Landscape degradation and development as a result of touristic activity in the fragile, high‐mountain environment of Vinicunca (Rainbow Mountain), Andes, Peru

Abstract

AbstractThis study documented land degradation resulting from initial trail development and further high‐intensity touristic activity in a high‐altitude setting (>4000 m a.s.l.) in the Andes. Peru's Rainbow Mountain (also named Vinicunca or Montaña de Siete Colores) only became a world‐renowned tourist destination in recent years (after 2015/2016). A high‐mountain setting as such is fragile and does not recover fast, meaning the rapid influx of visitors has caused severe landscape degradation from which it will take several decades to recover. The main objectives of the study were to (1) characterise and map different types of impacts related to direct visitor pressure, (2) document and evaluate activities aimed at limiting degradation while enhancing visitors' experience, and (3) propose a conceptual model of trail functioning in the tropical high‐mountain environment. Data were collected using ground‐based surveys, unmanned aerial vehicles and high‐resolution satellite images. We identified eight dominant morphogenetic processes responsible for the transformation of landscape surface: (1) trampling, (2) abrasion/shearing by visitors and service animals and (3) transformation of water and sediment circulation—these direct human activities can initiate and/or intensify further degradation by the following natural processes: (4) water erosion, (5) freeze–thaw cycles, (6) dry‐wet cycles, (7) aeolian activities and (8) mass movements. The five main trail impacts identified were: trail widening, trail incision, formation of braided trail networks, development of muddy sections and development of informal (visitor‐created) trails. These observed impacts have left a clear imprint on the landscape after just one to two seasons of intensive recreational use.