Development, management and economy of show caves

Abstract

The problems concerning the development of show caves are here considered by taking into account different aspects of the problem. A procedure to carry out an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) has been established in the last decade and it is now currently applied. Such an assessment starts with a pre-operational phase to obtain sufficient information on the undisturbed status of a cave to be developed into a show cave. Successively a programme for its development is established with the scope to optimise the intervention on the cave at the condition that its basic environmental parameters are not irreversibly modified. The last phase of the assessment is focussed to assure a feedback through a monitoring network in order to detect any unforeseen difference or anomaly between the project and the effective situation achieved after the cave development. Some data on some of the most important show caves in the world are reported and a tentative evaluation of the economy in connection with the show caves business is eventually made.

The show cave of Diros vs. wild caves of Peloponnese, Greece - distribution patterns of Cyanobacteria

“…Cigna, 1993;Cigna and Burri, 2000), and (3) control of the already established 'Lampenflora' with physical, chemical or biological methodology (cf. Mulec and Kosi, 2009 for the distinction.…”

“…Assuming that the annual number of visitors amount from 68,938 to 120,000 (according to the information by the Ephorate of Palaeoanthropology and Speleology of Southern Greece) the average heat release E (J) for the water gallery section of the cave is 1.037 •10 10 to 1.8 •10 10 J, while for the cave water-free part the amount ranges from 1.2 •10 11 to 7.17 •10 11 J. The heat emitted by visitors tends to raise the air temperature in a cave and may modify its humidity (Cigna, 1993;Cigna and Burri 2000;Mulec and Kosi, 2009). As a result, where the number of visitors is large and groups follow each other in close succession, the effects may be cumulative, requiring hours or even days to restore the former equilibrium.…”

“…There is a delicate balance between the various groups of cave biotic components, particularly among the microfloristic (algae, fungi and bacteria) and microfaunal (small-sized insects, arthropods, bats) cave members (Saiz-Jimenez, 2012). This process is prone to disruption in show cave habitats due to human visitation and modification of the cave environment (Cigna and Burri, 2000;Mulec and Kosi, 2009;Saiz-Jimenez, 2012). The development of caves for mass tourism requires alteration of natural passages, installation of lighting, pathways, platforms, and associated infrastructure (Gillieson, The karst cave 'Vlychada' of Diros, one of the oldest show caves in Peloponnese, sustains extended phototrophic biofilms on various substrata -on rocks inside the cave including speleothems, and especially near the artificial lighting installation ('Lampenflora').…”

Ecotourism in the State Forest Karst of Puerto Rico

“…Karst landscapes provide significant venues for ecotourism (e.g., Bundschuh et al, 2007), and the protected areas within karst can be important for promoting recreational and tourism opportunities (Scott et al, 2004). Few studies have examined this topic in detail, with most past studies specifically related to tourist-cave development and conservation (Lobo and Moretti, 2009;Cigna and Burri, 2000) and not ecotourism within the karst environment as a whole; a particularly striking example of the latter case is presented here.…”

In situ Raman characterization of minerals and degradation processes in a variety of cultural and geological heritage sites

“…Another example of potentially destructive sampling is given by mineralogical studies in protected caves, which are usually sites of significant aesthetic, geological and touristic relevance [7]. Oversampling and bad practice on the part of researchers during field work might produce severe damage in the caverns [8,9], in particular, to speleothems [10].…”