ASSESSMENT OF RECREATIONAL LOAD ON TOURIST ROUTES AND SHORELINES OF LAKES OF THE “BURABAY” SNNP

In recent years in state national natural park SNNP “Burabay” (SNNP “Burabay”) there is a signifi-cant increase in recreational load, which has a negative impact on the ecosystems of the territory. In this regard, it becomes relevant to assess the impact of recreational load on tourist routes and shorelines of lakes of SNNP “Burabay”, which will allow to develop recommendations to minimise environmental impacts and ensure sustainable development of tourism. The purpose of the work is to monitor the recreational load on tourist routes and shorelines of lakes of SNNP “Burabay” in order to assess their ecological condition. The research methods include monitoring of visitor load and ecological condition of the soil and vegetation cover. Assessment of the actual recreational load was carried out using the formula of average seasonal attendance and expert analysis. The actual load on the lakes was determined on the basis of unmanned aerial vehicle data. Qualitative assessment of the state of beaches allowed to determine the coefficients for calculating recreational capacity. The results of the work demonstrated the exceeding of recreational load norms on tourist routes from 35 to 186 times. Areas with intensive development of erosion processes were identified. The use of actual data made it possible to present a localised assessment of the condition of lake shorelines for the year 2024. The degree of vegetation degradation on tourist trails and lakeshores of SNNP “Burabay” was also described. The recreational load on the shoreline was found to be exceeded during the peak recreational load period. The highest loads were recorded on the Shortandy and Ulken Shabakty lakes. The results obtained create a basis for the development of measures to preserve ecosystems and optimise recreational load in the SNNP “Burabay”. The area of application of the results of the article covers environmental management, sustainable tourism and nature conservation activities in the territory of SNNP “Burabay”.