Abstract
Ecological tourism stands out as an economic activity that can be reconciled with nature conservation. Such activities have been carried out in several conservation units in Brazil. However, for satisfactory implementation, it is necessary to effectively plan the activities to be conducted, places to be visited, and paths to reach those places. In this context, we aimed to assess whether Google Earth software can assist in the expansion of the plan to use these areas for ecotourism, especially the routes that may be taken by tourists within the conservation unit. For this purpose, tourist interest sites were defined in the State Environmental Protection Area of Rio Pandeiros in the northern region of the state of Minas Gerais. The shortest routes between the pairs of locations obtained using Google Earth and QGIS software were evaluated. Additionally, it was necessary to perform vectorization and classification of all roads in the area. The lengths of the paths obtained were compared using a method identity test. The results showed that for most routes, Google Earth showed longer paths than QGIS. It can be concluded that for the purpose of ecotourism, precise planning should consider the vectorization of roads in areas with many rural roads.
Highlights
One of the major challenges in forest science is the search for alternatives to use natural resources without causing significant impacts on the environment
The largest number of attractions was in the region of the District of Pandeiros, which included the resort at the Pandeiros River and three waterfalls
The Rio Pandeiros State Environmental Protection Area (RPSEPA) is located in a region with serious social problems and requires large public investments, which has not occurred in recent years
Summary
One of the major challenges in forest science is the search for alternatives to use natural resources without causing significant impacts on the environment. Ecotourism has been highlighted as a possible option for priority environments in terms of ecological protection. It boosts environmental preservation, improves economy of local communities, and promotes environmental conscience in visitants (Hunt et al, 2015). Improves economy of local communities, and promotes environmental conscience in visitants (Hunt et al, 2015) To develop this activity in a selected region of interest, it is necessary to learn about the local characteristics and make adequate visitation plans. In this context, it is important to consider investing in the tourism priority sectors. This can promote satisfaction with the tourist as expected when they come from their home to visit a place
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