Persian
Volume 34, Issue 4 (2019)                   GeoRes 2019, 34(4): 587-594 | Back to browse issues page
Article Type:
Original Research |
Subject:

Print XML Persian Abstract PDF HTML


History

How to cite this article
Rahbari M, Motahari S, Behbahaninia A, Khadivi S. Ecological Capability for Tourism in Tonekabon Forests. GeoRes 2019; 34 (4) :587-594
URL: http://georesearch.ir/article-1-787-en.html
Download citation:
BibTeX | RIS | EndNote | Medlars | ProCite | Reference Manager | RefWorks
Send citation to:

Rights and permissions
1- Department of Environment, Faculty of Agriculture, Roudehen Branch, Islamic Azad University, Roudehen, Iran
2- Department of Environment, Faculty of Agriculture, Roudehen Branch, Islamic Azad University, Roudehen, Iran , smotahari@riau.ac.ir
3- Department of Environment, Roudehen Branch, Islamic Azad University, Roudehen, Iran, Department of Environment, Roudehen Branch, Islamic Azad University, Roudehen, Iran
Abstract   (2398 Views)
Aims & Backgrounds: Identifying tourism development capacities is an undeniable priority in any country, especially in developing countries. There are various methods for determining such zones. Given the sensitivity of forest ecosystems to human interference, the purpose of this study is to evaluate the ecological potential of Tonekabon forests.
Methodology: To evaluate the ecological potential of the study area, we used the combination of Makhdoom and FAO model in GIS environment using Layer Overlay (IO) technique and weighting by AHP method. In this study, the importance of the criteria and sub-criteria involved in the evaluation process was determined using experts' hierarchy and the weight of each layer was determined using Expert Choice software.
Findings: Results indicated that 118.73 hectares of the area is suitable for centralized recreation and 487.72 hectares for extensive recreation and the rest is of conservation value.
Conclusion: The results of this study showed that the combination of IO with AHP in GIS could well compare and evaluate different layers according to the criteria and be used as a suitable tool by decision makers to determine forest ecological potential for tourism development. The issue can be effective in achieving sustainable tourism development.
Keywords:

References
1. Agnes D, Nandatama A, Isdyantoko BA, Aditya Nugraha F, Ghivarry G, Putra Aghni P, et al (2016). Remote sensing and GIS-based site suitability analysis for tourism development in Gili Indah, East Lombok. IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science. 47(1). [DOI:10.1088/1755-1315/47/1/012013]
2. Abdollahzadeh G, Sharifzadeh A (2014). Rural residents' perceptions toward tourism development: A study from Iran. International Journal of Tourism Research. 16(2):126-136. [DOI:10.1002/jtr.1906]
3. Adl HR, Makhdoom M, Marvi Mohajer MR (2007). Effective factors on ecological capability in the northern forest of Iran. Iranian Journal of Forest and Poplar Research. 15(3):289-300.
4. Ahmadi M, Asgari S, Ghanavati E (2015). Land capability evaluation for ecotourism development in Ilam province, a GIS approach. Boletim de Ciências Geodésicas. 21(1):107-125. [DOI:10.1590/S1982-21702015000100008]
5. Amir Amadi A, Mozaffari H (2012). Analysis of appropriate zones for ecotourism development in Zanjan province using GIS. Geographical Researches. 27(3):135-150.
6. Amiri M J, Jalali S G A, Salman Mahini A R, Hosseini S M, Azari Dehkordi F (2009). Ecological land capability assessment for forestry in 2000 and 3000 watersheds in the north of Iran using GIS. Journal of Environmental Studies. 35(51):33-44.
7. Aliani H, BabaieKafaky S, Saffari A, Monavari S (2017). Land evaluation for ecotourism developmentan integrated approach based on FUZZY, WLC, and ANP methods. International Journal of Environmental Science and Technology. 14(9):1999-2008 [DOI:10.1007/s13762-017-1291-5]
8. Bali A, Monavari M, Riazi B, Khorasani N, Kheirkhah Zarkesh M (2015). A spatial decision support system for ecotourism development in caspian hyrcanian mixed forests ecoregion. Boletim de Ciências Geodésicas. 21(2):340-353. [DOI:10.1590/S1982-21702015000200001]
9. Bo L, Zhang F, Zhang LW, HUANG JF, Zhi-Feng J, Gupta D (2012). Comprehensive suitability evaluation of tea crops using GIS and a modified land ecological suitability evaluation model. Pedosphere. 22(1):122-130. [DOI:10.1016/S1002-0160(11)60198-7]
10. Dhami I, Deng J, Burns R C, Pierskalla C (2014). Identifying and mapping forest-based ecotourism areas in West Virginia-Incorporating visitors' preferences. Tourism Management. 42:165-176. [DOI:10.1016/j.tourman.2013.11.007]
11. Dashti S, Monavari S M, Hosseini S M, Riazi B, Momeni M (2013). Application of GIS, AHP, fuzzy and WLC in island ecotourism development, case study of Qeshm Island, Iran. Life Science Journal. 10(1):1274-1282.
12. Dhami I, Deng J, Strager M, Conley J (2017). Suitability-sensitivity analysis of nature-based tourism using geographic information systems and analytic hierarchy process. Journal of Ecotourism. 16(1):41-68. [DOI:10.1080/14724049.2016.1193186]
13. FAO (1976). A framework for land evaluation. Rome, Soil Bulletin No 32.
14. Faridi E, Valizadeh Kamran K, Rezvani M (2018). Ecological land capability evaluation of Arasbaran protected area using Boolean multi-criteria evaluation method and weighted linear combination techniques in Geographic Information System. Journal of Environmental Science and Technology. 20(3):127-141.
15. Gigović L, Pamučar D, Lukić D, Marković S (2016). GIS-Fuzzy DEMATEL MCDA model for the evaluation of the sites for ecotourism development: A case study of "Dunavski ključ" region, Serbia. Land Use Policy. 58:348-365. [DOI:10.1016/j.landusepol.2016.07.030]
16. Haddadinia S, Danehkar A, Eshghi K, Darvishsefat A, Kaboli M (2013). Nature-based tourism zoning with consideration of environmental criteria a case study of Khatam City, Yazd Province. Journal of Natural Environment. 66(3):285-300.
17. Hamian P, Al-Modarresi SA, Effati M, Kavusi H, Rashidi A (2016). Positioning the tourism complex multicriterion determin method for tuesday olse belanga city Masal. Geographical Researches. 30(4):116-130.
18. Hunt C A, Durham W H, Driscoll L, Honey M (2015). Can ecotourism deliver real economic, social, and environmental benefits? A study of the osa Peninsula, costa Rica. Journal of Sustainable Tourism. 23(3):339-357. [DOI:10.1080/09669582.2014.965176]
19. Jeong J S, García-Moruno L, Hernández-Blanco J, Jaraíz-Cabanillas F J (2014). An operational method to supporting siting decisions for sustainable rural second home planning in ecotourism sites. Land Use Policy. 41:550-560. [DOI:10.1016/j.landusepol.2014.04.012]
20. Makhdoum M (2015). Fundamental of landuse planning. Tehran: Tehran University Publication.
21. Mansouri M, Havasi Abdalani Z, Badehian Z, Azizi MJ (2016). Evaluation of outdoor recreation capacity and recreational demand in Morineh forest park in Noorabad city-Lorestan Province. Journal of Environmental Science and Technology. 18(3):319-333.
22. Mohammadi S, Talaati M, Asadi S, Manoochehri S (2018). Analyzing of the impact of tourism on sustainable livelihoods of rural residents case study: Uraman village of Sarvabad city. Geographical Researches. 33(1):191-208. [DOI:10.29252/geores.33.1.191]
23. Mori A S, Lertzman K P, Gustafsson L (2017). Biodiversity and ecosystem services in forest ecosystems: A research agenda for applied forest ecology. Journal of Applied Ecology. 54(1):12-27. [DOI:10.1111/1365-2664.12669]
24. Mosammam HM, Sarrafi M, Tavakoli Nia J, Heidari S (2016). Typology of the ecotourism development approach and an evaluation from the sustainability view: The case of Mazandaran province Iran. Tourism Management Perspectives. 18:168-178. [DOI:10.1016/j.tmp.2016.03.004]
25. Mahdavi A, M Niknejad (2014). Site suitability evaluation for ecotourism using MCDM methods and GIS: Case study-Lorestan province Iran. Journal of Biological and Environmental Sciences. 4(6):425-437.
26. Masih M, Jozi S A, Abdolmaleki Lahijanian A, Danehkar A, Vafaeinejad A (2018). Capability assessment and tourism development model verification of Haraz watershed using analytical hierarchy process (AHP). Environmental Monitoring and Assessment. 190(8): 468. [DOI:10.1007/s10661-018-6823-z] [PMID]
27. Mobaraki O, Abdollahzadeh M, Kamelifar Z (2014). Site suitability evaluation for ecotourism using GIS and AHP: A case study of Isfahan Townships Iran. Management Science Letters. 4(8):1893-1898. [DOI:10.5267/j.msl.2014.6.038]
28. Nino K, Mamo Y, Mengesha G, Kibret KS (2017). GIS based ecotourism potential assessment in Munessa Shashemene concession forest and its surrounding area Ethiopia. Applied Geography. 82:48-58. [DOI:10.1016/j.apgeog.2017.02.010]
29. Naik DR, Bosukonda S, Mrutyunjayareddy K (2011). Reservoir impact assessment on land use/land cover and infrastructure a case study on Polavaram project. Journal of the Indian Society of Remote Sensing. 39(2):271-278. [DOI:10.1007/s12524-011-0086-2]
30. Najafi far A (2010). Proposal of a forest physical model for ecological capability evaluation in Zagros vegetation zone case study: Masby Region, Abdanan city, Ilam province. Iranian Journal of Forest and Poplar Research. 18(3):405-416.
31. Nasiri V, Roki A, Etemad V, Mehrju S (2017). Ecological capability evaluation of forest for protection and conservation planning Gorazbon forest, Kheyroud. Journal of Forest Research and Development. 2(4):301-313.
32. Ninan KN, M Inoue (2013). Valuing forest ecosystem services: What we know and what we don't. Ecological Economics. 93:137-149. [DOI:10.1016/j.ecolecon.2013.05.005]
33. Nouri J, Arjmandi R, Riazi B, Aleshekh A A, Motahari S (2016). Comparing multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) tool and Huff model to determine the most appropriate method for selecting mountain tourism sites. Environmental Engineering & Management Journal (EEMJ). 15(1):41-52. [DOI:10.30638/eemj.2016.006]
34. Ohadi S, Dorbeiki M, Bahmanpour H (2013). Ecotourism zoning in protected areas using GIS. Advances in Environmental Biology. 677-684.
35. Olafsdottir G (2013). On nature-based tourism. Tourist Studies. 13(2):127-138. [DOI:10.1177/1468797613490370]
36. Radan Z, Shariat M, Landi A, Jafarzade N, Sanjarani poor N (2016). Comparison ability between FAO and Iran ecological models to estimate of capability ecological land for using pasture. Journal of Environmental Science and Technology. 18(4):89-102.
37. Ramos A M, Prideaux B (2014). Indigenous ecotourism in the Mayan rainforest of Palenque: Empowerment issues in sustainable development. Journal of Sustainable Tourism. 22(3):461-479. [DOI:10.1080/09669582.2013.828730]
38. Saaty T L (1986). Axiomatic foundation of the analytic hierarchy process. Management science. 32(7):773-907. [DOI:10.1287/mnsc.32.7.841]
39. Saberi H, Aflaki M (2015). Preference main route tourism of Chaharmahal and Bakhtiyari province using Topsis and AHP models. Geographical Researches. 30(3):259-274.
40. Scandari S, Oladi J, Yakhkeshi A (2011). Investigation of the effect of Non-ecologic factors in evaluation of outdoor recreation potential of Sorkhe Hesar forest park using GIS. Town and Country Planning. 3(5):71-92.
41. Santarém F, Campos J C, Pereira P, Hamidou D, Saarinen J Brito J C (2018). Using multivariate statistics to assess ecotourism potential of water-bodies: A case-study in Mauritania. Tourism Management. 67:34-46. [DOI:10.1016/j.tourman.2018.01.001]
42. Samanta S, Baitalik A (2015). Potential site selection for eco-tourism: A case study of four blocks in Bankura district using remote sensing and GIS technology West Bengal. International Journal of Advanced Research. 3(4):978-989.
43. Wishitemi BEL, Momanyi SO, Ombati BG, Okello MM (2015). The link between poverty, environment and ecotourism development in areas adjacent to Maasai Mara and Amboseli protected areas, Kenya. Tourism Management Perspectives. 16:306-317. [DOI:10.1016/j.tmp.2015.07.003]