Carrying Capacity and The Multiplier Effect

Question 1

What is the carrying capacity?

Answer 1

The maximum population size that the environment of a place can sustain.

Question 2

How does the carrying capacity relate to tourism?

Answer 2

The maximum number of tourists an area can sustain without causing destruction of the physical, economic and socio-cultural environment.

Question 3

In more recent years, what is there a bigger emphasis on, regarding tourism?

Answer 3

• Reducing social disparities.
• Preserving environmental quality.
• Maintaining acceptable QOL for locals.

Question 4

What are three types of carrying capacity, and what are they?

Answer 4

1) Physical - measure of absolute space eg number of rooms or car spaces.
2) Ecological - level of use an environment can sustain before damage.
3) Perceptual - level of crowding a tourist will tolerate before deciding the place is too full.

Question 5

Give two examples of the carrying capacity of a place being exceeded.

Answer 5

• Zanzibar - an average tourist uses 16x more fresh water a day than locals.
• Spain - water consumption at hotels is about 200l pp pd.

Question 6

What is The Tourism Multiplier Effect?

Answer 6

How money spent by tourists circulates through a country’s economy, eventually “leaking” through imports. Tourism not only directly puts money in and creates jobs, but encourages growth in the primary and secondary sectors of industry.