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Impact of tourism on Antarctica

Impact of tourism on Antarctica. By Vineet Rastogi & Havish Samudrala. Background. Small scale tourism began in 1950’s. Since 1990 tourism has taken off, with numbers of tourists increasing from under 9,000 in 1992/93 to over 46,000 in 2007/08.

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Impact of tourism on Antarctica

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  1. Impact of tourism on Antarctica By Vineet Rastogi & Havish Samudrala

  2. Background • Small scale tourism began in 1950’s. • Since 1990 tourism has taken off, with numbers of tourists increasing from under 9,000 in 1992/93 to over 46,000 in 2007/08. • 47,225 (tourists) as against 5,000 (national programme personnel). This led to a call for tourist numbers to be limited as that figure was up 14% on the previous year.

  3. Location

  4. Location

  5. Intro to Tourism • The Antarctic Treaty organisation recognises tourism as a legitimate activity in Antarctica. • BAS (British Antarctic Survey) welcomes a small number of visits to its stations from IAATO affiliated companies during the summer. • Small groups are given a guided tour of the facilities, where they have the opportunity to learn about the world-class science, and the logistics that support it.

  6. Where the tourists come from

  7. Tourist Activities

  8. Antarctica is home to a large no. of unique creatures to the area, and this is what attracts tourists there. This ‘once in a lifetime opportunity attracts people.

  9. Management • Antarctica has no non-scientist residents as such there is little tourist related ‘conflict’. • However they still need to manage environmental aspects etc. • To ensure that tourist visits are managed responsibly, there are guidelines: • Visits must be scheduled far in advance with the IAATO. • No smoking is allowed in buildings. • No littering. • Cleaning footwear. • Special permits are required to visit certain areas.

  10. Management • Members of the Antarctic Treaty adopted a resolution (May 2007) which recommended the Parties of the Treaty to: • - Discourage or decline to authorize tour operators that use vessels carrying more than 500 passengers from making any landings in Antarctica; and • - Encourage or require tour operators to: • Coordinate with each other such that not more than one tourist vessel is at a landing site at any one time; • Restrict the number of passengers on shore at any one time to 100 or fewer, unless otherwise specified in applicable ATCM Measures or Resolutions;  and • Maintain a minimum 1:20 guide-to-passenger ratio while ashore, unless otherwise specified in applicable ATCM Measures or Resolutions. • - Visits to Halley are considered on a case by case basis. Visits to Bird Island on South Georgia are not permitted due its status as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI).

  11. Economic Impact The continent of Antarctica has no economic impacts from tourism. This is because there are no indigenous people/residents. As such there is no real economy, which can be benefitted by tourism. However, the companies and countries operating within Antarctica will get income, from tourism; as such they are meant to re-invest this within the area, helping combat any environmental issues, and other possible issues. This was outlined in the Antarctic Treaty.

  12. Social and Cultural Impact There are no social and cultural impacts as there are no indigenous people to be impacted.

  13. Environmental Impact 1 • Antarctica was undisturbed and unpolluted before, so large ships are not allowed because of danger of an oil spill. • Because it is a ‘natural laboratory’, it is protected by the IAATO International Association of Antarctica tour operators. IAATO is comprised of 46 countries made by more than 100 tourism companies from Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Chile, Falkland Islands, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Sweden, United Kingdom, and the United States.

  14. Environmental Impact 2 Some parts are given extra protection:

  15. Environmental Impact 3 • Many things are being done to reduce the level of human Impact: • All scientific bases (that are no longer required) in Antarctica have been cleaned of chemicals and removed. There are strict regulations on the amount of waste that can be produced, and how this waste is disposed. Most of it is biologically treated then incinerated. • Alternate forms of energy are being implemented such as wind power, but the winds are so strong that the windmills are in risk of being blown over. • There was a voluntary agreement to limit mining in Antarctica in 1976. However there was a massive campaign by pressure groups such as Green Peace for a complete ban. Now there is a ‘no mining rule’ for the next 50 years. • To protects any animals there; seal hunting is kept at a minimum, and fishing boats have to report their catches to make sure that the ecosystem is safe.

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