Recreational potential of the park-monument of national importance "Mezhyhirya"
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.33730/2310-4678.4.2025.346178Keywords:
environmental protection activities, environmental management, recreational activities, recreationist, anthropogenic impact, preservation of environmental componentsAbstract
The intensification of recreational load on suburban nature reserves necessitates scientifically based approaches to their sustainable use and protection of natural complexes. The study was aimed at analyzing the dynamics of recreational load on the natural complexes of the Mezhyhiria Park in a spatio-temporal aspect, assessing its impact on environmental components, and developing proposals for optimizing the use of the territory to prevent ecosystem degradation. Statistical data on attendance for 2024–2025 were used, an analysis of the spatial structure of the park taking into account functional zones, as well as calculations of recreational load using formulas that take into account the number of visitors, the area of locations (2024–2025), and the duration of stay. The locations of landscape compositions, green areas, and alleys were studied, seasonal fluctuations and age categories of recreationists were assessed. It was established that the highest recreational load falls on spring season, in particular on alleys and paths (up to 36,038 people), while the lowest is in winter (6,592 people). Landscape areas and golf courses have similar traffic loads (~5–6 thousand people/ha in spring). The maximum allowable traffic load for the lawn area is 300 thousand people, for the alleys — 150 thousand people. Seasonality and weather conditions are key factors affecting attendance. Mezhyhiria Park has significant recreational potential, but requires enhanced environmental monitoring and load control to preserve biodiversity and natural complexes. Research into recreational load indicators on the territory of the nature reserve fund makes it possible to implement environmental protection and management measures aimed at their maximum preservation and rational use
References
- Zeng, Y., Zhong, L., Yu, H., Deng, J., & Wang, L. (2023). Impact of protected area management on local communities: A perspective of recreational ecosystem services. Environmental Development, 45. doi: 10.1016/j.envdev.2023.100804
- Danylchenkо, O. (2025). Expansion of the territory of the nature reserve fund of Ukraine as a guarantee of sustainable state development. In Theoretical and applied aspects of sustainable development of Ukrainian regions: Scientific monograph (Vol. 1, pp. 222–259). Riga: Baltija Publishing.
- Jalkanen, J., Vierikko, K., Kujala, H., Kivistö, I., Kohonen, I., Lehtinen, P., Toivonen, T., Virtanen, E., & Moilanen, A. (2025). Identifying priority urban green areas for biodiversity conservation and equitable recreational accessibility using spatial prioritization. Landscape and Urban Planning, 259, 105356. doi: 10.1016/j.landurbplan.2025.105356
- Convention on Biological Diversity. (1992). The Convention on Biological Diversity. Retrieved from https://www.cbd.int/convention
- Yakymenko, I. L., Petrashko, L. P., Dyman, T. M., Salavor, O. M., Shapovalov, Ye. B., Halaburda, M. A., Nychyk, O. V., & Martyniuk, O. V. (2022). Strategy for sustainable development: European horizons. Kyiv: NUHT. Retrieved from https://rep.btsau.edu.ua/bitstream/BNAU/7990/1/stratehiia_staloho.pdf
- Sustainable Development Goals. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.undp.org/uk/ukraine/tsili-staloho-rozvytku
- Fedoniuk, V. V., Ivantsiv, V. V., Zhadko, O. A., Fedoniuk, M. A., Pankevych, S. H., & Zaleskyi, I. I. (2023). Ecological assessment of biocenoses of nature reserve sites in Lutsk. Visnyk of the National University of Water Management and Nature Management. Series: Agricultural Sciences: Collection of Scientific Works, 4(104), 186–204. doi: 10.31713/vs4202315
- Smaliichuk, A., & Shuber, P. (2020). Climate change within the forest zone of Ukraine: UNESCO biosphere reserves as model territories. Visnyk of Lviv University. Geographical Series, 54, 115–130. doi: 10.30970/vgg.2020.54.11826
- Feschenko, R., Kovbasa, Y., Matashuk, R., Bilous, S., Naumovska, O., & Bilous, A. (2023). Current increase of ecosystem services in permanent sample plots within forest plantations of the Feofaniya park-monument. Ukrainian Journal of Forestry and Wood Processing, 14(4), 88–102. doi: 10.31548/forest/4.2023.88
- Sales, L., Hayward, M., & Loyola, R. (2021). What do you mean by “niche”? Modern ecological theories are not coherent on rhetoric about the niche concept. Acta Oecologica, 11. doi: 10.1016/j.actao.2020.103701
- Zhou, W., Zheng, B., Zhang, Z., Song, Z., & Duan, W. (2021). The role of eco-tourism in ecological conservation in giant panda nature reserve. Journal of Environmental Management, 295. doi: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2021.113077
- Shi, H., Sun, H., Ali, M. A. S., & Mao, H. (2023). Exploring public preferences for ecosystem service improvements regarding nature reserve restoration. Ecological Indicators, 156. doi: 10.1016/j.ecolind.2023.111121
- Janpeter, S., Pinzón, C., Froese, R., Figueroa, D., Villavicencio, M., Werland, L., & Schönenberg, R. (2024). All we have left is to defend our reserve: Social structures and community resistance to large-scale gold mining in the Manuripi Wildlife Reserve in northern Bolivia. The Extractive Industries and Society, 20. doi: 10.1016/j.exis.2024.101574
- Powers, S. L., Pitas, N. A., & Rice, W. L. (2024). Applying location quotient methodology to urban park settings with mobile location data: Implications for equity and park planning. Urban Forestry & Urban Greening, 98. doi: 10.1016/j.ufug.2024.128418
- Order of Ministry of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources of Ukraine No. 256 “On Approval of the Regulation on Recreational Activities within the Territories and Objects of the Nature Reserve Fund of Ukraine”. (2022, July). Retrieved from https://mepr.gov.ua/documents/pro-zatverdzhennya-polozhennya-pro-rekreatsijnudiyalnist-u-mezhah-terytorij-ta-ob-yektiv-pryrodno-zapovidnogo-fondu-ukrayiny/
- Viun, V. H., & Ivanov, A. M. (2010). Methodology for determining recreational load on protected territories. Economics and Management, 5, 82–85.
- Svirkova, E. M. (2006). Assessment of the impact of recreational load on natural ecosystems. Scientific Notes of NaUKMA. Biology and Ecology, 54, 43–46. Retrieved from https://ekmair.ukma.edu.ua/handle/123456789/7876
- Chronicle of the Park-Monument of Landscape Gardening Art of National Importance “Mezhyhiria”. (2024). (Vol. 1).
- State Institution “Park-Monument of Landscape Gardening Art of National Importance ‘Mezhyhiria’”. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://mezhyhiria.mepr.gov.ua/
- National Dendrological Park “Sofiivka” of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.sofievka.org/park/
- Synevyr National Nature Park. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://synevyr-park.in.ua/en/
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
- The authors reserve the right to authorship their work and pass the journal the right to publish this work under a Creative Commons Attribution License license, which allows other persons to freely distribute the published work with the obligatory The authors of the original work and the first publication of this magazine.
- The authors have the right to make independent additional agreements on the nonexclusive dissemination of the work in the form in which it was published by this magazine (for example, to post work in the company's electronic storage or to publish as a monograph) , subject to the first publication of the link to this journal.
- Journal policy allows and encourages the placement of authors on the Internet (for example, in the repositories of institutions or on personal websites) manuscript work as to the presentation of this manuscript to the editorial board and during its editorial processing, as it contributes to The productive scientific discussion and positively affects the efficiency and dynamics of citation published work (see The Effect of Open Access).