Abstract

SEGOVIA VILLASANTI, Rebeca Beatriz; AMARILLA RODRIGUEZ, Stella Mary; SALAS DUENAS, Danilo Arturo  and  GONZALEZ LESME, Liliana Raquel. Assessment of the tourism carrying capacity of interpretive trails in the Mbaracayú forest Nature Reserve, Paraguay. Rev. Soc. cient. Parag. [online]. 2025, vol.30, n.2, pp.87-102. ISSN 0379-9123.  https://doi.org/10.32480/rscp.2025.30.2.87102.

Tourist carrying capacity (TCC) represents a useful and effective management tool in protected areas, to maintain ecological characteristics, recreational quality, and visitor satisfaction. The general objective was to determine the TCC of the Aguara'i and Arroyo Morotí trails in the Mbaracayú Forest Nature Reserve (RNBM), considering changes and improvements in the reserve's management capacities. Pioneering methodological approaches, were applied, with local adaptations. The methodology considers three levels of capacity: physical (CCF), real (CCR), and effective (CCE). Measurement protocols designed for the country were applied, combining measurements on the trails, photographic recording, direct observation, and mapping of the information. Estimated were projected for pandemic scenarios. Eight correction factors were applied to the RCC. Based on the estimated 83% (satisfactory level) management capacity of the RNBM, the ECC results obtained were 526 visits/day for the Aguara'i trail and 779 visits/day for the Arroyo Morotí trail. The TCC for the Aguara'i Trail was 58 visitors/day and for the Arroyo Morotí Trail, 87 visitors/day. Based on methodological innovations, the COVID-mode TCC was obtained at 7 and 9 visitors/day for the reference trails. The results provided key insights for adaptive monitoring and contribute to strategic decision-making regarding trails with high visitation, ensuring that tourism activity does not disrupt the sites and ensures visitor satisfaction. The appropriate combination of correction factors in the CCR estimation is considered decisive for the results, prioritizing ecological aspects in this research.

Keywords : management plans; adaptive management; public use; ecosystem services; visitors..

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