France will trial a visitor's permit in Sugiton, a coastal area near the Mediterranean city of Marseille, from July 15 to August 15. The popular site has been threatened for several years by severe soil erosion.
The Sugiton pebble beach is a big tourist drawcard for the Calanques National Park, partly because other areas of the forest reserve are often closed because of the risk of fire, Radio France Internationale reports.
Some 1 500 people converge at the site each day in the tourism high season, which is putting a major environmental strain on the area. In recent years people have begun walking down the slope to the beach instead of taking the path, which is intended to limit damage to vegetation.
"There's a real erosion risk because there is little soil. The roots of pine trees in particular could be exposed and weakened," a park spokesman said. "We could lose the whole landscape if we do nothing.”
To cap the number of visitors at 200 or 300 a day, a free online reservation site will be set up. Rangers will check permits at the entry to the inlet and also carry out spot checks, in what will be the first test of its kind for a French national park.
