Whale Watching and the Hornstrandir Nature Reserve
Today, Wednesday February 1, two master's thesis presentations will be conducted at the University Centre. At 14:00. Sara Martin will present her thesis An Assessment of Unregulated Whale Watching Activities on Skjalfandi Bay, Iceland and at 16:00 Vilma Inkeri Kuliala presents her thesis Wilderness and Human Influence in the Hornstrandir Nature Reserve. Both presentations will be in English.
Sara has already given an open talk on her topic this fall at the University Centre. Her advisor is Brad Barr an instructor at the Coastal and Marine Management program and the external reader is Gísli Víkingsson a specialist at the Marine Research Institute of Iceland. Her project focuses on assessing the impact of whale watching activities in Skjálfandi Bay, N-Iceland. The aim of this study was to examine the impact of whale watching on the animals themselves.
Vilma's project examines the appropriateness of the Ib category for Wilderness reserve, for the Hornstrandir Nature Reserve, as defined by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. The advisor of the project is Brad Barr and the external reader is Dr. Þorvarður Árnason, manager of the University of Iceland Research Centre at Hornafjörður.
Abstract
The Hornstrandir nature reserve in Westfjords, Iceland is planned to become a Wilderness reserve, an Ib category park as defined by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). This study examined the appropriateness of the IUCN category for the reserve, by gathering stakeholder opinions on how much different human impact aspects present on the reserve affect their wilderness experience. The vast majority of the stakeholders considered wilderness experience easily achieved in Hornstrandir, despite the presence of old farmsteads and summer houses. However, concerns were raised over the presence of motorized vehicles, especially low flying aircraft, as well as the growing number of tourists. The introduction of the official IUCN categorization was considered by the stakeholders as an auspicious tool for enforcing control over potentially harmful human influences.
However, the presence of the farmsteads and summerhouses is somewhat in conflict with the category Ib definition. It is recommended that zoning is used, to exclude these most built-in areas from the category assignment. These areas can then be used for the necessary visitor infrastructure, such as campsites and ingress sites for providing instructions for "wilderness-friendly" visiting.
Further information on upcoming presentations at the University Centre can be found here.
Sara has already given an open talk on her topic this fall at the University Centre. Her advisor is Brad Barr an instructor at the Coastal and Marine Management program and the external reader is Gísli Víkingsson a specialist at the Marine Research Institute of Iceland. Her project focuses on assessing the impact of whale watching activities in Skjálfandi Bay, N-Iceland. The aim of this study was to examine the impact of whale watching on the animals themselves.
Vilma's project examines the appropriateness of the Ib category for Wilderness reserve, for the Hornstrandir Nature Reserve, as defined by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. The advisor of the project is Brad Barr and the external reader is Dr. Þorvarður Árnason, manager of the University of Iceland Research Centre at Hornafjörður.
Abstract
The Hornstrandir nature reserve in Westfjords, Iceland is planned to become a Wilderness reserve, an Ib category park as defined by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). This study examined the appropriateness of the IUCN category for the reserve, by gathering stakeholder opinions on how much different human impact aspects present on the reserve affect their wilderness experience. The vast majority of the stakeholders considered wilderness experience easily achieved in Hornstrandir, despite the presence of old farmsteads and summer houses. However, concerns were raised over the presence of motorized vehicles, especially low flying aircraft, as well as the growing number of tourists. The introduction of the official IUCN categorization was considered by the stakeholders as an auspicious tool for enforcing control over potentially harmful human influences.
However, the presence of the farmsteads and summerhouses is somewhat in conflict with the category Ib definition. It is recommended that zoning is used, to exclude these most built-in areas from the category assignment. These areas can then be used for the necessary visitor infrastructure, such as campsites and ingress sites for providing instructions for "wilderness-friendly" visiting.
Further information on upcoming presentations at the University Centre can be found here.
