3.1. Recommendations
of the expert panels
The
survey carried out by the Specialised Institutes (SI) in charge of defining the
demand for environmental pressure indicators with the help of the Scientific
Advisory Groups (SAG) has produced a list of priority indicators made available
for consideration in the SIP projects. As far as the sector tourism is
concerned, however, very few pressure indicators specifically related to
tourism can be identified among those suggested by the SAG. The indicators
found are:
Marine
Environment and Coastal Zones
Tourism
intensity
(unit of measurement and reference period: number of tourists/km
2
per
year (bednights, on shore, etc.) average and in peak season)
Water
pollution and water resources
Tourism
water use
(unit of measurement and reference period: mio m
3
per year)
The
problem is that the SAG were asked to propose environmental pressure indicators
connected to the environmental policy fields, without taking into account the
target sector analysis. On the other side, since the pressures which come from
tourists are, in principle, the same coming from residents, many of the
indicators presented by the SAG can be seen - with some adjustments - as
tourism pressure indicators. In fact, identifying the part that can be imputed
to tourists of, e.g., emissions of pollutants, or water consumption, tourism
pressure indicators can be obtained.
3.2. Review
of the main existing literature and ongoing works
The
reference framework of the present study is the well known
Pressure-State-Response (PSR) model, followed in general by OECD, as well as by
many countries for drafting their reports on the state of the environment. In
particular, indicators of environmental pressure correspond to the
pressure
box of the PSR framework and consist of indicators describing the causes of the
environmental problems, such as certain flow quantities (emissions, use of raw
materials, products and energy) or infrastructures that create a burden on the
environment. Unfortunately, however, no tourism specific pressure indicator is
identified by OECD in the PSR model. On the other side, in the OECD compendium
there are sections devoted to specific sectors generating pressures on the
environment, such as energy, transport, agriculture and industry. Tourism is
not covered as such, while the trends in international tourist receipts shown
under industry cannot be looked at as environmental pressure indicators. The
PSR framework developed by OECD is therefore of no practical use for
identifying environmental pressure indicators specific for the sector tourism.
Another
area of investigation in the field of environmental indicators where
international frameworks are under development is represented by indicators for
sustainability. With reference to this, a special definition for sustainable
tourism, has been made available by the European Commission: “A
development will be understood to constitute sustainable tourism development
where it takes into account not only aspects in visitor source countries, but
the form of the outward journey, on the one hand, along with the interests of
visitors and residents in a region to be defined. Activities at the destination
need to be based on nature’s capacity to absorb, whereby consumption of
resources should be as sparing as possible” (Tourism Division of the
European Commission, 1995).
This
theoretical approach, taking into account
sustainable
tourism,
encompasses economic, social and environmental problems and implies a wider
dimensional range of analysis than that of PSR.
Particularly
relevant work on this subject is under development at the World Tourism
Organisation (WTO, 1995a), where a Task force on tourism and the environment
has been focusing on a set of internationally accepted indicators of
sustainability applicable to the tourism industry. As such, the WTO intends the
indicators to provide the information necessary to understand better
tourism’s link with, and impacts on, the natural and cultural
environments within which the industry operates and on which it largely depends
and to help the planners and managers of tourism to anticipate and prevent
those tourist activities which may threaten key environmental attributes.
In
particular the WTO approach provides two sets of indicators:
core
indicators of sustainable tourism
and
destination
specific indicators.
These
latter are understood as applicable to particular ecosystems or types of
tourism and are split into two categories:
ecosystem-specific
indicators,
for application to particular ecosystems (coastal zones, mountain regions,
managed wildlife parks, unique ecological sites, urban environments, cultural
sites, small islands) and
site-specific
indicators,
to be developed uniquely for a particular site.
The
core indicators are intended for general application and cover a limited range
of measures that enable monitoring key elements of the changing
human/environment relationship in the context of tourism.
Both
the core indicators and the destination-specific indicators are intended to
provide measures of:
- the
general relationship between tourism and the environment;
- the
effects of environmental factors on tourism and
- the
impacts of the tourism industry on the environment.
- Within
this last category pressure indicators are supposed to be developed, with
specific reference to the following types of risks associated with some tourism
practices:
- stressing
the capacity of infrastructure by overcrowding;
- polluting
air, water and soil;
- overuse
of natural resources;
- creation
of noise and nuisance;
- changing
of the cultural character of host communities, such as use intensity, stress,
waste management.
3.3. Set
of identified indicators by policy field
The
provisional results of the work under development at the SI and the findings of
the review made on the literature and ongoing works are not sufficient by
themselves to draft a list of pressure indicators that can be used as the basis
for other steps of the project aimed at assessing the availability and quality
of indicators and basic data. However, on the basis of what has been discussed
in the previous paragraphs and as a result of further theoretical insight
developed within the present study, a number of possible tourism pressure
indicators have been identified. They are shown in the following tables.
As
a preliminary step, four general indicators are listed. They cannot be directly
associated with a specific environmental issue nor, in at least two cases, to a
specific tourist activity; nevertheless they are considered of interest for the
sector tourism.
|
General
Indicators
|
|
1) Ratio
tourists / residents
(a)
2) Ratio
tourist overnight stays / residents * (365 - k)
3) Number
of tourists/km
2
(in the reference period
(a)
and in peak season)
4) Passenger-kms
travelled by tourists in relation to total passenger-kms, divided by type of
transport
|
(a)
As an exercise, this indicator was collected for all the EU countries plus
Switzerland in the year 1992. See Annex 2.
The
ratio tourists/residents can give a general impression of the tourist intensity
in a given country. This background indicator can be improved as shown by the
second one, where 365 is the number of days in a year and k is the number of
days spent by residents outside the area considered. The ratio Number of
tourists/km
2,
showing how the tourists are spread on the territory on average, gives a
general indication of pressures on land use due to tourism, with regard to a
reference period (for example the year) or in peak season. The last variable
considered gives a general indication, in terms of kms travelled, about the
additional burden to the environment due to tourism.
Following
the list of general indicators, an extensive set of possible pressure
indicators - most of which correspond to the SAG ones, but which are
re-arranged according to the specific need of the sector tourism - is
considered. These indicators describe different kinds of pressure due to
different tourism related activities or phenomena. The tourism-related
activities, as already mentioned, can be distinguished in three main levels:
the first one concerns the tourist transportation, the second one is related to
tourist accommodation and the last one concerns the remaining tourist
activities.
For
each of these three levels, specific pressures which burden more or less
significantly the natural environment, are considered; in addition, these
pressures are connected to specific environmental issues such as the ten policy
fields considered. For example, as far as tourist transportation is concerned,
emissions of greenhouse gases and other air pollutants can be measured
considering the increase in road transportation due to tourism (observed during
certain periods); these emissions are related e.g. to climate change, ozone
layer depletion, Dispersion of Toxic Substances, air pollution, separately.
Another
example is given by waste discharges from the additional number of ships in
tourist season which cause water pollution. Last but not least, roads in
tourist areas located in mountain or coastal zones are an example of pressure
which may cause loss of biodiversity.
As
far as tourist accommodation is concerned, the number of hotels and relevant
infrastructures (tourist ports, restaurants, bars, clubs, shopping centre,
discotheques, water based theme parks, accessing roads and parking) represent
environmental pressure themselves, from the point of view of land use.
In
addition to transportation and accommodation aspects, tourists staying in a
certain area may themselves generate some environmental burdens. The presence
of tourists within a limited area, first of all, will increase energy
consumption, water use as well as waste generation. Moreover, all open space
activities related to tourism such as trips on mountains, in wooded areas and
countryside, riding, tracking and sport activities (skiing, golf, climbing,
sailing, hunting, fishing, etc.) can cause damage to the environment.
Priorities
suggested by the SAG and different levels of feasibility of the different
indicators - as well as specific adjustments suggested by the experts during
the development of the work - were the main elements which lead to a
formulation of the proposed list of indicators.
The
results of this process are shown in the following tables, where the
core
and
additional
indicators are listed by policy field. For practical reasons, the SAG numbering
(not the code used for the identification of the policy field, as AP for Air
Pollution, CC for Climate Change, etc.) has been changed. In any case, whenever
possible, the “historical” number of SAG indicator to refer to is
mentioned in a separate column.
Air
Pollution
|
Code
|
Core
Pressure Indicators
|
Unit
of measurement and reference period
|
Reference
to SAG code
|
|
ap-a.1
|
Emissions
of NO
X
due
to tourist transportation
|
tonnes
per yr
|
AP-1
|
|
ap-a.2
|
Emissions
of NO
X
due
to energy used for tourist accommodation
|
tonnes
per yr
|
AP-1
|
|
ap-b.1
|
Emissions
of NMVOC due to tourist transportation
|
tonnes
per yr
|
AP-2
|
|
ap-b.2
|
Emissions
of NMVOC
due
to energy used for tourist accommodation
|
tonnes
per yr
|
AP-2
|
|
ap-c.1
|
Emissions
of SO
2
due to tourist transportation
|
tonnes
per yr
|
AP-3
|
|
ap-c.2
|
Emissions
of SO
2
due
to energy used for tourist accommodation
|
tonnes
per yr
|
AP-3
|
|
ap-d.1
|
Emissions
of particles due to tourist transportation
|
tonnes
per yr
|
AP-4
|
|
ap-d.2
|
Emissions
of particles
due
to energy used for tourist accommodation
|
tonnes
per yr
|
AP-4
|
|
ap-e.1
|
Emissions
of CO due to tourist transportation
|
tonnes
per yr
|
AP-13
|
|
ap-e.2
|
Emissions
of CO
due
to energy used for tourist accommodation
|
tonnes
per yr
|
AP-13
|
The
proposed additional pressure indicators for the policy field Air Pollution are:
|
Code
|
Additional
Pressure Indicators
|
|
ap-f
|
Number
of air conditioned rooms in hotels (for emissions of chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs)
and halons)
|
|
ap-g
|
Number
of refrigerators in hotels (for emissions of chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) and
halons)
|
Climate
Change
|
Code
|
Core
Pressure Indicators
|
Unit
of measurement and reference period
|
Reference
to SAG code
|
|
cc-a
|
Emissions
of CH
4
due to tourist transportation
|
tonnes
per yr
|
CC-2
|
|
cc-b.1
|
Emissions
of CO
2
due
to tourist transportation
|
tonnes
per yr
|
CC-1
|
|
cc-b.2
|
Emissions
of CO
2
due
to energy used for tourist accommodation
|
tonnes
per yr
|
CC-1
|
|
cc-c.1
|
Emissions
of N
20
due to tourist transportation
|
tonnes
per yr
|
CC-3
|
|
cc-c.2
|
Emissions
of N
20
due to energy used for tourist accommodation
|
tonnes
per yr
|
CC-3
|
|
cc-d.1
|
Emissions
of NO
X
due to tourist transportation
|
tonnes
per yr
|
CC-5
|
|
cc-d.2
|
Emissions
of NO
X
due
to energy used for tourist accommodation
|
tonnes
per yr
|
CC-5
|
|
cc-e
|
Number
of air conditioned rooms in hotels (for emissions of chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs)
and halons)
|
number
per yr
|
|
|
cc-f
|
Number
of refrigerators in hotels (for emissions of chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) and
halons)
|
number
per yr
|
|
|
cc-g.1
|
Emissions
of particles due to tourist transportation
|
tonnes
per yr
|
CC-7
|
|
cc-g.2
|
Emissions
of particles
due
to energy used for tourist accommodation
|
tonnes
per yr
|
CC-7
|
The
proposed additional pressure indicators for the policy field Climate Change are:
|
Code
|
Additional
Pressure Indicators
|
|
cc-h.1
|
Emissions
of CO due to tourism transportation
|
|
cc-h.2
|
Emissions
of CO due to energy used for tourism accommodation
|
|
cc-i.1
|
Emissions
of NMVOC due to tourism transportation
|
|
cc-i.2
|
Emissions
of NMVOC due to energy used for tourism accommodation
|
Loss
of Biodiversity
|
Code
|
Core
Pressure Indicators
|
Unit
of measurement and reference period
|
Reference
to SAG code
|
|
lb-a
|
Percentage
of area occupied by tourist establishments in relation to total land area
within certain types of land, e.g. mountain area, beaches
|
%
per yr
|
|
|
lb-b
|
Percentage
of area changed for tourism purposes (time series of the previous one)
|
%
per yr
|
LB-1
|
|
lb-c
|
No.
of visitors per km² in protected areas
|
number/km²
per yr
|
|
|
lb-d
|
Area
occupied by roads, railways, ports, airports, with regard to the total area of
a given country
|
%
or km² per yr
|
LB-1
|
The
proposed additional pressure indicators for the policy field Loss of
Biodiversity are:
|
Code
|
Additional
Pressure Indicators
|
|
lb-e
|
Percentage
of animals killed through hunting by tourists in relation to all animals killed
through hunting
|
|
lb-f
|
Percentage
of fish catch of certain valuable species taken by tourists
|
Marine
Environment and Coastal Zones
|
Code
|
Core
Pressure Indicators
|
Unit
of measurement and reference period
|
Reference
to SAG code
|
|
me-a
|
Percentage
of nutrients (N and P) discharged through sewage water attributable to tourism
|
%
per yr
|
ME-1
|
|
me-b
|
Percentage
of coastal zones occupied by tourist establishments in relation to total land
area in coastal zones
|
%
per yr
|
ME-3,
ME-16
|
|
me-c
|
Change
in the percentage of coastal zones, etc. (time series of me-b)
|
%
per yr
|
ME-3,
ME-16
|
|
me-d
|
Percentage
of coastal zones covered by roads, railways, ports, airports in relation to
total land area in coastal zones
|
%
per yr
|
ME-3,
ME-16
|
|
me-e
|
Total
no. of tourists arriving into the country by sea in relation to total no. of
sea passengers
|
%
per yr
|
ME-9
|
|
me-f
|
Total
no. of yachts and other pleasure boats arriving to countries
|
number
per yr
|
|
|
me-g
|
Amount
of waste discharged from the increased no. of ships during the tourist season
|
tonnes
per yr
|
|
|
me-h
|
Discharge
of sewage water to coastal water by type of treatment
|
tonnes
per yr
|
ME-1
|
|
me-i
|
Percentage
of organic substances (BOD) discharged through sewage water attributable to
tourism
|
%
per yr
|
ME-1
|
|
me-l
|
Number
of boats, yachts rented by tourists
|
number
per yr
|
|
The
proposed additional pressure indicators for the policy field Marine Environment
and Coastal Zones are:
|
Code
|
Additional
Pressure Indicators
|
|
me-m
|
Percentage
of certain fish and other marine species caught by tourists (e.g. lobster,
salmon)
|
|
me-n
|
Number
of tourist ports
|
Ozone
Layer Depletion
|
Code
|
Core
Pressure Indicators
|
Unit
of measurement and reference period
|
Reference
to SAG code
|
|
od-a
|
Number
of air conditioned rooms in hotels (for emissions of chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs)
and halons)
|
number
per yr
|
OD-1
|
|
od-b
|
Number
of refrigerators in hotels (for emissions of chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) and
halons)
|
number
per yr
|
OD-1
|
|
od-c.1
|
Emissions
of NO
x
due to tourist transportation
|
tonnes
per yr
|
OD-5
|
|
od-c.2
|
Emissions
of NO
X
due
to energy used for tourist accommodation
|
tonnes
per yr
|
OD-5
|
Resource
Depletion
|
Code
|
Core
Pressure Indicators
|
Unit
of measurement
and
reference period
|
Reference
to SAG code
|
|
rd-a
|
Annual
use of mineral oil or natural gas as a fuel attributable to tourism
|
tonnes
or m³ per yr
|
RD-2,
RD-7,
RD-11
|
|
rd-b
|
Water
abstraction due to tourism in relation to total water abstraction for household
purposes, divided by groundwater and surface water
|
%
per yr
|
RD-8,
RD-1
|
The
proposed additional pressure indicators for the policy field Resource Depletion
are:
|
Code
|
Additional
Pressure Indicators
|
|
rd-c.1
|
Percentage
of area occupied by tourist establishments in relation to total land area
within certain types of land, e.g. mountain area, beaches
|
|
rd-c.2
|
Percentage
of area occupied by tourist establishments in relation to total residential area
|
|
rd-d
|
Percentage
of area changed for tourism purposes (e.g. ski centres, golf courses, beach
areas owned by hotels, pleasure ports, etc)
|
|
rd-e
|
No.
of visitors per year and per km2 in protected areas
|
|
rd-f
|
Percentage
of area occupied by roads, railways, ports, airports, with regard to the total
area of a given country
|
|
rd-g
|
Percentage
of fish catch of certain valuable species taken by tourists
|
|
rd-h
|
Percentage
of animals killed through hunting by tourists in relation to all animals killed
through hunting
|
|
rd-i
|
Annual
use of energy attributable to tourism
|
Dispersion
of Toxic Substances
No
core indicator was selected. Additional pressure indicators could be the
following:
|
Code
|
Potential
Pressure Indicators
|
|
tx-a
|
Percentage
of batteries in municipal wastes during tourist seasons in comparison to other
periods of the year
|
|
tx-b
|
Amount
of petrol containing lead sold per month during tourist seasons in relation to
the same amount outside tourist seasons
|
|
tx-c
|
Emissions
of lead from the transport sector due to tourism
|
Urban
Environmental Problems
|
Code
|
Core
Pressure Indicators
|
Unit
of measurement
and
reference period
|
Reference
to SAG code
|
|
up-a
|
Discharge
of sewage water within “tourist urban areas” attributable to
tourism, by type of treatment
|
tonnes
per yr
|
UP-3
|
|
up-b
|
Water
supply to the sector tourism within “tourist urban-areas”
|
litres
per yr
|
UP-8
|
|
up-c
|
Percentage
of waste attributable to tourism within “tourist urban-areas”
|
%
per yr
|
UP-2
|
The
proposed additional pressure indicators for the policy field Urban
Environmental Problems are:
|
Code
|
Additional
Pressure Indicators
|
|
up-d
|
Emissions
of air pollutants due to tourist transport in “tourist urban-areas”
|
|
up-e.1
|
Road
traffic density during the tourist season in relation to road traffic density
during other periods of the year (for noise) within “tourist
urban-areas”
|
|
up-e.2
|
Air
traffic density during the tourist season in relation to air traffic density
during other periods of the year within “tourist urban-areas” (for
noise)
|
|
up-e.3
|
Railways
traffic density during the tourist season in relation to railways traffic
density during other periods of the year within “tourist
urban-areas” (for noise)
|
|
up-e.4
|
Boat
traffic density during the tourist season (for example: Venice, Amsterdam) in
relation to boat traffic density during other periods of the year within
“tourist urban-areas” (for noise)
|
|
up-f
|
Number
of discotheques in open spaces within “tourist urban-areas”
|
|
up-g
|
Number
of water based theme parks within “tourist urban-areas”
|
Waste
|
Code
|
Core
Pressure Indicators
|
Unit
of measurement
and
reference period
|
Reference
to SAG code
|
|
wa-a
|
Percentage
of waste attributable to tourism
|
%
per yr
|
WA-4
|
The
proposed additional pressure indicators for the policy field Waste are:
|
Code
|
Additional
Pressure Indicators
|
|
wa-b
|
Amount
of sludge from sewage treatment plants attributable to tourism
|
|
wa-c
|
Emissions
of CH
4
due
to the percentage of waste attributable to tourism
|
|
wa-d
|
Emissions
of NO
X
due
to the percentage of waste attributable to tourism
|
Water
pollution and water resources
|
Code
|
Core
Pressure Indicators
|
Unit
of measurement
and
reference period
|
Reference
to SAG code
|
|
wp-a
|
Water
abstraction due to tourism in relation to total water abstraction for household
purposes, divided by groundwater and surface water
|
%
per yr
|
WP-2,
WP-15
|
|
wp-b
|
Total
no. of tourists arriving into the country by inland boat in relation to total
no. of inland boat passengers
|
%
per yr
|
|
|
wp-c
|
Discharge
of sewage water to lakes and rivers attributable to tourism, by type of treatment
|
tonnes
per yr
|
|
The
proposed additional pressure indicators for the policy field Water Pollution
and Water Resources are:
|
Code
|
Additional
Pressure Indicators
|
|
wp-d
|
Total
no. of yachts and other pleasure boats arriving at inland ports
|
|
wp-e
|
Amount
of waste discharged from the increased no. of ships during the tourist season
|
|
wp-f
|
Percentage
of organic substances (BOD) discharged through sewage water attributable to
tourism
|
|
wp-g
|
Percentage
of nutrients (N and P) discharged through sewage water attributable to tourism
|
3.4. Availability
and quality of indicators
A
review of existing literature on the interrelations between tourism and
environment as well as of official statistics on relevant specific fields (such
as tourism statistics, environmental statistics, transport statistics, etc.)
has been carried out in order to collect a set of available pressure
indicators. On the basis of this investigation of data presented in
international publications and of contacts with representatives of tourist
organisations it appears that tourism pressure indicators are produced in only
a few cases.
The
following international official statistics and documentation have been analysed:
- Europe's
Environment, The Dobrís Assessment (
EEA,
1995
a);
- Guidelines
for data collection for the Dobrís+3 report (
EEA,
1996
b);
- Environmental
data, Compendium (OECD, 1995);
- Statistical
Compendium for the Dobrís Assessment (Eurostat, 1995a);
- Yearbook
of tourism statistics (WTO, 1995b);
- Tourism
Statistics (Eurostat, 1994).
Hereafter,
we shall discuss these sources.
The
EEA, in the Dobrís Assessment, in particular in the section devoted to
tourism and recreation, gives a detailed overview of the different ways in
which some form of tourism and some recreational activities can affect the
natural environment. Starting from the statement that impacts are largely
dependent on the specific setting and type and scale of activity, six different
settings for tourism and recreation are described:
- national
parks and protected areas;
- rural
zones;
- mountains;
- coastal
areas;
- cities
and heritage sites;
- theme
and leisure parks.
In
each setting, case studies are used to provide examples of the range of
impacts, but pressure indicators to measure all these different impacts
aren’t presented.
In
the Guidelines for data collection for the Dobrís+3 report,
Trends
in international tourism arrivals
and
receipts
and the corresponding
Regional
trends
are
considered under Tourism/recreation.
The
OECD compendium,
whose
information consists mostly of data collected by means of the joint
OECD/Eurostat questionnaire, in the sections devoted to sectors that generate
pressure to the environment refers only to energy, transport, agriculture and
industry. In this last section there is a table that presents trends in
international tourist receipts in OECD countries.
In
the statistical compendium for the Dobrís Assessment
statistics
on overnight stays in hotels and similar establishments, with a breakdown
between resident and non-resident guest, and statistics on tourist arrivals at
international frontiers are presented.
In
conclusion, in all the international sources mentioned above there are
variables which can only provide an impression of the overall tourist intensity
in a given country. In the case of EEA (1996b) these variables are presented as
environmental indicators; it seems, however, that in no case the variables
quantified can strictly be considered as tourism pressure indicators.
Among
the tourism-related international official statistics, several variables are
shown. The WTO “Yearbook of Tourism Statistics” collects data on
arrivals at frontiers, international and domestic tourist arrivals at
accommodation establishments, international and domestic overnight stays,
arrivals by mode of transport, accommodation capacity (number of rooms and
bed-places) and tourism receipts and expenditure. In this publication a
pressure indicator like
Passenger-km
is included, but only with reference to international air transport.
In
addition to that, Eurostat compiles, for most EU countries, data on capacity of
hotels and similar establishments; capacity of supplementary accommodation
establishments; resident and non-resident guest flows in hotels and similar
establishments; arrivals at the frontiers of tourists from abroad.
The
principal variables found in international official statistics on tourism
concern the tourist arrivals at accommodation establishments and overnight
stays; little information is available on the types of recreation and other
activities that tourist undertake, their precise destination (such as coasts,
mountains, or rural areas) within countries, or on seasonal flows. The
available information can then be considered as
background
indicators.
Indicators of the very environmental impact of tourism and recreation, on the
other hand, should provide, in our opinion, measures which reflect more
directly environmental pressures related to the activities at issue. That could
be obtained by linking certain background indicators to other statistics, such
as the total land area of a given country, used as the denominator of a ratio.
The
only available tourism pressure indicator found within international tourism
statistics is
Passenger-km,
considered in the WTO Yearbook.
Given
the overall situation described above, an exercise has been made for the
general indicators Number of tourists/km
2
and Ratio tourists/residents in percentage: the said indicators were collected
with reference to 1992 for all the Member Countries of the EU plus Switzerland.
The results are reported in Annex 2.
3.5. Specific
methodological aspects for selected indicators
It
should be noted that tourism is a complex phenomenon which cannot be assigned
to one sector: it represents a demand for goods and services which addresses a
wide range of sectors. Its distinguishing feature is simply the fact that this
demand stems from tourists rather than residents. The problem is to attribute
indicators to the sector tourism, since they are provided in a global view,
that is for residents and tourists.
In
fact, only few indicators can be calculated in a simple manner. For example,
the general indicators can be calculated directly from tourist statistics,
transport statistics and population statistics, while as regards consumption of
water, of energy or production of waste related to tourism, it is necessary to
make estimates.
In
order to distinguish between the pressures on the environment caused by tourism
and those due to residents, it is suggested to apply certain coefficients, such
as the ratio tourists/(residents+tourists), assuming the same behaviour for
tourists and residents.
In
some cases, specific methodologies would have to be used. For example, for the
emissions of pollutants due to tourism transport (see the core indicators
presented in paragraph 3.3, i.e. ap-a.1, ap-b.1, ap-c.1, ap-d.1, ap-e.1, cc-a,
cc-b.1, cc-c.1, cc-d.1, cc-g.1, od-c.1) it would be necessary to identify the
means of transport used by the tourists (cars, trains, aeroplanes) and then
calculate the emissions of pollutants attributable to them using the relevant
CORINAIR coefficients. The crucial point is to find the necessary basic data.
With reference to this, some assumptions could enable us to overcome some
specific lack of data. For example, as far as the number of vehicles used for
tourist road transportation is concerned, one could start from the mean rate of
car occupancy by nationality; on the basis of that, the number of tourist cars
going into a given country could be estimated dividing the total arrivals of
tourists by the same coefficient.
