Abstract
Land-use zoning, which was developed as an urban planning method, has been used in the planning of natural areas. In addition to the designation of protected and recreational forests, a recent functional zoning under comprehensive forest planning allocates a specific zone to recreational uses. In nature parks, a complicated zoning system has been developed. However, its application is limited to resource protection, especially scenic resoures. Recreational activities had been excluded from the system until the introduction of visitation control zones in 2003. From such historical analyses, it became clear that recreational zonings have not fully expanded in Japan. On the other hand, an analysis of the Recreation Opportunity Spectrum (ROS) concept revealed that recreational application of zoning is possible in the case of factors of opportunity settings like facilities. Combined with density control as applied in Adirondack Park and with corridor protection in the national trails system, both in the United States, recreational opportunity zoning will be a powerful tool to cope with overuse issues through the regulation of facilities such as trails or huts.
