Document Type : Science - Research
Author
Faculty member of Payame Noor university, Tehran, Iran
Abstract
The rapid growth of the tourism industry and the prioritization of economic benefits in protected areas around Tehran have disturbed the principles of sustainable development and leads to increasing pressure on the environment. So calculating the carrying capacity of tourist areas is recommended as a key solution. The main purpose is to determine the tourism carrying capacity in the Varjin Protected Area due to its proximity to the capital and with its unique nature and ecological attractions. The research method is survey and descriptive-analytical. The data were collected through interviews with environment guard, climatic statistics from the Lavasan synoptic station, and using GIS software. The carrying capacity was calculated by TCC as a quantitative tool, in three levels: physical, real and effective. To determine the wide range capacity, ecological attractions such as wildlife visits, water resources and mountaineering were selected and their carrying capacity were determined on the basis of (person / hectare / day) and then compared with the Baud-Bovy international standard. Based on the results, estimation of effective range capacities in all three tourist attractions indicated that the computations were less than 5 people per hectare. Hence, it complies with the world standard. The results of the study indicate the appropriate range capacity for widespread tourism and tourist attraction in the Virgin Protected Area.
Keywords
Main Subjects
)