Content uploaded by Arrigo Cigna
Author content
All content in this area was uploaded by Arrigo Cigna on Jun 04, 2018
Content may be subject to copyright.
A preview of the PDF is not available
Environmental management of tourist caves
Abstract
In terms of the flow of energy or mass, caves may be nearly closed systems. From the perspective of environmental protection and tourist cave management there are three categories: (1) caves where the natural energy fluxes far exceed those created by visitors, with the consequence that their environmental parameters are not affected by development (e.g., caves subject to frequent flooding); (2) caves where natural and tourist energy fluxes are of similar magnitude, where environmental parameters respond to visitors but return to their natural equilibrium afterwards; and (3) caves where visitor fluxes far exceed the natural fluxes, so that natural environmental equilibrium may be destroyed. The aim of responsible management is to limit the introduced fluxes to those that will not destroy the natural equilibrium established in such parameters as temperature, relative humidity, CO2 concentration, etc. A visitor capacity criterion is defined, and measured effects of visitors are demonstrated at Grotte di Castellana and Grotta Grande del Vento, category 2 caves that are the principal tourist caves of Italy.
... Alanyazında mağaracılık ve turizm ilişkisini inceleyen çalışmaların farklı bakış açılarıyla değerlendirildikleri görülmektedir. Bu çalışmalar yoğunluklu olarak; belirli bir mağaranın ya da mağara bölgesinin turizm potansiyelinin değerlendirilmesi (Özdemir, 2005;Ceylan ve Demirkaya, 2006;Ballesteros ve Ramirez, 2007;Ceylan, 2007;Russell ve Maclean, 2008;Sever, 2008;Yeşil vd., 2008;Karadeniz vd., 2009;Knežević ve Žiković, 2011;Spalević ve Igračev, 2011;Zaman vd., 2011;Arpacı vd., 2012;Öcal, 2012;Akdağ, 2013;Öcal ve Özkan, 2013;Özşahin ve Kaymaz, 2014;Rindam, 2014;Kaya vd., 2015;Bekdemir ve Sezer, 2016) turizmde kullanılan mağaraların nasıl etkilendiklerinin ve ne gibi önlemlerin alınması gerektiğinin araştırılması (Cigna, 1993;Pulido-Bosch vd., 1997;Baker ve Genty, 1998;Linhua vd., 2000;Pavlovich, 2003;Mulec ve Kubešova, 2010;Pingbin vd., 2012;Gabrovsek vd., 2014;Mulec, 2014;Faille vd., 2015;Novas vd., 2017) turistik amaçla kullanılan mağaraların taşıma kapasitelerinin değerlendirilmesi (Doorne, 2000;Šebela ve Turk, 2014;Lobo, 2015) mağaraların turistik destinasyonlarda bir ürün haline dönüştürülmesinin incelenmesi (Wanhill, 2000;Bekdemir vd., 2004;Bočić vd., 2006), turizm amaçlı kullanılan mağaraların korunması (Duval, 2006;Lobo ve Moretti, 2009) konuları üzerinde gerçekleştirildiği görülmektedir. Cigna (1993), yaptığı araştırmada İtalya'da turistik amaçla kullanılan iki mağaranın yıl boyunca maruz kaldığı etkileri incelemiştir. ...
... Bu çalışmalar yoğunluklu olarak; belirli bir mağaranın ya da mağara bölgesinin turizm potansiyelinin değerlendirilmesi (Özdemir, 2005;Ceylan ve Demirkaya, 2006;Ballesteros ve Ramirez, 2007;Ceylan, 2007;Russell ve Maclean, 2008;Sever, 2008;Yeşil vd., 2008;Karadeniz vd., 2009;Knežević ve Žiković, 2011;Spalević ve Igračev, 2011;Zaman vd., 2011;Arpacı vd., 2012;Öcal, 2012;Akdağ, 2013;Öcal ve Özkan, 2013;Özşahin ve Kaymaz, 2014;Rindam, 2014;Kaya vd., 2015;Bekdemir ve Sezer, 2016) turizmde kullanılan mağaraların nasıl etkilendiklerinin ve ne gibi önlemlerin alınması gerektiğinin araştırılması (Cigna, 1993;Pulido-Bosch vd., 1997;Baker ve Genty, 1998;Linhua vd., 2000;Pavlovich, 2003;Mulec ve Kubešova, 2010;Pingbin vd., 2012;Gabrovsek vd., 2014;Mulec, 2014;Faille vd., 2015;Novas vd., 2017) turistik amaçla kullanılan mağaraların taşıma kapasitelerinin değerlendirilmesi (Doorne, 2000;Šebela ve Turk, 2014;Lobo, 2015) mağaraların turistik destinasyonlarda bir ürün haline dönüştürülmesinin incelenmesi (Wanhill, 2000;Bekdemir vd., 2004;Bočić vd., 2006), turizm amaçlı kullanılan mağaraların korunması (Duval, 2006;Lobo ve Moretti, 2009) konuları üzerinde gerçekleştirildiği görülmektedir. Cigna (1993), yaptığı araştırmada İtalya'da turistik amaçla kullanılan iki mağaranın yıl boyunca maruz kaldığı etkileri incelemiştir. Cigna yıl içinde mağaraların sel baskını gibi doğal olaylar sonucunda bir takım tahribatlar yaşadığını ortaya koymuştur. ...
ÖZET: Mağaracılık, mağaraların araştırılması ve haritalandırılması amacıyla yapılan, özellikle macera sporlarına ilgi duyanların tercih ettiği bir doğa sporudur. Son yıllarda Türkiye'de de bu spora yönelik talebin artması ve Türkiye'nin sahip olduğu mağara kaynaklarının çokluğu bu yönde çalışmaların yapılmasını gerekli kılmaktadır. Bu çalışma, Türkiye'deki mağara sporunun gelişebilmesi ve belirli bir sistem dâhilinde yapılması, sonrasında da kontrollü bir şekilde turizmde değerlendirilmesi amacıyla bu sporu profesyonel bir şekilde yapan insanların görüşlerini ortaya koymayı amaçlamaktadır. Bu doğrultuda, Türkiye'de mağaracılık alanında faaliyet gösteren federasyon, dernek, topluluk, kulüp ve birliklerin yönetim kademesinde yer alan ve aynı zamanda bu sporu profesyonel bir şekilde gerçekleştiren 19 kişiye ulaşılmıştır. Çalışma kapsamında, belirlenen amaç doğrultusunda 3 sorudan oluşan ve katılımcıların açık uçlu bir şekilde yanıtlamaları istenen bir görüşme protokolü hazırlanmış ve katılımcıların bu sorulara yanıt vermeleri istenmiştir. 2015 yılı Ekim-Aralık ayları arasında gerçekleştirilen çalışmada elde edilen yanıtlar, içerik analizine tâbi tutulmuştur. Analiz kapsamında, mağara sporu esnasında sahip olunması gerekenler, mağara sporu ile ilgili yaşanan sorunların belirlenmesi, mağaraların turizm kapsamında değerlendirilirken nasıl bir yol izlenmesi gerektiği konularında elde edilen kodlar belirli temalar altında boyutlandırılmıştır. Çalışma elde edilen bulgular ışığında birtakım sonuç ve önerilerle sonlandırılmıştır.
Anahtar sözcükler: Mağara, mağaracılık, mağara sporu, mağara turizmi, Türkiye.
ABSTRACT: Caving is a type of sports activity done by those who are especially interested in adventure sports in order to investigate and map the caves. The increasing demand for this sport in recent years in Turkey having an abundant source of caves requires these kinds of researches to be conducted. The purpose of this study is to reveal the opinions of the people doing the caving activities professionally in order develop it, do it systematically and utilize it in tourism in a controlled manner. To this end, 19 people who are administrative staff of the federations, associations, groups, clubs, and unions operating in caving field and professionally doing this sport were contacted. In line with the purpose of this study, an interview protocol consisting of three questions, to which the participants were asked to give open ended responses, was prepared. The responses obtained from the study which had been conducted between October and December in 2015 were subjected to content analysis. In analysis, the obtained codes, which are in the topics of what needs to be used during cave sport, determining the problems related to cave sport, and evaluating the ways to utilize caves in tourism, were seized under specific themes. The study was concluded with a number of conclusions and recommendations in the light of obtained findings.
... However, cave microclimate can be disturbed in various ways. A visitor influx results in a sudden increase of temperature, carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) concentration and humidity [4][5][6]. Cave modifications required to accommodate visitors (artificial ventilation [5], creation of a large entrance [7], removal of a detritic scree acting as a thermal buffer [8]) may increase heat and mass exchanges with the external environment. The potential consequences of these disturbances are manifold. ...
... A visitor influx results in a sudden increase of temperature, carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) concentration and humidity [4][5][6]. Cave modifications required to accommodate visitors (artificial ventilation [5], creation of a large entrance [7], removal of a detritic scree acting as a thermal buffer [8]) may increase heat and mass exchanges with the external environment. The potential consequences of these disturbances are manifold. ...
Understanding and predicting the microclimate of shallow caves is a key issue for the conservation of parietal art. In order to determine the dominant mechanisms of heat transfer in a configuration close to that of painted caves, we performed numerical simulations of a parallelepiped cavity whose dimensions and depth are of the order of 10 m. This simple geometry allowed us to use a detailed model including turbulent natural convection, gas radiation, along with vapor transport and latent heat fluxes resulting from condensation and evaporation on the walls. Gas radiation increases the flow circulation in the cavity through wall–gas radiative exchanges and
significantly modifies the wall radiative flux. Conversely, the wall conductive flux remains unchanged (a non trivial behavior reported in the literature about the differentially heated cavity). In the energy balance at the walls, the radiative flux overcomes the conductive flux. However, the addition of conduction and latent heat
fluxes, both driven by convection, prevails over radiation in some regions of the cavity. Heat and mass fluxes are maximum in areas of the cavity roof where the distance from the ground is the
shortest. Due to the asymmetry induced by the inversion of the vertical temperature gradient twice a year, net condensation resulting in limestone dissolution is expected in these areas, whereas the other regions of the cave undergo net evaporation resulting in limestone deposition. The orders of magnitude of the condensation flux (a few microns per day) and of the retreat velocity of the wall (a few tenth of a micron per year) are in line with the field data available in the literature.
... and the scientific community have introduced new risks to the murals, particularly due to changes in the microclimatic conditions. As illustrated in Fig. 1, when visitors enter the caves, they release heat and moisture, which increases the indoor temperature and relative humidity (RH) [4][5][6] . This, in turn, promotes microbial growth 6,7 and leads to a rise in pollutant concentrations 8 , both of which are detrimental to the long-term preservation of the murals 9 . ...
Many precious cave murals around the world face challenges in preventive conservation. Opening these caves to the public alters their microenvironment, posing new challenges for mural conservation. While previous research has focused on specific climate impacts, the effects of public access across different climates remain underexplored. This study evaluates the impact of open caves on mural preservation in humid, semi-humid, semi-arid, and arid regions of China. Using a validated two-dimensional heat and moisture transfer model, this study simulates the hygrothermal behavior of murals and their degradation risks before and after cave openings. The key findings are as follows: (1) Open caves amplify the annual temperature fluctuations of murals, most notably in arid regions; (2) Open caves reduce the annual RH (relative humidity) fluctuations, particularly in semi-arid regions; (3) Open caves increase days with excessive daily hygrothermal variations, especially in semi-arid regions; and (4) Open caves raise salt efflorescence risk in humid, semi-humid, and semi-arid regions while reducing it in the arid region. These results offer valuable guidance for the conservation and management of cave relics across varied climates.
... Under natural conditions, CO 2 in the cave atmosphere originates from several sources, such as soil respiration, biological productivity and oxidation of organic matter in the cave or even CO 2 from hypogene origin (Baldini, 2010;Troester and White, 1984). In show caves, visitors' breathing is also a source of CO 2 (Cigna, 1993;Constantin et al., 2021). Cave ventilation, driven by temperature-induced airflow, depends on cave morphology, the number of entrances and their position (Faimon et al., 2012;Mattey et al., 2021). ...
... The equilibrium of the cave's climate is delicate and is maintained through intricate interactions with the environment (Quindos et al., 1987;Bourges et al., 2006aBourges et al., , 2014Peyraube et al., 2018;Leplat et al., 2019). Disruptions in the climatic equilibrium have notably been linked to cave equipment and tourism (Cigna, 1993;Baker and Genty, 1998;Touron et al., 2019) but do not entirely spare caves closed to the public, especially in the context of climate change (Domínguez-Villar et al., 2015;Bourges and Enjalbert, 2020). A shift in the climatic equilibrium could lead to fluctuations of different parameters such as CO 2 concentrations, humidity, temperature, or air exchanges and flows (Badino, 2010;Mattey et al., 2013;Kukuljan et al., 2021). ...
The conservation of decorated caves is highly dependent on airflows in the karst network and through the surrounding host rock. Airflows are driven by the pressure gradient and influenced by the shape of the karst conduits and the permeability of the carbonate rock massif. Cosquer Cave is an Upper Paleolithic decorated cave, half submerged in a coastal karst, where conservation is also dependent on the cave's pools connected to the sea. Hydroclimatic data, such as air pressure and temperature and the water level inside and outside the cave, have been measured for several years to identify the main processes governing the water level variations, the airflows, and the air renewal. The data show unusual behavior for a karst: the karst air pressure is nearly always higher than the atmospheric pressure. As a result, the water level in the cave is below the sea level. The daily variations of the sea tide provide an assessment of the cave volume above the water level in the pools. Although the cave air is confined by the rock and the seawater, there are also external air inflows during short pressurization events connected with waves that can produce and force air bubbles to flow along submarine open fissures or karst conduits inside the massif. Moreover, the effective permeability of the carbonate rocks to air at the massif scale is inferred from the cave air pressure decrease over the summer season by applying Darcy's law in a partially saturated medium. Six years of data show that permeability varies from year to year and according to the cumulative rainfalls during the spring and summer. The driest years are correlated with a higher permeability, a faster air pressure decrease in the cave, and a faster rise in the pools' water level. In the future, in the context of climate change, a perturbation of the rock permeability is then expected in the near-surface caves, which will impact airflows in decorated caves and may alter their fragile hydroclimatic stability.
... Foot traffic, lighting, and inadvertent disturbances impact cave ecosystems. To ensure the longevity of these treasures, we must adopt a proactive stance (Cigna, 1993). A comprehensive analysis of tourism's effects -both positive and negative -is essential. ...
The desire to escape everyday life, the allure of nature's beauty, and the exploration of underground worlds that are accessible, often within developed areas, are increasingly driving tourist demand for caves. Visiting caves, whether from a tourist or professional perspective, is the discovery of a natural wonder, an exhilarating and unforgettable adventure for most tourists. From an ecotourism standpoint, beyond ensuring a fulfilling tourist experience, safeguarding the integrity of the cave system as a whole is paramount, as sustainability and preservation are both crucial. To this end, this study aimed to investigate the physical carrying capacity of caves in four locations with significant tourist potential at various geographical locations. Through on-site research, the recommended maximum number of visiting groups was determined for each cave, considering the size of the usable area for tourism activities and the social comfort distance of visitors. This is vital to prevent overcrowding in narrow sections during tours and may aid in the preservation of the cave and its formations. The research results obtained in this manner were compared with current visitor data. This comparison revealed what the optimal number of visitors is during existing tourist activities, how tourism impacts cave preservation, and whether it contributes to degradation, necessitating a reduction in visitor numbers.
... Therefore, managers of this sustainable tourism product are often faced with the unique problems of a natural underground facility. Responsible management of a tourist cave must ensure the safety of workers and visitors, the enjoyment of the tourist resource, and sustainable management to maintain the environmental and natural balance of the cave (Cigna, 1993). Radon exposure of tourists and workers is a major natural hazard faced by tourist cave managers and many studies have been conducted in these caves around the world (Anderson et al., 2021;Grygier et al., 2022;le Roux et al., 2023;Sanmiquel et al., 2018;Solomon et al., 1996). ...
Plain Language Summary
In our study, we explored the popular volcanic caves in the Canary Islands, a hit among those who love ecotourism and geotourism, and also among beachgoers looking for something different to do on their vacation. These six caves, all managed by the island’s local authorities, offer a unique adventure but come with their own set of risks, like exposure to radon gas‐a natural hazard in such environments. To keep everyone safe, we delved into the best ways to monitor and manage radon levels, drawing on the latest research and what’s been learned from other tourist caves. Our work led to the development of a new plan that fits within current health and safety laws, aimed at reducing any health risks to visitors and staff. This plan is a step forward in making sure that exploring these magnificent caves is not only an unforgettable experience but also a safe one for everyone involved.
... The equilibrium of the cave's climate is 25 delicate and maintained through intricate interactions with the environment (Quindos et al., 1987;Bourges et al., 2006aBourges et al., , 2014Peyraube et al., 2018;Leplat et al., 2019). Disruptions in the climatic equilibrium were notably linked to cave equipment and tourism (Cigna, 1993;Baker and Genty, 1998; 2019) yet it does not entirely spare caves closed https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2023-2380 Preprint. ...
Conservation of decorated caves is highly dependent on airflows in the karst network and through the surrounding host rock. Airflows are driven by pressure gradient and influenced by the shape of the karst conduits and the permeability of the carbonate rock massif. The Cosquer cave is an Upper Paleolithic decorated cave, half drowned in a coastal karst, where conservation is also dependent on the cave’s pools connected to the sea. Hydroclimatic data, such as air pressure and temperature and water level inside and outside the cave have been measured for several years to identify the main processes governing the water level variations, the airflows and the air renewal. Data show an unusual behavior for a karst: the karst air pressure is nearly always higher than the atmospheric pressure. As a result, the water level in the cave is below the sea level. The daily variations of the sea tide provide an assessment of the cave volume above the pools water level. Although the cave air is confined by the rock and the seawater, there are also external air inflows during short pressurization events. Moreover, the carbonate rocks effective permeability to air at the massif scale is inferred from the cave air pressure decrease over the summer season, by applying Darcy’s law in a partially-saturated medium. Six years of data show that permeability varies from year to year, and according to the cumulated rainfalls during the spring and summer. The driest years are correlated with a higher permeability, a faster air pressure decrease in the cave and a faster rise of the pools water level. In the future, in the context of climate change, a perturbation of the rock permeability is then expected in the near surface caves, which will impact airflows in decorated caves and may alter their fragile hydroclimatic stability.
High levels of carbon dioxide concentrations in caves can lead to reerosion of stalactites and health hazards to humans. For this reason, the international guidelines for show caves recommend atmospheric observations. Akiyoshi-do Cave, located in Yamaguchi prefecture, Japan, is one of the most visited show caves in the world and has been designated as a Ramsar Convention wetland, Special Natural Monument, and Japanese geopark. However, few studies have investigated the atmospheric environment in the cave and the physical and psychological effects of the atmospheric conditions on tourists. There has been insufficient discussion of tourists’ health during tours. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to clarify the actual microclimate inside Akiyoshi-do Cave and to understand the effects of that microclimate on the physical and psychological conditions of tourists. Fixed-point and moving-point atmospheric observations were conducted in the cave in August 2018 (summer) and February 2019 (winter), when the air temperature, relative humidity, and carbon dioxide concentrations were measured. In the summer survey, the temperature fluctuation was within 1°C and the relative humidity was greater than 94%, indicating that the influence of advection and mixing by the outside air was small. The carbon dioxide concentration exceeded 1,000 ppm and approached 2,000 ppm during the summer survey. Such high concentrations of carbon dioxide can cause headaches and other health hazards. The distance between tourists was calculated to be less than 0.45 m in the summer survey, indicating that they were exposed to the risk of intrusion into the intimate space by neighboring tourists, which causes discomfort. During the winter survey, the carbon dioxide concentration stabilized at around 500 ppm; tourists did not intrude into intimate spaces. Therefore, in addition to atmospheric conditions such as exceeding natural variability, human aspects such as physical and psychological health hazards should also be considered as an important factor when calculating the appropriate tourist capacity. Additions and revisions to the international guidelines on the need for atmospheric observation data-based tourist safety considerations will contribute to the improvement of future show cave management. Although this was the first study to quantify the differences in the atmospheric conditions in summer and winter in Akiyoshi-do Cave, continuous monitoring over several years is needed to gain sufficient information on the microclimatic conditions of the cave and their impacts on tourists’ health.
This paper explores the current state and the perspectives of sustainable Cave Tourism development of show caves in Serbia. The results of the research were determined through the application of the newly developed methodology—Show Cave Assessment Model (SCAM). The obtained results of the research indicate shortcomings in terms of the protection of underground ecosystems and the tourist infrastructure. Moreover, based on the obtained data, future perspectives of the Cave Tourism development in Serbia include the establishment of karst parks, the affirmation of speleoarchaeology and the creation of innovative show cave routes. The focus is also placed on the importance of applying appropriate geoethical principles in Cave Tourism. The adventurous concept of Cave Tourism, which includes visiting caves that are not arranged for classic cave tours, and requires special equipment and professional guides, is particularly highlighted. Final results of the reserarch confirmed that the popularization and application of ethically responsible behavior towards underground karst ecosystems is necessary in order to preserve speleological geoheritage for current and future generations of local residents, tourists, managers, scientists and researchers, mountaineers, enthusiasts and speleologists.
In the past some authors described the speleogenetic role of convection in phreatic conditions. Similar effects exist also in the air-filled part of vadose passages of caves as a consequence of an air circulation due to a relevant temperature gradient; the effects can be enhanced by the presence of some acids as, e.g., H2S, H2SO4, etc. In this paper the conditions matching convection and condensation which produce typical forms, very similar to those found under phreatic conditions, are discussed both for limestone and gypsum caves.
The cave fauna of the karst complex of Frasassi (Genga. Ancona, Italy), which includes a tourist attraction, was surveyed to provide detailed information on the hypogean animal populations. Indeed, for this area, only sporadic and limited studies are known in the literature to date. The bat populations, recently analyzed by Bassi and Fabbri (1986-87), were excluded from our study. Ten collection campaigns were carried out in 12 different caves, including the tourist site, over a span of two years. Three caves were considered in all the collections and the others only on one or two occasions. The animals were captured for the most part on sight. Faunistic analysis was supported by specialists in systematics for some animal groups. A total of 57 taxa were identified. Two endemisms were confirmed: the amphipod crustacean Niphargus ictus and the carabid beetle Duvalius bensai Iombardii. Noteworthy are the histerid beetle Gnathoncus Cerberus, to date only known in Sardinia, and a pseudoscorpion belonging to the genus Roncus, probably a new species, currently under study by a specialist. A karyological study on the plethodontid salamander Speleomantes italicus revealed the close similarity of the Frasassi population with others of the Italian peninsula. Overall, the animal community appears relatively homogeneous, indicative of a very stable cave community throughout the entire karst complex of Frasassi. Only the show cave has an almost complete lack of animals, due to low organic supply. This homogeneity can be explained by the close geographical location and common origin of the caves. Moreover, the caves develop predominantly horizontally, located at 200 to 490 m a.s.l. Our data are in agreement with the few available reports on other caves in central Italy. According to our study, the low level of adaptation to cave dwelling was indicated by the 50% troglophile species, whereas only two species were troglobite. The large number of the first and the low number of the second types are related to the geological age of the complex and they are the consequence of a relatively recent faunistic colonization.
The first data collected suggest the following preliminary results: 1) Normally the flow of groundwater is towards the Sentino River. During floods this flow is reversed. The effect of the waters mixing can increase karstic dissolution. This hypothesis seems to be confirmed by the greater dimensions of the cavities close to the Sentino River. 2) As expected there is a close correlation between air flow through the cave and the temperature difference inside and outside the cave. However the data seem to show that in some zones of the caves the air flow is mainly controlled by the processes of condensation-evaporation. 3) The condensation phenomena probably play an important role in the karstic evolution of the system. 4) An initial estimation of the groundwater draining into the Sentino River along the Frasassi Gorge has been made (about 50 l/s); according to the Maillet equation the depletion constant of the river is 2.8 × 10⁻² day⁻¹, that of the aquifer is around 8.4 × 10⁻² day⁻¹. -from Authors
Describes the results obtained in the analysis of the volume and chemical composition of the waters flowing into the Hall of Paintings in Altamira Cave (Santander, Spain). Measurements taken over a period of nearly two years, reveal that the natural temporal variations in the water volumes collected are relatively small. Chemical analysis allowed us to conclude that the waters are encrusting and that the concentration of many ions in solution does not vary significantly during the whole year. -from Authors
Measurements were taken over a period of one year of the temperature variations that occur in the hall of paintings at Altamira Cave due to the presence of visitors. A theoretical model has been developed that allows these temperature variations to be determined regardless of the number of visitors and the time they remain in the chamber. This model satisfactorily reproduces the experimental results. -Authors Departmento de Fisica Fundamental, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Santander, Spain.
A simple mathematical model has been developed from which it is possible to predict temporary variations in the CO2 concentration in the air of the Hall of Paintings in Altamira Cave due to the influence of the presence of visitors inside the cave. The model also makes is possible to discover the recovery time necessary for the CO2 concentration to return to its level prior to such visit. The experimental results obtained using different test groups of six visitors to the cave over a one-year period confirm, within an acceptable degree of approximation, the validity of the proposed model.-Authors
