Feeling at Home Outdoors: The Courtyard of the Rozes House

Este artículo ilustra lo que podría considerarse un “caso de estudio” del proyecto de tesis de su autora, que versa sobre el tema de arte y turismo durante los años de la apertura del régimen franquista. Se trata el caso concreto de la Costa Brava, analizando el lugar que ésta ha ocupado tradicionalmente en la historiografía de turismo. Como alternativa a dicha historiografía se propone una revisión en paralelo de las imágenes procedentes de la industria turística con las producciones artísticas surgidas en torno a la realidad del turismo –concretamente, los proyectos fotográficos de Francesc Català-Roca y Xavier Miserachs sobre la Costa Brava. ¿Se puede hablar de una iconografía turística de la Costa Brava? ¿Cuánto hay de mascarada y cuánto de retrato en ella?

The importance of ecosystem services in coastal agricultural landscapes: Case study from the Costa Brava, Catalonia

Assessing public perceptions on beach quality according to beach users' profile: A case study in the Costa Brava (Spain)

Swimming pools are key assets in the hotel industry. With climate change and water stress, more sustainable pools are needed in tourist areas. The study examines the relationship between hotel categories and the consumption of water in swimming pools in a Mediterranean coastal region facing water scarcity. The study focuses on the Costa Brava, with a focus on Lloret de Mar, a popular tourist destination. The research employs a combination of data analysis and the utilisation of evaporation models in order to estimate the consumption of water by swimming pools. The findings indicate that hotels in the higher categories, particularly those with three or four stars, contribute a notable proportion of the total water consumption due to their larger pool sizes and higher guest numbers. The study underscores the necessity for the implementation of sustainable water management strategies, particularly in the context of climate change. It recommends the utilisation of pool water-saving technologies as potential solutions. Furthermore, the paper highlights the broader environmental impact of tourism infrastructure on water resources and suggests policy measures to mitigate these effects. The research aligns with global sustainability goals such as the European Green Deal and the 2030 Agenda.

The Costa Brava (Girona, Spain) is one of the pioneering regions along the Spanish Mediterranean coast in terms of wastewater treatment. Since the 1950s, the water quality in swimming areas has been affected by the ongoing tourist development. However, at the same time, this issue has motivated the implementation of wastewater treatment systems that, otherwise, would have been delayed. With that mission, the Costa Brava Consortium (CCB) was created in 1971. The CCB is a public institution formed by all the municipalities along the coast of Girona, the head of Girona province and the watershed authority (formerly called the Eastern Pyrenees Hydrographical Confederation). Taking a conceptual approach derived from the Political Ecology of Tourism, the aim of this study is to explore the close relationship among the tourism boom, the economic and technologic investments related to wastewater management, and the improvement of environmental quality of the Costa Brava swimming areas. We believe that the tourist sector has forced public administrations to minimize the environmental impact derived from tourist activities. In fact, wastewater treatment has contributed to achieve improved and optimal swimming conditions in beaches, the most valuable resource for sun and sand tourist sector. The increasingly strict environmental regulations issued at European level have an important role in the discursive legitimation of high public expenses. Nevertheless, water-related management costs have been progressively financed by tax-payers, under pretexts of economic crisis or limited public budget. In addition, private capital is considered as the only way to maintain present infrastructures and to invest in new ones.

There are approximately 1.06 million vacant homes in Korea, accounting for 6% of all housing, and approximately 98 thousand vacant homes are in Gyeongsangnam-do, taking up 8.7% of the housing in the province. In particular, the number of abandoned house in Gyeongsangnam-do is rapidly increasing from 6.7% in 2010 to 8.7% in 2015. This study examined the current state of abandoned house in Gyeongsangnam-do according to the characteristics of cities and rural areas, causes for vacancies, and demand for use of such abandoned house. The study areas were selected based on case studies in Korea and overseas, and a survey was conducted among residents in the selected areas. The survey was on awareness of abandoned house in the neighborhood, causes for vacancies, awareness of owners, the influence of the abandoned house, plans to deal with abandoned house, and plans to utilize abandoned house. The results showed that most residents were aware of abandoned house, especially the ones in rural areas, who had detailed perceptions about abandoned house nearby such as when the homes became empty and whether there are owners of the homes. As for the influence of abandoned house on the surrounding environment, both rural areas and cities responded that abandoned house mostly spoil the beauty of the neighborhood, followed by psychological anxiety such as fear of crimes. Regarding plans to utilize abandoned house nearby, at least half of the residents wanted to use them as rental housing after repairing them. A survey on the actual condition must be conducted at the provincial level in order to establish an integrated system to manage abandoned house in Gyeongsangnam-do. Moreover, it is necessary to come up with application measures according to categories and standards to classify the state of abandoned house in order to use them as resources for community regeneration.

This paper introduces a geoethical dilemma in the coastal zone of the Tordera Delta as a case study with the objective of showing the contribution of geoethics to the governance of coastal social-ecological systems. The Tordera Delta, located in Costa Brava, Catalonia, constitutes a social-ecological system that suffers from intense anthropization mainly due to tourist pressures causing a cascade of different environmental problems impacting the Delta functions. The massive sun and beach tourism brought human well-being and economic development to the region, but has caused an intense urbanization of the coastline that altered the coastal dynamics, eroded its beaches, and degraded many ecosystem services, a process that is being worsened today by the climate change events such as the rising sea level or the magnitude of the storms (“llevantades”), typical of the Western Mediterranean coast. Posing the problem of governance in terms of a geoethical dilemma enables discerning among the values connected to the intrinsic meaning of coastal landscapes and the instrumental values that see beaches as goods (commodities) for tourism uses. Finally, the paper reflects on options to overcome this dichotomy of values by considering meaning values as elements that forge cultural identities, contributing to highlighting this societal challenge in the Tordera Delta area, as a case study that can be useful for similar ecosystems.

The Mediterranean red coral (Corallium rubrum ,L . 1758) is a slow-growing longevous gorgonian that produces a red calcium carbonate skeleton, which is in high demand by the jewellery industry. Its long history of intensive commercial harvesting has resulted in a well-documented decline of its stocks throughout the Mediterranean, becoming especially apparent during the last two decades. Based on the extensive ecological data from the Costa Brava (NE Spain) stocks, this study reviews, for the first time, socioeconomic aspects and the impact of current fishing practices on the red coral population structure and reproductive biology. A comparison of the intensively harvested populations in shallow water with that of the infrequently harvested ones in deep water, along with a population in a marine reserve as well, reveals that 98% of all shallow water colonies show a juvenile size and branching pattern as a result of harvesting. Recent data on the reproductive biology of the species show that 91% of the colonies in shallow water populations (<60 m depth) are not 100% sexually mature. These populations are clearly at the limit of their recoverability potential. The maximum sustainable yield (estimated using the Beverton-Holt model) is reached at an age of first capture of 98 years, although the current regulations allow harvesting of approximately 11-year-old colonies (corresponding to a basal diameter of 7 mm). The presented data reveal how this renewable resource is being exploited in a clearly non-sustainable and inefficient way, changing significantly the underwater landscape of the Mediterranean coast. The review of all available data suggests that the shallow water stocks are depleted. Furthermore, recent trends in poaching of juvenile colonies and mass mortality events threaten the survival of the shallow water populations. A ban on reconstituted coral from the market appears to be the only option to control this form of poaching.

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to identify the tourism potential of natural and cultural heritage in historical irrigation canals by promoting social learning and providing digital tools to local and visitors.Design/methodology/approachThis research is based on the EUWATHER project (JPI – Cultural Heritage, HERITAGE PLUS Joint Call 2015), through which new opportunities for eco-tourism and outdoor recreation as a driver for sustainable development of historical irrigation canals are provided. A case study from North-Eastern Spain, the Lower Ter area (in the Costa Brava), is analyzed. Heritage inventories and digital itineraries including the tangible and intangible cultural history of waterscape heritage have been co-designed with local communities and key stakeholders. Online data sets and Spatial Data Infrastructure (webpage and mobile app) are provided.FindingsThe project provides a manual for developing digital waterways heritage tours. For the case study, up to 118 heritage objects have been selected from 8 natural and cultural heritage categories according to their tourism potential. Three itineraries have been proposed to promote the tourism potential existing in the hinterland of the Costa Brava region.Practical implicationsThe methods section and the main results obtained for the case study will be useful for professionals working in heritage institutions, rural development and sustainable tourism agencies.Originality/valueThe project provides two geo-based technologies: a digital platform (www.waterwaysexplorer.com) and a mobile app (Izi.travel) in which external users are able to collect relevant data and construct tourism itineraries from minor waterways with consolidated natural and cultural heritage. A Tool Box is provided for practitioners in order to help local communities and tourist organizations to create their own itineraries along minor waterways.

Mass tourism and water efficiency in the hotel industry: A case study

A combined assessment of beach occupancy and public perceptions of beach quality: A case study in the Costa Brava, Spain

Coastal aquifer formations located in Northeast of Spain affected by saline intrusion has been the focus for a multi-technique geophysical study. Two aquifers are present: a shallow aquifer in the quaternary sediments and a deeper karstic aquifer. The objectives were: (1) estimate quaternary sediment thickness and characterize weathered/fractured rock (2) qualitative assessment of water degradation changes within the study area. The methodology consisted of combining and integrating seismic and resistivity imaging techniques: seismic refraction tomography (SRT), electrical resistivity tomography (ERT) and H/V microtremor technique. Three ERT and SRT coincident profiles have been acquired from sea to inland. Comparison of velocity and electrical models has allowed obtaining quaternary and weathered/fractured bedrock thickness. Electrical resistivity differences from one to another profile help mapping changes in saline intrusion. H/V technique has been suitable to obtain bedrock depth in the profile close to sea. However, strong attenuation of the microtremor signal has precluded its application in the rest of the study area. This attenuation could be related to the dissipation of seismic energy in moving fluids through a thick zone of fractured/weathered bedrock. All this information is critical in order to establish preferential water flows and groundwater degradation of the aquifers.

The Great American Staycation and the Risk of Stillness

The purpose of this project is to present an overview of renewable energy sources, major technological developments and case studies, accompanied by applicable examples of the use of sources. Renewable energy is the energy that comes from natural resources: The wind, sunlight, rain, sea waves, tides, geothermal heat, regenerated naturally, automatically. Greenhouse gas emissions pose a serious threat to climate change, with potentially disastrous effects on humanity. The use of Renewable Energy Sources (RES) together with improved Energy Efficiency (EE) can contribute to reducing energy consumption, reducing greenhouse gas emissions and, as a consequence, preventing dangerous climate change. At least one-third of global energy must come from different renewable sources by 2050: The wind, solar, geothermal, hydroelectric, tidal, wave, biomass, etc. Oil and natural gas, classical sources of energy, have fluctuating developments on the international market. A second significant aspect is given by the increasingly limited nature of oil resources. It seems that this energy source will be exhausted in about 50 years from the consumption of oil reserves in exploitation or prospecting. "Green" energy is at the fingertips of both economic operators and individuals. In fact, an economic operator can use such a system for both own consumption and energy trading on the domestic energy market. The high cost of deploying these systems is generally depreciated in about 5-10 years, depending on the installed production capacity. The "sustainability" condition is met when projects based on renewable energy have a negative CO2 or at least neutral CO2 over the life cycle. Emissions of Greenhouse Gases (GHG) are one of the environmental criteria included in a sustainability analysis, but is not enough. The concept of sustainability must also include in the assessment various other aspects, such as environmental, cultural, health, but must also integrate economic aspects. Renewable energy generation in a sustainable way is a challenge that requires compliance with national and international regulations. Energy independence can be achieved: - Large scale (for communities); - small-scale (for individual houses, vacation homes or cabins without electrical connection).

ABSTRACT: Private lakeshore development usually precedes establishment of public lake access. As a result, the best access areas are often occupied before public access is provided. The public then has a problem to provide access for nonriparian citizens. This problem can be anticipated and prevented by classifying undeveloped lakeshore areas according to suitability for both private and public uses, and incorporating appropriate recommendations into the municipal, comprehensive land use plan. To accomplish this, a site evaluation system has been developed which numerically rates the lakeshore for each of four public uses: public beaches, picnic areas, boat access areas, and public marinas; and two private uses: private marinas and vacation homes. Ratings are developed for: slope, soil suitability, shoreland type, water quality, site location, scenery, and road access. These ratings are combined with a statement of public goals developed from attitude surveys to produce a lakeshore land use plan. The plan recommends that lakeshore areas best suited for private development are so used, and areas best suited for public use are reserved for that purpose. This site evaluation system is demonstrated by a case study on Lake Champlain in Ferrisburg, Vermont.