Abstract
Recreation and tourism are important for economic growth and human wellbeing. They are directly related to the cultural services provided by ecosystems. Recreational services, as part of tourism, have the greatest potential for development within the sector of services in the Slovak economy, and they are able to generate a significant number of new jobs especially in small rural regions. There is a gap in the literature providing assessments of geographically small regions in relation to their potential to provide different types of ecosystem services. The aim of the article was to evaluate and assess the recreational potential of ecosystem services in two small pilot regions of the Slovak Republic, Brezno district and Krupina district. Modified matrix of indices was used. Results showed that Brezno district has a higher area of ecosystems with a higher potential for recreation, therefore the conditions for recreation and tourism are much better in comparison to Krupina district. However, the use of recreation potential in Brezno district is negatively affected by the availability of sites and transport options, which is reflected in a lower ratio of visitors to the capacity of recreation potential. This finding opens up discussion about opportunities to create new jobs within sustainable tourism in Brezno district. This study provides an alternative view to the assessment and evaluation of the recreational potential of ecosystem services in small regions. Moreover, the methodology developed in this paper is replicable and could be applied by planners using geographical information systems.
Highlights
Interconnections of the economy with ecological dimensions are clearly visible through the services provided by ecosystems, which are referred as natural capital [1]
The use of recreation potential in Brezno district is negatively affected by the availability of sites and transport options, which is reflected in a lower ratio of visitors to the capacity of recreation potential
The analysis and assessment of cultural services are important for the management of ecosystems, where arable land has the potential to provide cultural ecosystem services, but grasslands dispose of real prerequisites for their fulfillment, especially those focused on recreation [7] [8]
Summary
Interconnections of the economy with ecological dimensions are clearly visible through the services provided by ecosystems, which are referred as natural capital [1]. The system approach assumes the estimation of the values and services of the ecosystem they provide, including causal mechanisms within ecological systems [3] [4]. Ecosystem services linked to natural capital are divided by Dominati et al [5] into three basic groups: provisioning, regulating, and cultural ecosystem services. The analysis and assessment of cultural services are important for the management of ecosystems (including agroecosystems), where arable land has the potential to provide cultural ecosystem services, but grasslands dispose of real prerequisites for their fulfillment, especially those focused on recreation [7] [8]
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