Possibilities of Sustainable Development of Small Recreational Ports

Abstract

Development of small ports for recreational purposes is one of the most discussion perspectives in both Lithuania and Western Europe. There is no single opinion on the possibility to accomplish this development without badly affecting natural systems. Different methods that estimate sustainable development are suggested for large ports that have loading docks, ship repair units, etc. These methods cannot be applied to small recreational ports. The analysis suggests newly developed methods that allow to evaluate sustainable development of recreational ports and to calculate certain indicators on an example of Sventoji small port. The systematic analysis of port activity consists of existing port operations and processes, technogenic port processes identification, evaluation of the significant natural environment and technogenic environment aspects. According to the values of selected aspects the evaluation of current and planned situation is carried out and the factors mostly affecting the environment are identified. Effective use of energy and waste in port activity and the change of indicators for reaching the balance are evaluated.