ENVIRONMENTAL AND RISK MANAGEMENT AS DRIVERS OF SUSTAINABLE TOURISM: EVIDENCE FROM TOURISM ENTERPRISES IN RIVERS STATE, NIGERIA

This study investigated environmental and risk management as drivers of sustainable tourism among tourism enterprises in Rivers State, Nigeria. The study was motivated by growing concerns regarding environmental degradation, operational uncertainties, and the need for sustainable tourism development within the tourism sector. Specifically, the study examined the influence of environmental management practices on sustainable tourism development, determined the effect of risk management practices on tourism resilience, assessed the relationship between environmental sustainability and tourism enterprise performance, and evaluated the combined influence of environmental management and risk management on sustainable tourism development. The study adopted a cross-sectional survey research design. The population comprised 1,320 managers and employees of registered tourism enterprises in Rivers State, from which a sample size of 400 respondents was determined using the Taro Yamane formula. Data were collected through a structured questionnaire and analysed using mean, standard deviation, Pearson Product Moment Correlation, and multiple regression analysis. The findings revealed that environmental management practices significantly influenced sustainable tourism development (β = 0.428, p < 0.05), while risk management practices significantly enhanced tourism resilience (β = 0.389, p < 0.05). The study further found a significant positive relationship between environmental sustainability and tourism enterprise performance (r = 0.703, p < 0.05). Additionally, environmental management and risk management jointly explained 65.9% of the variation in sustainable tourism development (R² = 0.659). The study concluded that effective environmental and risk management are fundamental drivers of sustainable tourism. It was recommended that tourism enterprises strengthen environmental programmes, institutionalise comprehensive risk management systems, promote sustainability-focused operations, and adopt integrated environmental-risk management frameworks to enhance long-term tourism sustainability.