With 81 million international overnight stays per year Austria is one of the most touristic countries. Therefore, it is even more important for Austria to achieve a sustainable form of tourism and tourism development. Already, there exists a special chapter on tourism in the Austrian National Environment Plan to provide policy guidance for a sustainable development of tourism in Austria. Tourism is, in particular, based on the natural resources of a country and, therefore, is essentially depending on unspoilt nature and a sound environment. Scenic beauty and the environmental quality of a destination are vital motives for a holiday.
Tourists ask for a natural landscape and healthy environment.
Through the violation of capacity limits with respect to spatial, social, and ecological levels tourism may destroy its very basis and, in the long run, jeopardise its very future. In Europe the concentration of tourism activities on short holiday periods and relatively restricted areas aggravate the negative effects of tourism even more. If tourism is to develop satisfactorily also in the future, environmental management will have to constitute an integral component of quality management. This is especially valid for ecologically fragile areas, such as mountains, where higher environmental standards have to be applied to protect the environment and the very basis for tourism. Mr. Chairman, Tourism in Austria has developed mainly in regions less suited for trade and industrial locations.