Management of Beaches on the Island of Menorca (Balearic Islands): The Tension between Tourism and Conservation

This paper presents a classification model for beaches in Menorca (Balearic Islands) based on the multivariate analysis of 78 cases and 36 variables. The analysis identifies different categories of beaches, which are directly correlated to their management regime. The model obtained represents a useful tool for the monitoring of beach quality, facilitating both the assessment of the littoral types available and the forecast of future trends for each individual beach, as influenced by the management measures adopted.