Recreational land is defined as land that is used for purposes of recreation, such as sports fields, gymnasiums, playgrounds, public parks and green areas, public beaches and swimming pools, and camping sites according to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development. In 2018, up to 50.7b euros of government expenditure was put into recreation and sport, this government input has remained relatively stable since 2001 (Eurostat, 2020). Overall, 6% of the total area of the EU was used for services and residential purposes (including recreation, leisure and sport; Eurostat, 2018).
However, the private/ recreation sector including sports pitches, public parks, allotments or private gardens, is an excellent potential market for the use of RDFs. This research aims to explore the potential demand for RDFs in the recreation/private sector across NWE by examining European Statistics on land use in this sector.
