Carrying Capacity as a Tourism Management Strategy in a Marine Protected Area: A Political Ecology Analysis
Natural protected areas are often required to concurrently support conservation and tourism development. Estimating the ecosystem's carrying capacity and setting up visitor access limitations is a common approach in maximising resource use to avoid environmental degradation. Our research used a...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Wolters Kluwer Medknow Publications
2019-01-01
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| Series: | Conservation & Society |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://www.conservationandsociety.org/article.asp?issn=0972-4923;year=2019;volume=17;issue=4;spage=366;epage=376;aulast=Llausas |
| _version_ | 1818979154565005312 |
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| author | Albert Llausàs Josep Vila-Subirós Josep Pueyo-Ros Rosa Maria Fraguell |
| author_facet | Albert Llausàs Josep Vila-Subirós Josep Pueyo-Ros Rosa Maria Fraguell |
| author_sort | Albert Llausàs |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Natural protected areas are often required to concurrently support conservation and tourism development. Estimating the ecosystem's carrying capacity and setting up visitor access limitations is a common approach in maximising resource use to avoid environmental degradation. Our research used a case study strategy and a political ecology approach to analyse the conflict surrounding a carrying capacity-based management plan implemented in a Mediterranean marine protected area under severe pressure from scuba diving. A mixed documental and discourse analysis method based on fieldwork, grey literature and 16 semi-structured interviews with representatives of seven groups of stakeholders was used. Results indicate that although the carrying capacity approach was instrumentally supported by all groups, conventional scientific ecological knowledge played only a specious role in decision-making. Factors related to path dependency, neoliberal governance frameworks, uneven distribution of power among stakeholders and regulatory weaknesses were found to be the most influential in facilitating increased visitor pressure in the reserve. We conclude that, in order to be effective and mitigate social conflict, natural resource management strategies based on the carrying capacity concept must be complemented with a precursory assessment of the biopolitical context to align the goals of planning with the possibilities of the socially constructed environment. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-20T16:55:01Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-a7ab363947c8416d93c2c49043c64ad1 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 0972-4923 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-20T16:55:01Z |
| publishDate | 2019-01-01 |
| publisher | Wolters Kluwer Medknow Publications |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Conservation & Society |
| spelling | doaj.art-a7ab363947c8416d93c2c49043c64ad12022-12-21T19:32:45ZengWolters Kluwer Medknow PublicationsConservation & Society0972-49232019-01-0117436637610.4103/cs.cs_18_154Carrying Capacity as a Tourism Management Strategy in a Marine Protected Area: A Political Ecology AnalysisAlbert LlausàsJosep Vila-SubirósJosep Pueyo-RosRosa Maria FraguellNatural protected areas are often required to concurrently support conservation and tourism development. Estimating the ecosystem's carrying capacity and setting up visitor access limitations is a common approach in maximising resource use to avoid environmental degradation. Our research used a case study strategy and a political ecology approach to analyse the conflict surrounding a carrying capacity-based management plan implemented in a Mediterranean marine protected area under severe pressure from scuba diving. A mixed documental and discourse analysis method based on fieldwork, grey literature and 16 semi-structured interviews with representatives of seven groups of stakeholders was used. Results indicate that although the carrying capacity approach was instrumentally supported by all groups, conventional scientific ecological knowledge played only a specious role in decision-making. Factors related to path dependency, neoliberal governance frameworks, uneven distribution of power among stakeholders and regulatory weaknesses were found to be the most influential in facilitating increased visitor pressure in the reserve. We conclude that, in order to be effective and mitigate social conflict, natural resource management strategies based on the carrying capacity concept must be complemented with a precursory assessment of the biopolitical context to align the goals of planning with the possibilities of the socially constructed environment.http://www.conservationandsociety.org/article.asp?issn=0972-4923;year=2019;volume=17;issue=4;spage=366;epage=376;aulast=LlausasCarrying capacitycase studycommodification of natureMedes Islandsnatural resource managementneoliberal governancescuba divingtourism managementvisitor cap |
| spellingShingle | Albert Llausàs Josep Vila-Subirós Josep Pueyo-Ros Rosa Maria Fraguell Carrying Capacity as a Tourism Management Strategy in a Marine Protected Area: A Political Ecology Analysis Conservation & Society Carrying capacity case study commodification of nature Medes Islands natural resource management neoliberal governance scuba diving tourism management visitor cap |
| title | Carrying Capacity as a Tourism Management Strategy in a Marine Protected Area: A Political Ecology Analysis |
| title_full | Carrying Capacity as a Tourism Management Strategy in a Marine Protected Area: A Political Ecology Analysis |
| title_fullStr | Carrying Capacity as a Tourism Management Strategy in a Marine Protected Area: A Political Ecology Analysis |
| title_full_unstemmed | Carrying Capacity as a Tourism Management Strategy in a Marine Protected Area: A Political Ecology Analysis |
| title_short | Carrying Capacity as a Tourism Management Strategy in a Marine Protected Area: A Political Ecology Analysis |
| title_sort | carrying capacity as a tourism management strategy in a marine protected area a political ecology analysis |
| topic | Carrying capacity case study commodification of nature Medes Islands natural resource management neoliberal governance scuba diving tourism management visitor cap |
| url | http://www.conservationandsociety.org/article.asp?issn=0972-4923;year=2019;volume=17;issue=4;spage=366;epage=376;aulast=Llausas |
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