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Nature conservation versus scenic quality: A GIS approach towards optimized tourist tracks in a protected area of Northwest Yunnan, China

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Abstract

Development of appropriate tourism infrastructure is important for protected areas that allow public access for tourism use. This is meant to avoid or minimize unfavourable impacts on natural resources through guiding tourists for proper use. In this paper, a GIS-based method, the least-cost path (LCP) modelling, is explored for planning tourist tracks in a World Heritage site in Northwest Yunnan (China), where tourism is increasing rapidly while appropriate infrastructure is almost absent. The modelling process contains three steps: 1) selection of evaluation criteria (physical, biological and landscape scenic) that are relevant to track decision; 2) translation of evluation criteria into spatially explicit cost surfaces with GIS, and 3) use of Dijkstra’s algorithm to determine the least-cost tracks. Four tracks that link main entrances and scenic spots of the study area are proposed after optimizing all evaluation criteria. These tracks feature low-environmental impacts and high landscape qualities, which represent a reasonable solution to balance tourist use and nature conservation in the study area. In addtion, the study proves that the LCP modelling can not only offer a structured framwork for track planning but also allow for different stakeholders to participate in the planning process. It therefore enhances the effectivenss of tourism planning and managemnt in protected areas.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Ecology and Geobotany, Yunnan University, Kunming, 650091, China

    Ming-yu Yang, Xiao-kun Ou & Zhi-ming Zhang

  2. Laboratory of Forest Management and Spatial Information Techniques, Universiteit Gent, Gent, 9000, Belgium

    Ming-yu Yang, Frieke Van Coillie & Robert De Wulf

  3. Flemish Institute for Technological Research, Mol, 2400, Belgium

    Luc Hens

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Yang, My., Van Coillie, F., Hens, L. et al. Nature conservation versus scenic quality: A GIS approach towards optimized tourist tracks in a protected area of Northwest Yunnan, China. J. Mt. Sci. 11, 142–155 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11629-012-2459-6

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