Desert Management

Desert Management

Evaluation of the Features of Geographical and Biogeotourism Heritage of Landscapes in Order to Develop Wetland Ecotourism in the International Wetlands of Hormozgan

Document Type : Original Article

Authors
1 Master of Ecotourism, University of Hormozgan, Hormozgan, Bandar Abbas, Iran
2 Corresponding author, Assistant Professor of Environmental Planning and Management, Department of Geographical Sciences, Faculty of Humanities, University of Hormozgan, Bandar Abbas, Iran
3 Assistant Professor, Department of Geographical Sciences, Faculty of Humanities, University of Hormozgan, Bandar Abbas, Iran
4 Academic member, Department of Natural Resources Engineering, Faculty of Agriculture and Natural Resources, University of Hormozgan, Hormozgan, Bandar Abbas, Iran
Abstract
Extended Abstract
 
Introduction
One of the most important tourist destinations in the country is Iran's wetlands, which have a surface area of around three million hectares. The Azini wetland, which covers 28000 ha, boasts unique ecotourism opportunities as a tropical wetland situated in the coastal desert east of Hormozgan province. Due to having mangrove forests with two species of Avicennia marina and Rhyzophora mucronata, the special geographical location, beautiful scenery, and rich habitat of birds and animals are all reasons to visit. The desert and wetland ecosystem of Azini lagoon, which has two mangrove trees, is a significant aquatic or wetland ecosystem in the desert areas adjacent to the sea coast. This ecotone has a great variety of habitats and diversity that have been created in and around the coastal wetlands. They provide favorable conditions to attract and welcome various forms of plant and animal life, which therefore have many visual attractions. The ecotourism sector has seen the fastest growth in the tourism industry, developing between 2.5 and 7% faster than other tourism sectors. A tourism protection program is necessary to use mangrove biodiversity as a tourist attraction. In examining the suitability of areas for tourism in Indonesia, the factors of water clarity and clarity, ocean currents, beach type, layer and beach typology were evaluated (1). Other researches have been conducted on topics such as Nebkazar Sirik and other mandabi ecosystems of Hormozgan and its relationship with tourism, but so far no research has been conducted on the biogeotourism features of landscapes in the international wetlands of Hormozgan. The current research was carried out with the aim of evaluating the characteristics of the geographical and biogeotourism heritage of the landscapes in the international wetlands of Hormozgan in order to develop wetland ecotourism.
 
Material and Methods
The international wetland known as Azini is found in Sirik City in the eastern part of Hormozgan province. It is located between latitudes of 26 degrees 15 minutes to 26 degrees 26 minutes north and lengths of 57 degrees 4 minutes to 57 degrees 7 minutes east. The Azini wetland is categorized as a tropical wetland by the World Register, and is composed of mangrove forests with the two dominant species, mangrove and Rhyzophora mucronate. Due to its special geographical location and beautiful scenery, as well as its rich habitat for birds and animals, it has special ecotourism attractions. The present research examined the compatibility of tourism development with ecotourism through the combined document-field method of Azini international wetland located in Sirik city, Hormozgan Province. The appropriateness of tourism development is determined by eight criteria of the distance from the protected area of the wetland, access to the electricity network, distance from the main road, land use and cover, distance from law enforcement centers, diversity and abundance of attractions, access to population points and distance from the fault line. The FUZZY ANP model was used to determine the appropriate development zone for the area.
 
Distance from law enforcement centers
The security category and tourism industry have a strong connection; it is widely accepted that the standard of security in tourism is the level of security perceived by tourists. Security is crucial for a trip to take place and discussing tourism is pointless without it. Traveling and tourism-related activities can flourish when there is a suitable platform at the international level for people to travel. Tourists won't travel to a destination if they feel insecure about it. In other words, tourism security is so significant that tourists are constantly searching for safer tourist destinations when choosing their travel destination. The issue of security and the negative image of Iran in the minds of foreign tourists is one of the factors that have been identified as problematic for Iran's tourism. The reason for this is unhealthy competition in the industry of attracting foreign tourists among countries, and the arrogant efforts of advanced countries' media against the Islamic Republic. Law enforcement centers and tourists' access to them are essential factors that can ensure tourism security and provide a sense of peace of mind for tourists. In choosing areas for tourism development, it is important to prioritize areas that are close to and have better access to law enforcement centers. A naval post is located near Khor Azini in the investigation area and the 10-km buffer, which serves as a point of control for the order and security of the area. To guarantee security for tourists, it's crucial to select areas that are close to this checkpoint.
 
Results and Discussion
The current study investigated the suitability of Azini Wetland for tourism development by studying an area of 376 square kilometers using 8 criteria. According to the assessment of tourism development suitability in the selected area, 31% of the total area has favorable conditions, 36% has moderate conditions, and 33% has unfavorable conditions. The Azini Wetland territory is close to the conditions considered for tourism development, which is why each zone has taken up about 30% of the area. It is certain that the conditions will change for the benefit of the appropriate area of development when infrastructure and facilities are established and developed. This potential can be utilized by planning in this field to benefit from the development of sustainable tourism and its economic benefits.
Conclusion
 In the current research, an area of ​​2376 Km as the territory of Azini Wetland was investigated in terms of the appropriateness of tourism development using selected criteria, 8 criteria. The findings showed that about 31% of the area has suitable conditions for tourist use, 36% has average conditions and 33% has poor conditions in this regard; Therefore, the territory of Azini Wetland is seen to be close to the conditions between the three types of appropriateness considered for the development of tourism; So that each area has taken up approximately 30% of the area. Undoubtedly, with the establishment and development of infrastructure and facilities, the conditions will change for the benefit of the appropriate area of ​​development, which requires fundamental planning and preparation of thematic or positional plans to achieve sustainable tourism in this direction.
Keywords

Subjects


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Volume 12, Issue 2 - Serial Number 30
6 Article
Summer 2024
Pages 65-82

  • Receive Date 26 March 2024
  • Revise Date 12 July 2024
  • Accept Date 25 May 2024