Global Warming stops global roaming Daily Telegraph(Australian newspaper) The

global warming scenario is pretty grim. I m not sure I lie the i!ea o" polar bears un!er a
palm tree # $enny
Tourism as an in!ustry is increasing in both %olume an! economic importance. &e%eral
places' that only a "ew years ago were inaccessible' are now becoming %ery popular holi!ay
!estinations. (owe%er' the ecosystems o" many o" these resorts are particularly %ulnerable to
climate change. Global an! regional temperatures are rising. )limate change is e*pecte! to
increase the ris o" illness in se%eral parts o" the worl! an! conse+uently !iscourage tourism.
)limate mo!els suggest a "uture warming o" ,.- # ,../) per !eca!e an! sea le%els are
e*pecte! to rise at a rate o" 0 to 1,cm per !eca!e.
The impacts o" climate change on tourism are liely to mani"est themsel%es in a number
o" !i""erent ways accor!ing to local con!itions. 2any o" these impacts will !e%elop
in!irectly through increase! stresses place! on en%ironmental systems. The most serious
impact o" this will be sea le%el rise' !eterioration o" monuments' !epletion o" natural tourist
attractions' rise o" temperature causing !iscom"ort an! lesser snow "alls etc. Global climate
change is arguably the most serious en%ironmental issue o" our time' an! tourism is a
potential %ictim o" it.
Intro!uction In!ia emits the "i"th most carbon o" any country in the worl!. At-3. million
metric tons' only the 4.&.' )hina' 5ussia' an! 6apan surpasse! its le%el o" carbon emissions in
1778. )arbon emissions ha%e grown nine#"ol! o%er the past "orty years. In this In!ustrial
Age' with the e%er#e*pan!ing consumption o" hy!rocarbon "uels an! the resultant increase in
carbon !io*i!e emissions' the greenhouse gas concentrations ha%e reache! le%els causing
climate change. Going "orwar!' carbon emissions are "orecast to grow ..-9 per annum until
-,-,. To put this in perspecti%e' carbon emissions le%els are estimate! to increase by ..79
"or )hina an! by 1..9"or the 4nite! &tates.
In!ia is a non#Anne* I country un!er the 4nite! :ations ;ramewor )on%ention on
Green house gases an! climate )hange' an! as such' is not re+uire! to re!uce its carbon
emissions. An historical summary o" carbon !io*i!e ()<-) emissions "rom "ossil "uel use in
In!ia is increasing rapi!ly an! causes global warming. All inhabitants o" our planet ha%e an
e+ual right to the atmosphere' but the in!ustriali=e! countries ha%e greatly e*cee!e! their "air'
per#capita share o" the planet>s atmospheric resources an! ha%e in!uce! climate change. The
most !e%elope! countries possess the capital' technological an! human resources re+uire! "or
success"ul a!aptation' that is particularly %ulnerable to the changes in temperature' rain"all
an! e*treme weather e%ents associate! with climate change.

Accor!ing to the 4: ;ramewor )on%ention on )limate )hange an! the ?yoto
@rotocol ' the most in!ustriali=e! countries are mainly responsible "or causing climate
change. The promoters o" Aa!%enture#> or Aecotourism> ha%e populari=e! slogans such asB
Go %isit the last para!isesC be"ore they>ll be !estroye! by tourist hor!es. The Dritish
!aily The <bser%er recently suggeste! that worl! tra%ellers nee! to hurry up i" they want to
see the A1, won!ers o" a %anishing worl!>. We can no longer tae the most won!rous natural
tourist attractions "or grante! !ue to global warming
Tourism worl! waes up to the climate crisis )limate is an essential resource "or
tourism' an! especially "or beach' nature an! winter sport tourism' an! the phenomenon o"
global warming alrea!y gra%ely a""ects the in!ustry an! an increasing number o"
!estinations. In -,,.' the 2a!ri!#base! 4: Worl! Tourism <rgani=ation
(4:WT<)con%ene! the 1st International )on"erence on )limate )hange an! Tourism in
DEerba' Tunisia' to help the tra%el an! tourism in!ustry to respon! to these issues. The
4:WT<' that only a "ew years ago became a special 4: agency' is tra!itionally !ri%en by a
strong Dusiness )ouncil that aggressi%ely a!%ances the interests o" the worl!>s most power"ul
tourism#relate! corporations. That the 4:WT< !eclare! climate change a priority issue
shows the growing awareness among in!ustry lea!ers an! policymaers that the impacts o"
global warming pose a serious threat to tourism.
A%iation' cruise ship in!ustry maEor climate change culprits The a%iation in!ustry in
particular is now "acing enormous pressure since the Intergo%ernmental @anel on )limate
)hange (I@))) an! en%ironmental campaign groups ha%e single! out the responsibility o" air
tra%el in accounting "or a consi!erable portion o" global greenhouse gas emissions. Globally'
the worl!>s 1F',,, commercial Eet planes generate more than F,,million tones o" )<- per
year' an! In!ia pro!uces 1, million tons o" )<-"rom all the sectors raning 3th ne*t to 4&'
)hina' 5ussia' 6apan. The huge increase in aircra"t pollution is largely !ue to the rapi!
growth o" tourism an! relate! air tra""ic. A WW; (Worl! Wil!li"e ;un! ) brie"ing paper on
ATourism G )limate )hange> (-,,1) states that the actual tonnage o" )<- emitte! will
increase by o%er H3 per cent by -,13I concomitantly' "rom almost H,, million international
tra%elers in -,,,' numbers are e*pecte! to Eump o%er one billion by -,1, an! 1.F billion by
-,-,.
As a conse+uence' the role o" air tra%el within the tourism in!ustry is liely to e*pan!'
cause consi!erable en%ironmental !amage' an! to ha%e noc#on e""ects on the tourism
in!ustry itsel"' conclu!es WW;. The worl!wi!e booming cruise ship in!ustry has also
come un!er "ire. )ruise ships that can carry up to 3',,, tourists are not only notorious "or
creating tremen!ous amounts o" waste an! sewage but also belong to the biggest contributors
to greenhouse gas emissions within the tra%el an! tourism in!ustry.
@roEections o" )limate )hange "or In!ia In!ian proEections' un!er "uture climate change
scenario o" increase Green (ouse Gas(G(G) concentrations' in!icate mare! increase in
both rain"all an! temperature into the -1stcentury' particularly becoming conspicuous a"ter
-,0,>s. Increase in G(G concentrations may lea! to o%erall increase in the rainy !ay
intensity by 1#0 mmJ!ay e*cept "or small areas in northwest In!ia where the rain"all
intensities !ecrease by 1mmJ!ay.
;orestry an! :atural Kcosystems The emerging results o" analysis o" impact o" climate
change on "orest biomes in In!ia seem to be highly %ulnerable to the proEecte! change in
climate. 2aEority o" the %egetation in In!ia is liely to be less optimally a!apte! to its
e*isting location an! conse+uently %ulnerable to the a!%erse climatic changes. Dio!i%ersity
is also liely to ha%e a!%erse impact !ue to this.
(uman (ealth Accor!ing to Intergo%ernmental @anel on )limate change (I@))) in its
0th Assessment 5eport publishe! in -,,H' human begins are e*pose! to climate change
through changing weather patternsL "or e*ample' more intense an! "re+uent e*treme e%ents
an! in!irectly through changes in water' air' "oo! +uality an! +uantity' ecosystems'
agriculture an! economy. Increases in malnutrition an! conse+uent !isor!ers' with
implications "or chil! growth an! !e%elopment seems other e""ect on human beings.
@articularly those with low a!apti%e capacity will su""er in !i""erent ways. Increase in
!eaths' !isease an! inEury !ue to heat wa%es' "loo!s' storms' "ires an! !roughts' the increase!
bur!en o" !iarrheal !isease' increase! "re+uency o" car!io#respiratory !iseases !ue to higher
concentrations o" groun! le%el o=one relate! to climate change an! altere! spatial !istribution
o" some in"ectious# !isease %ectors. 2alaria inci!ences are !irectly line! to the generation
o" %ectors which are sensiti%e to temperature' precipitation an! humi!ity con!itions.
In"rastructure $arge in"rastructure such as !ams' roa!s' bri!ges incurring high costs o"
construction are %ulnerable to e*treme e%ents lie cyclones' hea%y rains' lan!sli!es an!
"loo!s' which may increase in the latter hal" o" the century !ue to climate change. The
currently commissione! in"rastructure ha%ing li%e! its normal li"e span woul! be more
%ulnerable to these recurrent e%ents
)oastal Mones in In!ia The holistic !ata o" sea le%el re%eals high %ariability along the
In!ian coast line with an increase along the Gul" o" ?utch an! West Dengal line an! !ecrease
along ?arnataa coast. The obser%ations in!icate a long term a%erage rising tren!
o"1mmJyear in sea le%el an! a proEection o" rise in a sea le%el in the range o" 0F#37 cm by the
en! o" twenty "irst century. The result o" preliminary assessment in!icates the %ulnerability
o" In!ian coast lines !ue to sea le%el rise' tectonic mo%ement' an! pre%alent hy!rographs an!
physiographic.
K""ect o" global warming on tourism 5ising temperatures "uelle! by greenhouse gases
"rom in!ustry an! agriculture ha%e alrea!y shrun glaciers on the mountains o" the great
(imalayas. 5ece!ing glaciers are a""ecting the le%els o" water in ri%ers. 5ecent reports ha%e
also brought out that the Ganga is !rying up because the Gangotri glacier' its main source' is
rece!ing at the rate o" 1, to ., meters a year. While the Ganga is !rying up' there are signs
now o" rising water le%els in theDhara :angal Dam reser%oir. The melting o" glaciers in the
4pper (imalayas has been cite! as a maEor contributor to this.
Thans to the melting (imalayan glaciers' rising sea le%els ha%e submerge! two islan!s
in the &un!er bans' where tigers roam through mangro%e "orests in the Ganges 5i%er !elta'
an! a !o=en more islan!s are un!er threat' scientists say. The annual number o" cyclones has
"allen' but they are more intense now !ue to global warming an! this means more coastal
"loo!ing' erosion an! more saline water mo%ing in on the islan!s an! also in Dangla!esh.
Temperatures ha%e risen by almost one centigra!e. It has a casca!ing e""ect on the crops an!
monsoons as well. Goa>s e*istence "rom the map woul! be wipe! o"" i" the current tren! o"
sea#le%el rise continues.'
A scienti"ic stu!y has re%eale! that aroun! 0.. per cent o" Goa>s 1,3ilometer coastline
has alrea!y been a""ecte! by a one meter rise in sea le%el' which continues. The stu!y also
says that H.. per cent o" Goa>s coastal population is a""ecte! by beach erosion which is also
%ery high compare! to other &tates' Dy -,3, an! -,8, i" the sea le%el woul! rise by .8 an!
37 meters respecti%ely' then Goa woul! lose ma*imum percentage o" its lan! an! its
population' an article in the boo on AGlobal Warming an! )limatic )hange> by Dr Desh
Dan!hu has claime!. Go!>s own country' ?erala' an! its neighboring $asha!weep Islan!s
ha%e also become the %ictims o" global warming an! climate change. 2ore worrying is the
!rastic three !egree rise in temperatures in the "ragile an! eco#sensiti%e $asha!weep Islan!s.
)oral ree"s' the most !i%erse marine habitat that support hal"#a#million species' may
start losing !ominance "rom In!ian seas starting -,., "ollowing increase in sea temperature'
says a new stu!y. These an! many more such areas lie most coastal regions inclu!ing
megacities lie 2umbai are e*tremely %ulnerable to the e""ects o" global warming.
(imachal @ra!esh temperature !uring 2ay was almost as much as Delhi which !isappointe!
tourists %isiting "rom other parts o" :orth In!ia. Tourists came to (imachal to get some time
o"" "rom boiling temperature in other parts o" In!ia but they "oun! out similar situation in
(imachal @ra!esh. <ne tourist sai! that when he "irst %isite! (imachal H#8 years ago in
summer' there was no nee! o" )oolers in &himla but not they ha! to turne! on their car A) as
they reache! &himla.
An! its not Eust &himla' other tourist spots lie ?ullu an! 2anali arealso getting
warmer. (imachal which has always been "irst pic "or In!ian tourists "or summer %acations
are now looing "or alternati%es. In past "ew years temperature has been rising in (imachal
@ra!esh an! number o" tourists in summer is !ecreasing. In summer temperature o" &himla
has reache! up to .8 !egrees which is +uite warm. Accor!ing to e*perts this is clear sign o"
Global Warming an! they pre!icts that temperature will continue to rise in the upcoming
years. Tour <perators in (imachal are worrie! because less tourists are enthusiastic to %isit
(imachal in summer. &table ?ashmir has gi%en them goo! alternati%e o" (imachal
@ra!esh. <rissa is another state which is alrea!y being hit har! by global warming. Whole
%illages in the coastal regions are !isappearing.
(owe%er this !oes not mean that the western coastal regions areimmuneCEust that the
eastern coast is more %ulnerable at this stage. The brilliant white o" the TaE 2ahal is slowly
"a!ing to a sicly yellow' !ue to carbon emissions which ultimately lea! to global warming.
In the "amous TaEmahal )ase a %ery strong step was taen by &upreme )ourt to sa%e the
TaE 2ahal. TaE being pollute! by "umes an! more than -,, "actories were close! !own.
Tourism in!ustry "ears i" temperature continues to rise in the coming years' summer tourism
in (imachal @ra!esh coul! be o%er. &ome areas o" (imachal lie &himla now !oes not
recei%e any snow"all an! other hill stations in the state are also getting less snow"all.

&trategies )limate change represents a new challenge "or tourism' an! particularly "or
winter tourism in mountain areas. It is not' howe%er' the case that tourism>s initial position
will un!ergo a su!!en' ra!ical change. climate change has to be %iewe! as a catalyst that will
rein"orce an! accelerate the pace o" structural change in the tourist in!ustry an! more clearly
highlight the riss an! opportunities inherent in tourist !e%elopments e%en now. The
emergence o" a -#tier society in the winter tourism sector L a "ew resorts an! cableway#
companies at a high pro"it an! most resorts an! companies unpro"itable # will not be !ue to
climate change alone' but to the general change in a competiti%e maret as well.

<n the one han!' we ha%e the top resorts with their alrea!y %arie! an! attracti%e o""ers
an! high snow#reliability an!' on the other han!' we ha%e the smaller locations with their
less#e*tensi%e !e%elopments' less#re"ine! o""ers an! restricte! opportunities "or "urther
!e%elopment &ince climate change is a relati%ely long#term !e%elopment in comparison to
other tren!s in tourism' tourism managers an! tourists will ha%e e%ery opportunity to a!Eust
to the !i""erent constraints an! a!opt the correspon!ing strategies an! measures <ne o" the
most "amiliar measures in the struggle against snow#!e"icient winters is the construction o"
high cost arti"icial snowmaing "acilities. A!opting a "atalistic attitu!e towar!s climate
change an! its impacts shoul! not be consi!ere! as a true strategy in this respect.
&uch attitu!es are mani"este! by the "act that neither suppliers nor consumers alter their
beha%ior. This coul! also be !escribe! by using the term Abusiness as usual>. Another
approach that can be classi"ie! un!er the hea!ing o"> "atalism> is when tourist transport
"acilities that were use! "or winter sports are close! !own an! !ismantle! without any
attempt at promoting an! rein"orcing other types o" tourism L in other wor!s' when
with!rawal "rom si tourism is not acti%ely planne!. A "atalistic attitu!e o" this type is most
rea!ily e%i!ent amongstthe operators o" small' isolate! si#li"ts at lower altitu!es
whoe*perience! se%ere "inancial !i""iculties as a result o" the snow#!e"icient winters.

What>s ne*tN We can certainly e*pect more heate! !ebates on climate change an!
tourism in the coming months. It is urgent that ci%ic mo%ements concerne! with climate
change issues monitor an! respon! to these ongoing acti%ities because tra%el an! tourism is
one o" the worl!>s most omnipotent in!ustries' not only because o" its si=e an! growth but
also as a !ri%er o" globali=ation an! tra!e liberali=ation. Tourism organisations shoul! pay
more attention to the problems o" tourism#relate! climate change issues in their action plans
an! help lobby in!ustry' go%ernments' an! intergo%ernmental agencies to tae more !ecisi%e
steps to curb relentless tourism e*pansion that e*acerbates the climate change crisis. Global
warming is a challenge "or the tourism in!ustry in mountain areas. Dut warmer temperatures
an! a longer summer season are o" minor importance. <%er all' climate change is a threat "or
mountain tourism' Islan! tourism an! )oastal tourism !ue to less snow' less glaciers' rise in
sea le%els' submerging o" Islan!s an! e%en more e*treme e%ents (e.g. lan!sli!es).

Winter tourism an! mountain tourism !epen!s on goo! snow con!itions an! is highly
sensiti%e to snow#!e"icient winters. )limate research "in!ings show that there will be an
increase in the number o" winters with little snow on account o" climate change. The tourism
representati%es shoul! not Eust sit bac si!ely in the "ace o" climate change. They are
reacting to the !eteriorating snow con!itions an! the changes in !eman!. 2easures lie
especially arti"icial snowmaing to maintain sit tourism an! creating arti"icial beaches lie
the @romena!e beach' @on!icherry to maintain beach tourism ran at the "ore"ront. Tourists
!eman! goo! snow con!itions' goo! coastal areas an! hence' this is what has to be o""ere!
that is arti"icial.
In any case' the impacts o" climate change will in%ol%e signi"icant costs "or tourism.
<ne o" the most important +uestions will be' how young people woul! "ace situations' i" there
is only little snow in mountain regions' i" there are no coastal areas an! proper beaches' i"
islan!s are submerge! an! monuments lie TaE 2ahal !eteriorates. An! isn>t it the time "or
tourism community to act an! sustain In!ian tourism to present it to the upcoming
generations' it is my !uty' your !uty an! our !uty to protect tourist attractions "rom global
warming an! the best way will be minimi=ing the emission o" gases causing global warming
an! "ighting pollution. At once' may be !i""icult butC as sai!C let the charity start "rom our
homeC
2ore cooperati%e e""orts to combat the negati%e impacts o" climate changes houl! be
ma!e by the aca!emic community' !e%elopment ai! agencies an! :G<s that are speci"ically
concerne! with tourism !e%elopment. The In!ian :G< K+uations (K+uitable Tourism
<ptions) ma!e a goo! start when it release! a A)all "or Action on )limate )hange'
Dio!i%ersity an! Tourism> on occasion o" the International Dio!i%ersity Day on -- 2ay
-,,H>. GuEarat ;orest Department manage a &ocial ;orestry @rogramme "or planting trees
on non#"orest lan!s an! became a pioneer to impro%e Green )o%er o" the state. The
obEecti%es were to increase the number o" trees in GuEarat' promoting the participation o"
people an! institutions to grow trees' mae use o" unpro!ucti%e lan! to pro!ucti%e use apart
"rom many other areas that calle! "or attention towar!s sustainable growth. 2anaging
)limate )hange is a maEor challenge to humanity. To tacle it' GuEarat has establishe! a
separate Department "or )limate )hange. This Initiati%e by GuEarat Go%ernment is a
tren!setter not only "or In!ia but "or the whole o" Asia as it is the ;irst in Asia with a
Department "or )limate )hange. It is the only 0th &tateJ@ro%ince in the Worl! to ha%e a
Department "or )limate )hange.
Among other things' it calle! on the tourism in!ustry to come up with an authentic
response to climate change. The responsibility o" seeing %iable an! sustainable solutions
to a%ert the climate crisis must tae into account particularly the plight o" the most %ulnerable
communities aroun! the worl!. As a sector o" the economy that is se%erely a""ecte! by
climate change' howe%er' tourism nee!s to "ocus more on mitigation strategies in its own best
interests. This hol!s particularly true "or the tra""ic generate! by national an! international
tourism an!' abo%e all' "or air tra""ic. Tourist !e%elopment an! tourist proEects not only nee!
to be %eri"ie! an! e%aluate! in terms o" their social an! en%ironmental sustainability but must
also be assesse! "rom the climate#compatibility angle.

Than Oou