Case Study - Lake District
Geography: AQA GCSE, topic 3.4.12
Tourism in Glacial Landscapes - Lake District
In 2017, 19.1 million tourists visited the Lake District (a Cumbrian National Park) each year. This high level of popularity has had the following impacts:
Economic impacts of tourism in the Lake District
- Tourism is the main source of the Lake District's income.
- In 2017, tourists spent £1.4bn in the Lake District.
- In 2017, 19.1 million people visited the Lake District.
- In 2017, 18,565 jobs were created by tourism in the Lake District.
- Lots of people are buying holiday homes in towns like Ambleside in the Lake District. The property prices are so high that many locals are being forced away.
- Windermere Lake Cruises is a business that takes tourists around Lake Windermere.
Social impacts of tourism
- Almost 90% of tourists reach the Lake District by car. In peak tourist season (in the summer), traffic in and out of the Lake District is very bad.
- There is a train line running from London to Oxenholme and from Oxenholme to Windermere, however, the train can be expensive.
- Most local businesses in Ambleside cater to tourists for food, alcohol (pubs), and hiking equipment.
- As many as 55% of homes in the Lake District are rental homes (either holiday homes or rented out to tourists). 17.7% of houses in the Lake District are holiday homes up from 16% in 2013.
- Ambleside is only large enough to have a primary school, but not a secondary school.
- Gosforth is not large enough to have its own GP's surgery.
Environmental impacts of tourism
- Tourists often walk off paths, damaging farmland, disturbing sheep and harming grass verges.
- Catbells and Helvellyn are two popular tourist walks. Paths and routes can be so popular that there is erosion.
- Lake Windermere is a popular place for water sports and cruises, which creates noise pollution and disturbs local wildlife.
Coping With Tourism Impacts in the Lake District
Below are some strategies being used to help cope with the impacts of tourists in Lake District National Park in Cumbria:
Coping with footpath erosion
- The most eroded paths at Catbells and Helvellyn are covered with new earth and the surrounding area can be reseeded.
Coping with traffic
- In Ambleside, there are Controlled Parking Zones in the centre that only allow 1 hour of parking.
- In 2018 and 2019, there was controversy around 4x4 vehicles being allowed to cross green land carrying tourists.
Coping with high property prices
- The ratio of average income to house prices in the Lake District is 9.5:1.
- 17.7% of houses in the Lake District are holiday homes up from 16% in 2013.
- Housing Associations like the South Lakes Housing Association try to support affordable housing.
Coping with pollution from water sports
- Zoning schemes forbid some water sports from specific areas of lakes.
- Lake Windermere has a speed limit.
Test yourself on Case Study - Lake District
What % of tourists arrive by car to Lake District National Park?
What is the name of the National Park in Cumbria that attracts 19.1 million tourists per year?
Which of the following is the name of a lake in the Lake District that has been heavily polluted by water sports?
How do Controlled Parking Zones in Ambleside help ease the pressure on parking spaces in the Lake District?
What type of scheme helps Lake Windermere in the Lake District cope with damage caused by water sports?