Public Spatial Perceptions from PPGIS Studies Using Qualitative Content Analysis in Existing, Candidate, and Outside Protected Areas

Pre-designation stakeholder spatial perceptions remain underexamined despite their relevance to protected area (PA) designation. Using Public Participation Geographical Information System (PPGIS), by convenience sampling, 97 participants (69 locals and 25 visitors) mapped 377 open-ended values and concerns statements across existing PA (EPA), candidate PA (CPA), and outside CPA (OCPA) in eastern Hokkaido, Japan. Inductive coding yielded 1042 code instances organized into 122 codes, 17 sub-themes, and four themes. Gi* hotspot values (n = 719) and concerns (n = 323) were compared to identify value–concern zones, and a participant-based location quotient identified distinctive themes. Values (69%) concentrated on ecology, landscape, recreation, and conservation; concerns concentrated on energy infrastructure, ecological loss, human–wildlife conflicts, and facilities. Potential conflict zones (overlapping value and concern hotspots) were concentrated on the Notsuke Peninsula and Shunkunitai within the EPA, combining shared values with habitat loss. Concern-dominant zones, marked by energy infrastructure and habitat loss, lay mainly outside the EPA. Locals and visitors shared values but differed in concerns; only locals raised human–wildlife conflicts. Codes related to all six elements of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services conceptual framework, though abiotic elements fell outside its contribution categories. Pre-designation PPGIS provides spatial evidence for boundary delimitation, zoning, and identifying potential conflicts.