Tourism and Global Warming

In an article published by Yahoo! News today the effect that global warming could have on the tourism industry was analyzed.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20080429/bs_afp/asiatourismenvironmentwarming;_ylt=AiKM9jKh6rWz3eSLdOqMktRpl88F

For me, this article was of particular interest because it looks at a different aspect of global warming. As discussed in lecture global warming can have an impact on water and food resources, as well as on the spread of disease. But the tourism industry isn’t anything that I’ve previously considered to be greatly impacted by environmental erosion.

The problem of global warming hits the tourist sector in several ways. Firstly, it has an impact on desirable travel destinations. What would a cruise to Alaska be without hundreds of glaciers to see and take pictures of? And what would a trip to one of the many Caribbean islands which feature activities in the rainforests they posses be if these rainforests did not exist to zip –line through? Or even taking it a step further, should the sea-levels continue to rise at the rate they are, what happens when these islands start to disappear?

The article states that “The tourism industry accounted for about five percent of global emissions in 2007, according to the UN World Tourism Organization. Growth in the tourism industry could increase emissions by as much as 150 percent in 30 years”. If the tourism industry continues to grow at this rate over a few centuries, it will have a devastating impact on the environment.

The issue is, and it’s addressed by a CEO of a travel agency interviewed for the article, that while many tourism companies acknowledge the issue of global warming, and lobby for change, little action is actually taken. It’s mentioned that both Virgin Airlines and Marriot International are attempting to “go green” whether it be through biofuel or recyclable pens, but in reality, more needs to be done if this problem is going to be lessened, let alone stopped.

There are two ways in which I can see this happening, although there probably are more solutions out there. Firstly, the tourists themselves need to raise their voices. If the market for tourist industries decreases because the people demanding services refuse to spend money on companies which are not environmentally friendly, then perhaps this industry would get the message. Already this is one of the key factors spurring on companies such as Virgin Atlantic and Marriot to make pro-environment changes. But the more people who raise their voices against these policies, the more impact they will have.

Secondly, I think a combination of taxation and regulation would have a beneficial impact on the tourist industry’s emissions. If each company was given a specific amount of emissions that they were allowed for a given year, and then were forced to pay exorbitant taxes on any emissions above that designated number, then I think emissions may decrease. And if they don’t decrease on their own, the overall amount of emissions could be lessened and then distributed amongst the industry, to be divided among the companies. While this may not be the perfect answer, it definitely would be a step in the right direction.

Ultimately, the issue of Global Warming is a huge problem for our generation, and unless act quickly; the effects of it will be devastating.