The impact of tourism and personal leisure transport on coastal environments: A review

Davenport, John; Davenport, Julia

doi:10.1016/j.ecss.2005.11.026

Cited by 637 publications

(378 citation statements)

References 56 publications

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“…Nevertheless, the coastal ecosystems of the study area have undoubtedly suffered from escalating human pressure in the form of coast-bound tourism, which has become, in the twentieth Century, one of the main economic resources of the region. Mass tourism has been proved to widely affect vegetation, both directly and indirectly (Andersen 1995;Davenport and Davenport 2006;Rickard et al 1994). Specifically, excessive visitor pressure and consequent trampling has been proved to damage dune morphology and lead to the degradation of vegetation, even if the impact varies in severity according to species' morphological characteristics and local habitat properties.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The response of plant community diversity to alien invasion: evidence from a sand dune time series

2014

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This study examines the process of invasion of coastal dunes in north-eastern Italy along a 60-year time series considering alien attributes (origin, residence time, invasive status, and growth form strategy) and habitat properties (species richness, diversity and evenness, proportion of aliens, and proportion of focal species). Vegetation changes through time were investigated in four sandy coastal habitats, using a fine-scale diachronic approach that compared vegetation data collected by use of the same procedure, in four time periods, from the 1950s to 2011. Our analysis revealed an overall significant decline of species richness over the last six decades. Further, both the average number of species per plot and the mean focal species proportion were proved to be negatively affected by the increasing proportion of alien species at plot level. The severity of the impact, however, was found to be determined by a combination of species attributes, habitat properties, and human disturbance suggesting that alien species should be referred to as ''passengers'' and not as ''drivers'' of ecosystem change. Passenger alien species are those which take advantage of disturbances or other changes to which they are adapted but that lead to a decline in native biodiversity. Their spread is facilitated by widespread anthropogenic environmental alterations, which create new, suitable habitats, and ensure human-assisted dispersal, reducing the distinctiveness of plant communities and inducing a process of biotic homogenization.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The response of plant community diversity to alien invasion: evidence from a sand dune time series

2014

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“…Beaches are prime sites for human recreation (de Ruyck and others 1997;Davenport and Davenport 2006). Leisure activities span a broad spectrum of uses ranging from lowimpact activities, such as bird-watching and walking, to high-impact pursuits, such as ORV driving.…”

Section: Management Implicationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Recreational activities are one of the most prominent forms of direct human uses of sandy beaches, and include walking, swimming, surfing, beach camping, bait and shellfish collecting, and fishing (Priskin 2003a;Buckley 2004;Klein and others 2004;Davenport and Davenport 2006). In many parts of Australia and elsewhere, leisure activities involve the use of off-road vehicles (ORVs) driven on the beaches (Steiner and Leatherman 1981;Stephenson 1999;Priskin 2003a;Moss and McPhee 2006;Schlacher and Thompson 2007;Schlacher and others 2007a).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Impacts of Off-Road Vehicles (ORVs) on Macrobenthic Assemblages on Sandy Beaches

Schlacher

Richardson

McLean

2008

Environmental Management

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Sandy beaches are the prime sites for human recreation and underpin many coastal economies and developments. In many coastal areas worldwide, beach recreation relies on the use of off-road vehicles (ORVs) driven on the shore. Yet, the use of ORVs is not universally embraced due to social conflicts with other beach user groups and putative environmental consequences of vehicle traffic on sandy shores. Such ecological impacts of ORVs are, however, poorly understood for endobenthic invertebrates of the intertidal zone seawards of the dunes. Consequently, this study quantified the degree to which assemblages of intertidal beach invertebrates are affected by traffic. The study design comprised a series of temporally replicated spatial contrasts between two reference sites (no ORVs) and two beaches with heavy ORV traffic (in excess of 250,000 vehicles per year) located in SouthEast Queensland, Australia. Macrobenthic assemblages on ORV-impacted beaches had significantly fewer species at substantially reduced densities, resulting in marked shifts in community composition and structure. These shifts were particularly strong on the middle and upper shore where vehicle traffic was concentrated. Strong effects of ORVs were detectable in all seasons, but increased towards the summer months as a result of heavier traffic volumes. This study provides clear evidence that ORVs can have substantial impacts on sandy beach invertebrates that are manifested throughout the whole community.Demonstrating such an ecological impact caused by a single type of human use poses a formidable challenge to management, which needs to develop multi-faceted approaches to balance environmental, social, cultural, and economic arguments in the use of sandy shores, including management of ''beach traffic.''

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“…Further, this aggressive action may have resulted in a negative impact on the local ecosystem by removing too much organic matter and disrupting the habitat of nesting birds [58, [95][96][97].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Influence of Petroleum Deposit Geometry on Local Gradient of Electron Acceptors and Microbial Catabolic Potential

Singh

Pruden

Widdowson

2012

Environ. Sci. Technol.

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A field survey was conducted following the Deepwater Horizon blowout and it was noted that resulting coastal petroleum deposits possessed distinct geometries, ranging from small tar balls to expansive horizontal oil sheets. A laboratory study evaluated the effect of oil deposit geometry on localized gradients of electron acceptors and microbial community composition, factors that are critical to accurately estimating biodegradation rates. One-dimensional top-flow sand columns with 12-hour simulated tidal cycles compared two contrasting geometries (isolated tar "balls" versus horizontal "sheets") relative to an oil-free control. Significant differences in the effluent dissolved oxygen and sulfate concentrations were noted among the columns, indicating presence of anaerobic zones in the oiled columns, particularly in the sheet condition. iv

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The impact of tourism and personal leisure transport on coastal environments: A review

Cited by 637 publications

References 56 publications

The response of plant community diversity to alien invasion: evidence from a sand dune time series

The response of plant community diversity to alien invasion: evidence from a sand dune time series

Impacts of Off-Road Vehicles (ORVs) on Macrobenthic Assemblages on Sandy Beaches

Influence of Petroleum Deposit Geometry on Local Gradient of Electron Acceptors and Microbial Catabolic Potential

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