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Tourism is one of the world's largest industries, bringing economic benefits to many regions. However, it also leaves a significant environmental footprint. As tourists, we often visit beautiful natural places, but our presence can harm the very environments we come to enjoy.
Key Definitions:
Understanding tourism's negative environmental impacts helps us develop more sustainable practices. The tourism industry depends on healthy environments - beaches, mountains, forests and coral reefs. If these are damaged, tourism itself suffers. This creates a cycle where popular destinations can be "loved to death" by the very visitors who come to appreciate them.
Tourism accounts for about 8% of global carbon emissions. With international tourist arrivals reaching 1.5 billion in 2019 (pre-COVID), the environmental pressure is enormous. A single long-haul flight can produce more carbon emissions than some people generate in an entire year in developing countries.
Tourism contributes to various forms of pollution that harm ecosystems and reduce the quality of natural resources.
Tourism transport (especially aviation) produces greenhouse gases and other air pollutants. A return flight from London to New York generates roughly 1.5 tonnes of CO2 per passenger - almost as much as the average UK citizen produces in three months.
Hotels, cruise ships and recreational activities can contaminate water bodies. A typical cruise ship produces over 100,000 litres of sewage and 1 million litres of greywater weekly. Beach tourism often leads to increased marine litter.
Tourist activities create noise that disturbs wildlife and local communities. Construction of tourism facilities can lead to visual pollution, where natural landscapes are marred by inappropriate or poorly designed buildings.
Tourism development often requires clearing land for hotels, roads, airports and other facilities, directly destroying natural habitats.
Tourism infrastructure can split habitats into smaller, isolated patches, making it difficult for species to find food, mates and shelter. This is particularly problematic in sensitive ecosystems like rainforests, wetlands and coral reefs.
Tourist activities can disrupt animal behaviour, feeding patterns and breeding cycles. Wildlife watching, if not managed properly, can stress animals and alter their natural behaviours. For example, dolphins exposed to too many tourist boats show signs of stress and changed behaviour.
Tourism places enormous demands on local resources, often in areas where they are already scarce.
Hotels use vast amounts of water for swimming pools, golf courses and guest needs. A luxury hotel guest might use up to 1,800 litres of water per day - more than 8 times what a local resident uses in many developing countries.
Hotels, restaurants and attractions consume significant energy for heating, cooling, lighting and entertainment. This often relies on fossil fuels, contributing to climate change.
Tourism increases demand for local food and materials, which can lead to overfishing, deforestation and other resource depletion issues when not managed sustainably.
The physical presence of tourists can damage environments through trampling, erosion and other impacts.
Popular hiking trails, beaches and other natural sites suffer from soil compaction, erosion and vegetation damage due to excessive foot traffic. For example, parts of the UK's popular Lake District paths have widened from 1-2 metres to over 20 metres in places due to erosion.
Tourism development often reshapes landscapes through construction, land clearing and infrastructure development. Ski resorts, for instance, require clearing forest areas and can cause soil erosion and habitat loss.
Maya Bay on Thailand's Phi Phi Leh Island became famous after featuring in the film "The Beach" (2000). By 2018, it was receiving up to 5,000 visitors and 200 boats daily. This overwhelming tourism led to:
In 2018, Thai authorities took the dramatic step of closing the bay to tourists. When it reopened in 2022, strict new rules limited visitor numbers to 375 people per day, banned swimming in certain areas and prohibited boats from entering the bay directly. This case demonstrates how tourism can destroy the very attraction that draws visitors and the difficult measures sometimes needed to restore damaged environments.
To manage tourism's environmental impacts, we first need to measure them. Several approaches help us understand the scale of the problem:
An EIA evaluates the likely environmental effects of a proposed tourism project before development begins. It helps identify potential problems and suggests ways to avoid or reduce negative impacts. Many countries now require EIAs for major tourism developments.
This measures how much land and water area a tourist or tourism activity requires to produce the resources it consumes and to absorb its waste. It helps compare the sustainability of different types of tourism and identify areas for improvement.
In popular snorkelling and diving destinations, coral reefs suffer from physical damage (touching, standing on coral), chemical damage (sunscreen chemicals) and boat anchor damage. The Great Barrier Reef in Australia faces significant threats from tourism alongside climate change and other factors.
Mountain tourism, especially skiing, requires extensive infrastructure development. Ski runs and lifts cause deforestation and erosion. Artificial snow-making depletes water resources and can introduce chemicals into the environment.
Beach tourism often leads to coastal development that disrupts natural sand movement. Removing vegetation for beachfront properties can accelerate erosion. In some Mediterranean resorts, beaches must be artificially replenished with sand each year due to erosion.
Venice faces severe environmental challenges from overtourism:
In response, Venice has introduced measures including a ban on large cruise ships in the city centre, a tourist tax and plans for a booking system to limit daily visitor numbers. This demonstrates how even cultural destinations face environmental challenges from tourism.
Tourism's negative environmental impacts present a significant challenge. The industry relies on beautiful, healthy environments to attract visitors, yet tourism activities can damage these very assets. Understanding these impacts is the first step toward more sustainable tourism practices.
In your next lesson, you'll explore positive environmental impacts of tourism and strategies for sustainable tourism development that can help minimise these negative effects.
Next time you go on holiday, consider your own environmental impact. How much water do you use? What transport do you take? Do you stay on designated paths when hiking? Small individual actions multiply when millions of tourists make similar choices.