Mapping recreation supply and demand using an ecological and a social evaluation approach

This paper provides a framework for addressing recreation as an example of Cultural Ecosystem Services and a methodology to support landscape management based on recreation activities at a regional scale. A GIS-based approach was used to estimate and map ecological and social factors illustrating recreation supply and demand in the Basque Country (northern Spain). The proposed methodology for recreation supply was based on recreation potential and accessibility, and the social demand was determined using a convenience sample of 629 persons that reported preferences for recreation activities using photo-questionnaires. Results showed that 23% of the viewsheds showed a high demand and higher recreation potential than accessibility, whereas only 3% showed a high demand and higher accessibility than potential. Approximately 74% of the territory showed a medium-low demand. We concluded that people׳s assessments on the basis of their aesthetic preferences may serve as a reasonable proxy for mapping recreation demand. The proposed visual method is fast, efficient and may be easily replicable in other regions. The proposed framework can be used as an input to support landscape management, to identify areas most demanded by society and to quantify spatially recreation supply and demand for supporting political strategies.