More Hawaii residents appreciate tourism in the midst of the lingering downturn than they did at its peak, according to the findings of a Hawaii Tourism Authority resident sentiment survey.

More residents—seven percentage points' worth—agreed that tourism has brought more benefits than problems to the state than it did in 2007 when the last survey was administered, the HTA said yesterday. Close to 80 percent of residents agree that tourism has bought more benefits than problems to the state.

The survey, conducted Aug. 27 through Sept. 20, was the seventh such telephone survey carried out for HTA.

Six hundred Oahu residents and 1,050 neighbor island residents participated in the survey, which was weighted to reflect ethnic and age distribution in each county. The survey's random sample had an error level of plus or minus 3 percent.

“;These results are encouraging because Hawaii's visitor industry relies on support from residents,”; said Mike McCartney, president and chief executive officer of HTA.

“;Last year was challenging for all of us, and with tourism accounting for nearly 17 percent of our state's economy and 151,000 jobs, it is critical that we continue to work together as a community for the benefit of everyone in the state.”;

Report findings also revealed that fewer residents believed that their island is being run for tourists at the expense of local residents, with 49 percent agreeing with the statement.

This is a decrease from 2007 where 55 percent agreed.

“;Our survey revealed that residents understand the trade-offs between economic benefits and negative impacts, and most do not blame tourism as the primary cause of traffic and increases in the cost of living,”; said Pat Loui, president/owner of OmniTrak Group, the research company that conducted the 2009 survey.

However, some residents indicated that they were less satisfied with the visitor industry's role in solving community problems, making the state a safe place, sustaining natural resources or preserving Hawaiian language and culture.

Neighbor island residents and Hawaiians viewed tourism least favorably.

Industry employees and Filipino residents were the most supportive.

“;We know we still have areas that we need to work on as an industry,”; said McCartney. “;At HTA we are focused on driving demand to travel to Hawaii, but we also understand our responsibility to protect Hawaii's natural resources and perpetuate our host culture.”;

The HTA has allocated more than $1.6 million to programs that protect and support the Hawaiian culture and the state's natural resources, he said.