Presión Demográfica Sobre el Recurso Hídrico y Su Relación con la Sostenibilidad de los Destinos Turísticos. Un Análisis Para el Sur de Ecuador

Abstract

The objective of this work is to determine the demographic pressure on water resources in the province of Loja (South America, Ecuador), and its relation with the tourist development. The results suggest that the largest demographic pressure on water is concentrated in a very small area representing 2.5% of the territory and about half of the territory has water pressure problems. These results correspond mainly to the high concentration of the population in these areas, and to hydrological and climatic factors that influence the amount of water avai lable. The results also made it possible to identify the priority zones and the ones most problematic for water management and allowed to infer the possible future scenario, in which an increased population pressure and problems of water availability is expected, and the tourist development mainly of the border cities derived from the common population growth trend.