Trampling after Landscape Level Disturbance: Impacts on Subalpine Vegetation and Soils in the Australian Alps

Abstract

The goal of this research was to characterize the visit and visitors to the highlands of Itatiaia National Park (PNI), located in the state of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil and, based on that information, to explore the guidelines of a visitor education program designed to encompass minimum impact techniques that would help minimize management problems. A questionnaire was applied to 605 people from February to August 2002 in order to collect information about visits and visitors. Among the information collected were group size, activities carried out by visitors, duration of visit, and educational level of visitors, their previous experience and perceptions of the impacts caused by visitors.