Conclusion
Planning and targets for specific activities are important to
sites, towns or regions in developing a sustainable tourism.
The ecological footprint provides a framework for assessment
of civil and industry capacity for tourism growth, and a
benchmark against which to set goals for the future impact of
tourism in the host community. Quantified information can
provide a host community a tool against which to weigh
decisions such as modification/control of tourist activities
offered, or limits to visitation levels.
Cole and Sinclair (2002)documented a Himalayan case in
which tourist and resident EF suggested very different
consumption patterns, suggesting that tourist EF was having
a disproportionate impact on the destination's total environ-mental pressure. In contrast, our study documents Val di
Merse tourist equivalent resident and local resident EF are of
similar levels, with both levels lower than the weighted
average EF from tourist country of origin. This finding, and
the use of the tourist equivalent resident approach can be of
use for local planning efforts. Municipal planners may seek to
anticipate civil needs for water, energy, and waste for the
growing tourism population to Val di Merse. The EF figures can
also be used as a benchmark against which to measure
tourism sector progress against the Agenda 21 goals endorsed
by the Province. Economic throughput and consumption are important
topics to ecological economic study. The study of tourists
and residents, side-by-side, allows us a test case against
which to compare theories of cultures of consumption (Urry,1990). These unique circumstances allow us to explore of
culturally determined “wants” versus universal “needs”. Max-Neef (1991)in attempting to re-characterize fundamental
human needs stressed the importance of“ distinguishing
between needs and satisfiers” the former which are universal
and finite, the latter which vary widely and are potentially
infinite in time and across cultures.
There is perhaps an infinite number of ways by which we
might pursue satisfaction through the consumption of goods.
And there are a precious few occasions, environments, and
Situations which encourage us to slowdown, consume less, and
control wastes. Should we be fortunate enough to find
ourselves in such situations, may we be mindful of what is
inspiring us in that moment, and may we apply that knowledge as we redesign our theories of how a steady-state economy may
come to pass. The use of environmental indicators such as the
ecological footprint can assist in confirming or rejecting the
assumptions we make of environmental impact, provide
common denomination for comparisons among populations,
and help to establish benchmarks against which to improve.