The document discusses a workshop focused on the intersection of tourism development and water ecosystem restoration, highlighting the significant impact tourism has on water resources and ecosystems in the Mediterranean region. It emphasizes the need for sustainable practices and innovations to mitigate negative effects while enhancing the benefits of tourism, such as financial support for ecosystem management. The workshop aims to identify key challenges, share best practices, and develop an action plan to improve the synergy between tourism and water conservation efforts.

1. Forging Targets and Solutions for Rivers
and Water Ecosystem Restoration
Workshop 4
Improve the link between tourism
development and quality of water
ecosystems
Ljubljana – November 16th – 18th 2011

2. Tourism : high stakes
TIME FOR SOLUTIONS
Mediterranean area = 22% of world wide
tourism destinations, and also a biodiversity
hotspots with 50% of plant species in
coastal areas
Europe: tourisme = 10% of GDP, 20 millions
of jobs
Concentration of people
summer anywhere
winter in mountains
with concentrations
vulnerable ecosystems,
key primary production – fisheries

3. Tourism : high impacts on water resources and
ecosystems
TIME FOR SOLUTIONS
negative impacts of tourism through the creation of man-
made infrastructures, the use of scarce resources, the
discharge of pollutions, the intense visits and uses of
fragile ecosystems
but tourism depends on water resources and on aquatic
ecosystems: consumptive uses of water, disposal of
liquid waste, quality of bathing waters, site-seeing,
ecotourism
positive impacts of tourism through raising financial
resources, awareness, incentive to sustainable
management of ecosystem services
a wide diversity of local situations

4. Ways to improve the interaction between tourism
development and water resources / ecosystems
TIME FOR SOLUTIONS
technologies (possible water savings up to 50%)
awareness and behaviours of tourists
certification towards more or less sustainable
tourism practices (more than 250 programs
worldwide)
development of ecotourism
integrated long terme planning of land, tourism and
water (tourism carrying capacity assessment, …)
…

5. what can we do?
TIME FOR SOLUTIONS
Contribuition World Water Forum to Improve
the link between tourism development and
quality of water ecosystems ?
collect solutions and share them on the web
site www.solutionsforwater.org
define a collective target to improve the
situations Europe wide, with an action plan
to raise commitments and promote suited
solutions
organise a consortium to implement the
action plan and monitor the commitments
and the implementations

6. Round table session 1: what are the issues,
drivers, stakeholders ?
TIME FOR SOLUTIONS
– What are the main problems with the impact of
tourism on water resources and aquatic
ecosystems and interaction between tourism and
natural assets related to water?
– What are the main drivers and stakeholders
influencing this interaction in both ways (impacts
on natural assets / incentives for their
preservation, constraints on tourism
development / natural attractors for tourism)?
– What are the main obstacles to a sustainable
development of tourism in regard to water
resources and aquatic ecosystems?
– How important are European / national/ local
policies?

7. Round table session 2: examples, experiences,
good practices
TIME FOR SOLUTIONS
– Are suited technologies available to cope with highly
seasonal fluctuations of population densities? with
sensitive resources and ecosystems?
– Are there drivers and ways to influence behaviours
of tourists? of tourism industry?
– Are there indicators and approaches to audit/assess
and monitor the different dimensions of the
sustainability of tourism assets and their operation?
– How to combine land use, integrated water
management and tourism development through long-
term planning and management plans?

8. Round table session 3: possible solutions ?
possible action plan ? possible contributions ?
TIME FOR SOLUTIONS
– Can you recommend any good practice, available
ones or promising ones under development? can
you prioritize these according to their effect and
to their current level of implementation?
– Can you recommend any good practice
guidance?
– What are the solutions you propose, either for
general implementation or for specific
areas/situations?
– What could be an action plan to improve the link
between tourism development and the quality of
water ecosystems? (what ? who ? when ?)