Author(s)

Lubomir Bartos, Martin Cihar

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A socio-environmental survey amongst the inhabitants of the Sumava National Park and of the Nove Hrady Mountains took place in the summers of 2003 (Sumava), 2006 and 2007 (the Nove Hrady Mts.) The main aim of the study was to record the opinions and attitudes of local inhabitants of the both regions towards environmental conditions, nature conservation, tourism, and to carry out their subsequent comparison. The objectives included that of ascertaining how and on which issues opinions and attitudes have the potential to be changed. The method of a structured interview and a random selection of interviewees provided us with 200 questionnaires in Sumava and 150 questionnaires in the Nove Hrady Mountains. The most noticeable differences between Sumava and Nove Hrady Mts. respondents were found with respect to the following topics: assessment of environmental conditions; the attitude to potential public access to the most endangered parts of the nature; perceptions about the influence of tourism on the cost of living. Similar reflections were found in the assessment of personal profit from the tourist industry in the region.

Local Inhabitants, Social Climate, Perceptions

L. Bartos and M. Cihar, "Socio Environmental Attitudes amongst the Inhabitants of Border Mountain Regions Close to the Former Iron Curtain: The Situation in the Czech Republic," Journal of Environmental Protection, Vol. 2 No. 5, 2011, pp. 609-619. doi: 10.4236/jep.2011.25070.