Potentiale des Naturtourismus am Beispiel des Ramsar-Schutzgebiets Lafnitztal

Wien

2005

S. 20-21

2 Lit. Ang.

Artikel aus einem BuchUnselbständiges Werk

200133813

The Lafnitz valley has a great natural potential. It has been a Ramsar-protected wetland area since 2002. The area of study encompasses 19 municipalities on either side of the Lafnitz river, which is the border between two Austrian provinces. A study conducted by the University of Natural Resources evaluated the potentials for nature tourism in the Lafnitz valley in order to increase the regional value added in this economically weak region. Qualitative interviews were conducted with representatives of agriculture, nature conservation and tourism in order to disginguish points of contact and potential conflicts for developing a nature tourist offer complementary to the tourism based on thermal spas, of which only few municipalities in the region profit from. Assets (landscape, good traffic connection, regionally typical agricultural products, and hindrances (quantitative and qualitative lack in tourist infrastructure, fragementation of the tourist offer, impacts of intensive agriculture on the scenic quality of the landscape), for establishing nature tourism were identified. The study comes to the conclusion that the protected area bears a chance for tourism development if certain basic prerequisites, such as creating an image for the Lafnitz valley or enforcing inter-municipal and cross-border co-operation, are taken into consideration.