Natura 2000 Network vs. Tourism and Investment Potential of Communes—A Case Study of Czarnkowsko-Trzcianecki County

Abstract

The Natura 2000 is a network of protected areas established in the European Union on the basis of EU Directives. Simultaneously it is the youngest form of protected areas in Poland. Hence conflicts between conservation objectives and opportunities as well as needs of community economic development are quite common. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the tourism and investment potential of Czarnkowsko-Trzcianecki County and determine whether the Natura 2000 network is a factor in increasing the tourism and investment development of the commune or limiting it. We evaluated the tourism and investment potential based on modification of the Gołembski method (i.e., multidimensional comparative analysis) and measured the proportion of the Natura 2000 network in the total area of the commune. The Trzcianka commune was found to have the greatest tourism development and investment potential, but the Wieleń commune was the most attractive in terms of tourism, and Czarnków (municipal commune) was found to have the highest investment attractiveness. Moreover, there was no correlation between the Natura 2000 network and tourism and investment potential of communes. However, these areas had a negative impact on the investment attractiveness of communes, due to socio-economic and technical aspects, which may cause future potential limitation of development.

Attractiveness Assessment Model for Evaluating an Area for a Potential Geopark—Case Study: Hațeg UNESCO Global Geopark (Romania)

“…Researchers have described the role of destination attributes [5]. The perceived attributes starting with tourist attractions [4] and end with the different levels of attraction for investment [6,7] or with quality indicators such as struc- Positive linear growth in the number of studies can be observed in the graph, with an appreciable jump between 2021 and 2023. In addition, a great deal of research has involved the development of different tools or of other complementary scientific branches.…”

“…Researchers have described the role of destination attributes [5]. The perceived attributes starting with tourist attractions [4] and end with the different levels of attraction for investment [6,7] or with quality indicators such as structural quality, ecological quality, and management quality [8]. Other quality variables include the quality of the country's promotion, information, accommodation, and restaurants [9].…”

“…Other investigated topics include the accessibility of tourism destinations and access roads shown to be accessible in relation to the main touristgenerating regions or countries [4,[14][15][16]. Furthermore, accessibility has been expressed as communication potential [17], accessibility based on principles of accessibility levels [18], transport accessibility [7,11], and the meaning of accessibility as proximity to tourist areas and proximity to main communication factors (road, airport, river etc.) [19].…”

“…In terms of methodology, some studies have relied on different types of information used: geospatial data [8], remote sensing data [20], data from national geodatabases, and cartographic resources [7]. Others have considered collection methods such as sampling and survey methods, with questionnaires being the main instrument for the collection of data in these studies [11,21,22].…”

“…Finally, most studies have been founded on methods regarding the processing of the collected data. The Gołembski index (multivariate comparative index) and Wejchert's Impression Curve Method were used to obtain the visual impression of the landscape [6,7]. Other methods are based on GIS approaches: GIS combined with checklist [13], developing assessment models to measure geodiversity using QGIS [23], cartographic analysis [24], spatial analysis, and hot spot analysis with ArcGIS [25].…”