Tourism, Recreation and Trail Impacts - Tourism and Trails: Cultural, Ecological and Management Issues - page 127

Research since the 1960s and 1970s, with increased attention during the
1980s and 1990s, has shown that tourism, wherever it develops, has social,
economic and ecological outcomes, some of which are positive while others
are negative (Besculides et al. , 2002; Buckley & Pannell, 1990; Deery et al. ,
2012; Din, 1988; Dwyer et al. , 2010; Eagleston & Rubin, 2013; Kottke, 1988;
Wong, 2004). This chapter examines the ecological, social and economic
impacts arising from trail and route utilization. With regard to ecological
impacts, research on both negative and positive impacts are addressed,
including soil compaction, erosion, vegetation change, wildlife and tangible
heritage. Research on social impacts of trails and routes focuses on resident
perceptions and reactions, trail user perceptions and reactions, as well as
social benefits. Economic impact research on trails and routes examines user
expenditure and indirect economic effects. A number of detailed impact case
studies are provided for each of these three environments, along with smaller
examples within each section. The chapter commences by addressing
research on the ecological impacts of trail and route utilization where the
focus has been the negative implications.
Type of Trail/Route Impacts
Ecological impacts
The physical environment consists of many parts, including soil, water,
vegetation, animals, bedrock, air and cultural artifacts. Each one of these is
an important part of an ecosystem or cultural environment and is impacted
by the utilization of trails and routes for tourism and recreation (Cho et al. ,
2004; Farrell & Marion, 2001, 2002; Kwon et al. , 2004; Maikhuri et al. , 2000;
Marion & Leung, 2001; Mbaiwa, 2003; Pendleton et al. , 1998; Woo, 1991).
Research on the physical structure of trails strongly suggests that impacts
are most noticeable and measurable on countryside or wilderness tracks that
are non-hardened, unmaintained or poorly designed (Marion & Leung, 2001).
This describes the majority of trails throughout the world. Of these subsets
of the physical environment, soil, flora, fauna, water and material culture are
the most pertinent in the context of trails. This section describes the effects
of route-based recreation and tourism on trails and several of their associated
physical environments.
Soil compaction and erosion
One of the most often-cited physical impacts of trail use on the natural
environment is soil compaction and other soil disturbances. This has been the
focus of many ecological studies, particularly in the context of unplanned and
wilderness trails, where these effects are most vivid (Azlin & Philip, 2004;
Chizhova, 2004; D'Antonio et al. , 2013; Dolesh, 2004b; Hornby & Sheate,