From Chinese tourists to Taiwanese campers: Impacts of tourism policies on campsite land use/cover change

The rapid increase in camping activities and campsites has had negative environmental impacts in mountainous areas. Tourism policies may be an important factor in changing recreational behavior and increasing campsites. The purpose of this study was to explore the effects of tourism policies on campsite-related landscape changes in Taiwan. The study area consisted of 276 campsites in the Jianshi and Wufeng Townships in Hsinchu County. The tourism policy periods were divided into 2001-2007 (Taiwan's agri-tourism policy), 2008-2015 (China and Taiwan's travel permit policy), and 2016-2019 (China's travel restriction policy), based on a reference review and relative theories. The 2000, 2008, 2016, and 2019 campsite landscapes were classified into forestland and non-forestland through object-based classification. This study established a general linear model to analyze the effect of tourism policy period on campsite forestland and non-forestland landscape change, according to the 50, 100, 250, 500, and 1000 m radii of 276 campsites. The results showed that tourism policies had a significant effect on campsite forestland and non-forestland landscape changes. The effect sizes ranged from medium to large. The Chinese tourist travel permit policy was significantly associated with increased non-forestland in campsites from 2008 to 2016. This policy likely affected recreational behavior indirectly, promoting camping and increasing non-forestland through the crowding-out effects of the many Chinese tourists, which was not the original purpose of the policy. Tourism policy decision-makers should consider the potential negative landscape change effects of changes in recreational behavior, and provide supporting measures to maintain recreational quality and avoid crowding-out effects. Campsite development should also be regulated to prevent forestland changes and achieve sustainable management.