-growing industry that provides socio-economic benefits to local communities. This study estimated the economic contribution of the shark-diving tourism in the Maldives by using surveys with dive tourists and dive operators. Direct business revenue from shark divers was estimated to be US$14.4 million. Revenues to local businesses associated with travel expenses of shark divers were estimated to be US$51.4 million. Further economic benefits from shark-diving occurred in form of annual business tax revenues of US$7.2 million and annual salaries to employees working in the diving industry of US$4.1 million. These values were compared with the business revenues from shark-diving in the Maldives in 1992 to assess how the shark-diving industry has changed over time. The results of this study indicate that the business revenues of this industry have almost doubled (when inflation adjusted) over the last 24 years confirming its economic growth and importance for the Maldives. Effective management of shark dive operations is crucial for maintaining the value and sustainability of this tourism industry to improve ongoing conservation efforts for shark populations.

This study estimated the economic value of the shark-diving industry in Semporna, the most popular diving destination of Malaysia, by surveying the expenditures of diving tourists and dive operators through the region. A willingness-to-pay survey was also used to estimate the potential of the industry as a financing mechanism for enforcement and management of a hypothetical Marine Protected Area (MPA) to conserve shark populations. The study showed that in 2012, shark-diving tourism provided direct revenues in excess of USD 9.8 million to the Semporna region. These economic benefits had a flow-on effect, generating more than USD 2 million in direct taxes to the government and USD 1.4 million in salaries to the community. A contingent valuation analysis indicated that implementation of a fee paid by divers could generate over USD 2 million for management and enforcement of the MPA each year. These findings suggest that shark diving is an important contributor to the economy of the Semporna region that could be used as a mechanism to assist financial resourcing for management and conservation strategies.