A local tourism official is keeping an eye on statistics to see if changing Canadian attitudes about the U.S. government could affect the number of travelers visiting Whidbey Island.

Early numbers based on internet searches shows a mixed picture, according to the Embrace Whidbey and Camano Islands organization.

Inge Morascini, marketing and public relations manager for the group, recently spoke at an Island County Council of Governments meeting and expressed concern about the possible change in tourism from Canada amid tensions between the two allies. Embrace Whidbey and Camano Islands oversees Island County’s comprehensive marketing plan and is funded by 2% lodging taxes and grants.

“We are concerned because certain municipalities, like Coupeville for example, are heavily dependent on Canadian visitors,” Morascini told the members of the Council of Governments.

Polls have shown that Canadian tourists are less likely to visit the U.S. because they are upset about President Donald Trump’s large tariffs on Canadian goods as well as his threats to make the sovereign North American ally into America’s 51st state.

A recent poll by the market firm Leger found that nearly half of Canadians surveyed reported that they are less likely to travel to the U.S. this year.

An Ipsos poll for Global News released after the announcement of the tariffs found that 68% of Canadian residents thought less of their southern neighbor.

National tourism groups warn that a decrease in tourism from Canada could have a sizable impact on the U.S. tourism industry, especially in northern border states like Washington. The U.S. Travel Association estimated that just a 10% reduction in Canadian tourism to the U.S. would mean a $2.1 billion drop in spending and a loss of 14,000 American jobs.

On Friday, Morascini and Washington State Tourism provided the News-Times with statistics and a comment.

“While we are always looking at trends in key markets both domestically and internationally, right now we are closely tracking estimates and data regarding traveler sentiment in Canada,” Morascini said. “Whidbey and Camano islands are a popular getaway for Canadians, making up 43.8% of international visitors. We’ve always had a positive relationship with our Canadian visitors and plan to closely monitor the trends and put informed strategies in place to ensure we welcome them for years to come.”

Traffic on the Embrace Whidbey and Camano Islands website, whidbeycamanoislands.com, is up nearly 20% but traffic to the site from Canada is down 55% from a year ago.

Active users on the site from Feb. 27 to March 26 of this year numbered nearly 25,000, as compared to about 20,000 over the same period last year. The number of active users from Canada dropped from 925 to 413 in the same period.

On the other hand, Google Trends show the same level of inquiries from Canada about Whidbey Island as a year ago. Not surprising, most of the Canadian inquiries originate in nearby British Columbia.

Google Trends show that 43.8% of international Google traffic related to Whidbey and Camano islands tourism is from Canada, followed by 21% originating in Japan.

Tourism is undeniably big business on scenic Whidbey Island.

Embrace Whidbey and Camano Islands’ report, Island County Regenerative Tourism, states that tourism is the county’s third largest industry and is a significant economic driver. It has grown 54% in the last 20 years.

Tourism in Island County accounts for $177 million of gross revenue, not inclusive of retail sales. The state Employment Security Department reports that nearly 20% of jobs in the county are supported by the tourism industry.