Citizen demand for urban coastal ecosystems

Abstract

Although many urban coastal ecosystems around the world are in close proximity to large urban centres, they are often underutilized by tourists and citizens. In the Tokyo metropolitan area, urban coasts are often restricted areas and many attract few visitors. Here, we determined the density of visitors to different urban coast types, including concrete and masonry seawalls and sandy and rocky coasts, and the activities they engaged in, to understand the demand for coastal ecosystems by urban citizens. Typical activities included fishing, gathering organisms such as crabs, playing with sand and sea water, photography, and walking. We then used a gravity model to assess the number of potential users within 30 km of the study sites. More than half of the visitors reported engaging in organism-related activities; coastal ecosystems were an important resource for citizens. Activity types were related to the age and gender of users, as well as to coast types. Our results show that the density, activity, and personal attributes of coast users can be readily predicted, which may be valuable for urban coastal ecosystem planning.