Eco-tourism Certification Standards In Research, And Promote The Process Of Government Action

At present, research and practice concerning ecotourism certification are just in their initial stages. This thesis is an attempt to design an index system about ecotourism certification of scenic zones, which is applicable to real situation of Zhejiang province. It will contribute a lot to the development of ecotourism projects and construction of ecotourism destination.Based upon a systematic review of the latest achievements in the research on ecotourism, its certification standards and sustainable development indicators, the thesis brings forward a set of 119 indicators for ecotourism certification. After a consultation with 30 experts and an investigation in 40 natural areas in Zhejiang province, the author uses Delphi and factor analysis as tools to identify effective indicators and thus develops an ecotourism certification indicator framework. The framework consists of four themes, ten sub-themes and a total of 42 indicators. The four themes are environment, society, ecological management and tourism experience while the ten sub-themes are natural resources, landscape, community participation, staff training, energy consumption, environmental protection investment, waste disposal, vehicle management, merchandise, interpretation system and behavior regulation. Analytic Hierarchy Process is used to work out the weight of each of the 42 indicators.With reference to China national standards, successful practices observed in scenic areas, and advice contributed by experts, the author sets up the evaluation standards on the basis of the real situation of Zhejiang province. The evaluation standards are used to assess five scenic areas in Zhejiang province: Taihuyuan scenic area, Longwang Mountain Nature Reserve, China Big Bamboo Sea, Moganshan Mountain and Canglong Baipu scenic spot. The author analyzes the ecotourism practices in these areas and detects four major behavior fields where sustained improvements are to be made in the future: upgrading of quality interpretation system, improvement of community participation mechanism, strengthening of employees cultivation and environmental management amelioration.In order to explore further what roles the government should play during the whole process of ecotourism accreditation, the author analyzed the data of government, tourist companies and tourists from Hangzhou, Lin'an, Chun'an; Ningbo, Fenghua, Ninghai, Xiangshan; Wenzhou, Yongjia, Leqing; Xinchang; Anji; Lishui and Yongkang, etc. The main problems in governmental tourism management being pointed out, Dematel method is then conducted to the government administrators and experts who have corresponsive comprehension on ecotourism and government operation. Three plans to solve problems are thus concluded after an analysis of mutual-relation and mutual-impact of these problems is made. Based on the above-mentioned researches and analysis, the author sets forth suggestions on government behavior and concrete management methods during the popularization process of ecotourism accreditation standards.