Ecotourism spatial-time planning model using ecosystem approaches and landscape ecology.

Area of Science:

• Environmental Science
• Tourism Geography
• Regional Planning

Background:

• The tourism industry is a growing field with significant potential for regional economic development.
• Assessing land capabilities for tourism and ecotourism is crucial for sustainable development.
• Geographical assessment of tourism potential is a growing necessity for effective land use planning.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate and validate various criteria and methods for land capability assessment specifically for tourism and ecotourism.
• To analyze the impact of landscape aesthetics, value, habitat quality, and rarity on tourism potential.
• To predict land capabilities for tourism and ecotourism up to the year 2040.

Main Methods:

• Utilized criteria such as aesthetic landscape value, landscape value, habitat quality, and habitat rarity.
• Employed a decision system incorporating the fuzzy gamma method for land capability assessment.
• Analyzed data spanning from 2000 to 2020 and projected future capabilities to 2040.

Main Results:

• The integration of four specific criteria with the fuzzy gamma method significantly improved the land capability assessment model from an accuracy of 0.42 to 0.776.
• Commonly used criteria in ecotourism decision-making systems were found to be insufficiently accurate or transferable to other regions.
• The study highlights the effectiveness of a refined set of criteria and a specific decision method for accurate land capability assessment.

Conclusions:

• The fuzzy gamma method, combined with carefully selected criteria, offers a robust approach to land capability assessment for tourism and ecotourism.
• Existing broad criteria for ecotourism decision-making may lack the precision and applicability needed for effective regional planning.
• Accurate land capability assessment is vital for maximizing tourism potential and fostering sustainable regional development.