International Tourism Analysis - Essay Example

Research Report By (Name) Course: Professor: Institution: Date: ABSTRACT According to report, the impact caused by tourism on the climate varies from different types of tourists. This is evident through the mode of travelling that is used from their destinations to their various residential areas. The report further states that there are those tourists who prefer air transport while others road transport. In international tourism, air transport is a major contributor to the emission of greenhouse gases. Global warming is therefore fueled by these emissions. International tourism is known to impact on climate change while also climate change affects international tourism. There is projected decline in international tourism in the period of ten years that it is attributed to climate change. The report also highlights that there would be decline in the number of endangered species that have been usually associated with international tourism. There are also ways of combating desertification. These include planting more trees where they have been encroached. Use of water sparingly will also play a role in curbing the effects of desertification. Contents ABSTRACT 2 Contents 3 Introduction 4 Effects of international tourism on climate change 4 Desertification 5 Impact of climatic change on international tourism over the next 10 years 6 Conclusion 8 References 8 Appendices 9 Introduction International tourism is whereby people travel from their home country to global destinations. This movement is therefore temporary. The main aim is to see new places and also to enjoy a different natural environment. This kind of tourism has been witnessing an increase in the recent past thanks to branding and marketing applied by many countries (Hall 2005). It is therefore known to impact on environmental change. Environmental change is also known to have some effects on the international tourism. Therefore, this report will focus on the effect of tourism to the climate as well as that of climate to the international tourism. Effects of international tourism on climate change When tourists travel, they use air transport and also road transport. These means of transport are known to emit Green House Gases (GHC). These gases mainly consist of carbon dioxide which is usually known to increase temperature and also cause radioactive forcing (RF).Carbon dioxide is also released from the operation that the tourists engage in. These may include heating of water, cooking and also washing. There is usually an urge to keep the amount of carbon dioxide at certain manageable levels. If this is not taken care of the climate change will be observe which will have adverse effects (Navarra & Tubiana 2013). The emissions of greenhouse gases from aviation industry also include Nitrogen Oxide gases and carbon dioxide gases. Passenger airplanes have therefore been the biggest contributor of these greenhouse gases. The numbers of global tourists have therefore been known to increase drastically in the recent years. In many destinations all over the world; the tourists usually prefer vehicles to airplanes for short distances. For instance, when tourists want to visit game parks, they use vehicles. These vehicles are known to emit more dangerous gases that contribute to environmental degradation (Martens & Chang 2010). Those vehicles which use lead fuel emit dangerous lead particles which can be taken in by plants through the soil. The plants will then be weak hence will lead to their growth problems. The lead will also dissolve in water hence when animals drink it, they will ingest the lead (Hall 2005). The greenhouse gases have been known to play a major role in global warming. This is whereby temperatures all over the world rise at some point. This rise in temperature will affect the growth of plants and also for animals. Green house gases have also played a major role on extreme weather conditions. There have been experiences of hottest summers ever over some parts of the United States and also Europe. These summers were also known to have been preceded by extremely cold winters. All these have impacted negatively on the lives of the inhabitants. There have been hurricane formations hence killing many people in different parts of the Middle East and South America thanks to Global Warming. Lightning is also associated with global warming (Todd 2008). International tourism has also had a hand in encroachment of forests. This has been fueled by the need to build decent accommodation and hotel rooms to the tourists who flock a certain country. This will directly have a negative impact on the plant cover. If this is prolonged it may lead to spread of deserts also known as desertification. This will be extensively looked into in another section in this article. The appendix 01 which was taken by a certain scientist called Michael Studinger shows how global warming has impacted on ice in Greenland. This caused ice melting which has steadily decreased the snow cover of many countries for example the United States of America (Schott 2010). Desertification This has been a rising trend on environmental challenges. It is the caused by clearance of the vegetation by many factors. International tourism is known to contribute to desertification in that lands are cleared in order to build resort centers which would act as accommodation. Dry lands are highly inhabitable hence many people are going to be displaced in the near future. Desertification usually start from any piece of land that encroachment of trees has been effected. Many people usually misinterpret the meaning of desertification. They think that it is only starting from one desert like Sahara to another. This is therefore not the case (Navarra & Tubiana 2013). When trees have been encroached, water and wind worsen the damage by carrying away the loose top soil. The loosening of the soil is also contributed by the hooves of animals whose constant movement is evident. This will cause infertility of the land. This is because the top soil is usually the fertile layer that supports the growth of plants (Buckley 2010). The effects of this are that no further plants will be supported. This will lead to inadequacy of food to the animals inhabiting the land. This will further worsen the effect of spread of desert. Desertification can be contained by advocating for reforestation and also mass tree planting. Water management can be practiced to ensure sparing use of water by reusing, harvesting rain water and also the reuse of water from the sea. The soil can also be enriched by planting more trees and practicing intensive mulching to prevent evaporation from the soil (World tourism organization, & United Nations Environment Programme 2008). Impact of climatic change on international tourism over the next 10 years Due to the observed trends in climate change, tourism may take a drastic trend in near future. For instance, global warming which was caused by green house gases will be expecting to rise in the next 10 years due to the current industrialization. This will cause unpredicted weather conditions, for example extremely cold conditions and also unexpected rains. The changing weather patterns will adversely affect the tourists’ decisions to travel to the countries of their choice. This will see a drastic decrease in the number of international tourists (Schott 2010). Looking at the appendix 02, you will see people in a boat struggling to maneuver a lake full of ice. This unpleasant scene which is caused by climate change will discourage tourists who would desire to visit such destinations (Schott 2010). It has been evident through past research that favorable destinations for most international tourists are mountains and lakes. At some point, climate change will play a major role of shifting the destination of tourists towards the south and northern poles and also mountain tops. Those beach and sun lovers from the far part of Western Europe may prefer to stay in their countries than travelling to far countries like Kenya. This in turn will decrease the number of international tourists who will be travelling to many countries in the near future (Todd 2008). There have also been cases of floods, volcanoes and avalanches in some parts of the world due to climate change. The recent being the avalanche that killed many tourists who were climbing mountain Everest. This scene will drastically discourage tourists who would like to go on mountain climbing in future. This will see decrease in international tourists in future (World Tourism Organization, & United Nations Environment Programme 2008). There is also projected harm on the ecosystem including coral reefs and also rainforests (Costa 2014). Most of the international tourists are therefore nature tourists who are usually attracted by various kinds of natural resources. Climate change is known to have propagated desertification which depletes the food sources of the wildlife. The wild animals will die in large numbers due to lack of enough food and water. The water may be contaminated by lead emissions from vehicles and airplanes hence endangering the lives of the animals. This will have negative impact on international tourism in the coming 10 years or so (GöSsling & Upham 2009). In the appendix 03 are flamingoes captured in Lake Nakuru in Kenya (Costa 2014). This has been a major tourist attraction for many international tourists travelling to Kenya. Due to the climatic changes, the water levels may lower in future hence affecting the lives of these precious birds. This will therefore be a blow to the international tourism (Sharpley & Telfer 2015). In the appendix 04, you can see rhinos grazing in one of the game parks situated in Kenya. These animals largely depend on the green vegetation for their sustenance. In the near future, that is 10 years and above, this green vegetation is projected to reduce (Buckley 2010). This will automatically lead to decline in the number of rhinos. The direct impact on international tourism will be very evident. Most of the tourists that tour Kenya anticipate setting their eyes on these wild animals. Their numbers will therefore decline drastically over the next ten years since most of them will find it difficult to travel to places that are not endowed with rich wildlife (Gössling & Upham 2009). A decline in international tourism in future will translate to a further decline in air travels and road travels. This will extensively reduce the green house gas emissions hence reducing the impact on climate change. This is therefore an upper hand in prevention of climate change like global warming and also desertification (Sharpley & Telfer 2015). Conclusion The impact of international tourism solely depends on the trends in climatic changes. Increased global warming will discourage the travels from one region to another. You can also see from the article that international tourism has a role in the environmental change. Their means of transport emit green house gases which lead to extensive global warming. Global warming has adverse effects on the ecosystem and the biodiversity. References Buckley, R 2010, Conservation tourism, Wallingford, Oxfordshire, UK: CAB International, http://dx.doi.org/10.1079/9781845936655.0000. Costa, C 2014, European tourism planning and organisation systems: the EU member states, London, Channel View Publications Gössling, S & Upham, P 2009, Climate change and aviation: issues, challenges and solutions, London, Earthscan. Hall, C. M 2005, Tourism, recreation and climate change. Clevedon [u.a.], Channel View Publ. Martens, W. J & Chang, C. T 2010, The social and behavioural aspects of climate change linking vulnerability, adaptation and mitigation, Sheffield, UK, Greenleaf Pub. http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&scope=site&db=nlebk&db=nlabk&A N=525562. Navarra, A & Tubiana, L 2013, Regional Assessment of Climate Change in the Mediterranean Volume 2: Agriculture, Forests and Ecosystem Services and People, Dordrecht, Springer, Netherlands. Schott, C 2010, Tourism and the implications of climate change: issues and actions, Bingley, Emerald Group. Sharpley, R & Telfer, D. J 2015, Tourism and development: concepts and issues. Todd, G 2008, Tourism in OECD countries 2008 trends and policies, Paris, OECD. http://www.sourceoecd.org/9264039678. World Tourism Organization, & United Nations Environment Programme 2008, Climate change and tourism: responding to global challenges, Madrid, World Tourism Organization. Appendices Read More