NATURE PROTECTION FUND IN THE STRUCTURE OF RECREATION AND TOURIST NATURE USE OF CHERNIGOV REGION

The article analyzes the territories and objects of the nature reserve fund (NRF) of the Chernihiv region as objects of recreational and touristic nature use. The NRF of the Chernihiv region includes 678 objects with a total area of 263.1 thousand hectares (7.89% of the territory of the region). The NRF of the region consists of eight categories, there are no such categories as biosphere reserve, nature reserve and botanical garden. The study of the dynamics of the number of objects and areas of the NRF of the region for the period from 1990 to 2023 revealed a tendency to increase multifunctional protected areas (national natural parks (NNP) and regional landscape parks (RLP)). Reserves and natural monuments predominate in the structure of NRF of Chernihiv region in terms of number, and in terms of area - reserves and regional landscape parks. It was established that the most important for the recreation and tourism sphere are the multifunctional categories of NRF - NNP and RLP, in which tourism is actively developing. The main directions of tourism development in the Mezyn and Ichnya National Parks were analyzed - ecological trails, routes (car, bicycle, pedestrian) that provide an opportunity to get to know the nature of Polissia (Mezyn National Park) and the Forest Steppe (Ichnya National Park), and tourist infrastructure are indicated. It was determined that the most common type of tourism within the NNP is walking along ecological trails. A special issue is the use of the recreational potential of nature reserves, which are the most widespread in the structure of the NRF of the region. It has been established that the predominant type of recreational and tourist activity within their borders is educational excursions along marked trails. Other categories of NRF of the Chernihiv region (natural monuments, arboretum, zoo, parks-monuments of horticultural art) have less recreational potential, but have educational value and can act as objects of recreational and touristic nature use. In order to increase the role and significance of the NRF of Chernihiv region in the structure of recreational and touristic nature use, it is advisable to create such categories of NRF as NNP and RLP.