Determinación de prioridades de conservación en relación a espacios naturales protegidos y atractivos turísticos en la provincia de Chimborazo.

Abstract

The aim of this study was to identify conservation priorities in relation to protected natural areas and tourist attractions in the province of Chimborazo, therefore, conservation gaps were identified by applying the documentary research method, on conservation modalities, protected areas and tourist attractions in the province of Chimborazo, bibliographic reviewing technique of sources in degree works approved and reviewed by the Escuela Superior Politécnica de Chimborazo (ESPOCH) was used and a database of tourist attractions was created. Afterwards, conservation priorities were identified using the exclusion method with the information on tourist attractions, selecting as priorities those conservation gaps into their territory were identified as hierarchy II, III and IV attractions. Finally, guidelines were formulated using the deductive method and the analysis technique, elaborating a tree of problems of tourist attractions where the main problems affecting tourist attractions were identified. For the identification of gaps and conservation priorities, the ArcGis program was used, obtaining as a result that Alausí canton is the territory with the greatest extension in terms of gaps and conservation priorities, having into its territory short-cycle crops (peas, lentils, beans, chocho, quinoa, melloco), the Chanchan river with 48.54 km and the evergreen montane forest ecosystem of the Western Cordillera of the Andes, which is 2.31% of the territory. To conclude, in the province of Chimborazo there are 9 conservation priorities with 48 tourist attractions of hierarchy II, 15 of hierarchy III and 6 of hierarchy IV, associated with 17 ecosystems and 92 rivers. It is suggested that country-level studies be extended to identify conservation priorities for timely protection of the ecological variables found within these areas.