Sustainable Tourism 2012
Today tourism is an important component of development, not only in economic terms but also for knowledge and human welfare. Tourism has long ceased to be strictly just for the privileged few and nowadays is an activity accessible to a growing number of people and societies.
The phenomenon has many more advantages than disadvantages. New focus of economic development and increasing wealth of human societies developed in tourism. Our knowledge of the world now includes a strong component due to tourism, which results in the enjoyment of knowing new territories and increasing contacts with near or far away societies and cultures.
The tourism industry has nevertheless given rise to some serious problems, including social costs and ecological impacts. Many ancient local cultures have lost their identities. Their societies have orientated their economy only to this industry. Both natural and cultural landscapes have also paid a high price for certain forms of tourism. These problems will persist if short term economic benefits are the only objective in mind, leading to economic gains that eventually become ruinous.
The phenomenon has many more advantages than disadvantages. New focus of economic development and increasing wealth of human societies developed in tourism. Our knowledge of the world now includes a strong component due to tourism, which results in the enjoyment of knowing new territories and increasing contacts with near or far away societies and cultures.
The tourism industry has nevertheless given rise to some serious problems, including social costs and ecological impacts. Many ancient local cultures have lost their identities. Their societies have orientated their economy only to this industry. Both natural and cultural landscapes have also paid a high price for certain forms of tourism. These problems will persist if short term economic benefits are the only objective in mind, leading to economic gains that eventually become ruinous.
The Triad approach can be thought of as an initiative to update the environmental restoration process by providing a better union of scientific and societal factors involved in the resolution of contamination issues. It does so by emphasizing better investigation preparation (systematic project planning), greater flexibility in field work (dynamic work strategies), and advocacy of real-time measurement technologies, including field-generated data. The central concept that joins all of these ideas is the need to understand and manage uncertainties that affect decision making. The Triad approach relies on technological, scientific, and process advances that offer the potential for improvements in both quality and cost savings. The cost-saving potential is considered to be significant but is only now being documented by case studies.
Instructors:
Stuart J. Nagourney, New Jersey Dept of Environmental Protection (stu.nagourney@dep.state.nj.us)
William M. Davis, Tricorder Environmental, Inc (wmdavis@tri-corders.com)
Katherine Jo Owens, Paragon Professional Associates (paragon@ida.net)
Moderators:
Mary Yelken, ITRC Training Program Support (myelken@earthlink.net)
Stuart J. Nagourney, New Jersey Dept of Environmental Protection (stu.nagourney@dep.state.nj.us)
William M. Davis, Tricorder Environmental, Inc (wmdavis@tri-corders.com)
Katherine Jo Owens, Paragon Professional Associates (paragon@ida.net)
Moderators:
Mary Yelken, ITRC Training Program Support (myelken@earthlink.net)
Tourism and the environment
The term environment can be defined as all the conditions, circumstances, and influences surrounding, and affecting the development of an organism or group of organisms. In this definition both biophysical and socio-economic factors are included.
In the long term, tourism depends on the quality of the environment. Indeed, the quality of an environment, or some particular feature of it, is frequently the primary attraction for tourists. And today, tourists of all kinds are becoming more sensitive to polluted or environmentally degraded conditions at their different travel destinations. Thus in some areas that until quite recently were very popular, tourism has declined because of environmental problems. For example:
algal blooms in the Adriatic have made the water impenetrable and hence unattractive to swimmers
beaches have been closed in the UK as a result of radioactivity, and in Haiti due to sewage pollution
600 tourism lodges in Canada face closure since acid rain has led to a decline in salmon stocks and the number of tourists seeking recreational fishing
in Mexico City, air pollution levels have led to a drop in the number of international visitors.
But as these examples show, a decline in tourism is not always caused by tourism itself. Rather, it is the pattern of industrial growth, exploitation of natural resources and consumerism, in brief, the unsustainable development that characterizes contemporary Western civilization, that are to blame.
In fact, tourism may have positive effects on the environment. Since tourist operators have a vested interest in maintaining the environmental quality of tourist destinations they are becoming increasingly interested in collaborating with those who work to protect the environment. Income from tourism can also assist in the development and improvement of facilities, such as sanitation systems, for residents and tourists alike. The recent World Fair in Seville provided a good example of this. Expo-Seville, built mainly as a world tourist attraction also provided an opportunity for the city and its inhabitants to carry out a sorely needed upgrade of public services. Seville is now assured of adequate public services until at least the year 2025.
The term environment can be defined as all the conditions, circumstances, and influences surrounding, and affecting the development of an organism or group of organisms. In this definition both biophysical and socio-economic factors are included.
In the long term, tourism depends on the quality of the environment. Indeed, the quality of an environment, or some particular feature of it, is frequently the primary attraction for tourists. And today, tourists of all kinds are becoming more sensitive to polluted or environmentally degraded conditions at their different travel destinations. Thus in some areas that until quite recently were very popular, tourism has declined because of environmental problems. For example:
algal blooms in the Adriatic have made the water impenetrable and hence unattractive to swimmers
beaches have been closed in the UK as a result of radioactivity, and in Haiti due to sewage pollution
600 tourism lodges in Canada face closure since acid rain has led to a decline in salmon stocks and the number of tourists seeking recreational fishing
in Mexico City, air pollution levels have led to a drop in the number of international visitors.
But as these examples show, a decline in tourism is not always caused by tourism itself. Rather, it is the pattern of industrial growth, exploitation of natural resources and consumerism, in brief, the unsustainable development that characterizes contemporary Western civilization, that are to blame.
In fact, tourism may have positive effects on the environment. Since tourist operators have a vested interest in maintaining the environmental quality of tourist destinations they are becoming increasingly interested in collaborating with those who work to protect the environment. Income from tourism can also assist in the development and improvement of facilities, such as sanitation systems, for residents and tourists alike. The recent World Fair in Seville provided a good example of this. Expo-Seville, built mainly as a world tourist attraction also provided an opportunity for the city and its inhabitants to carry out a sorely needed upgrade of public services. Seville is now assured of adequate public services until at least the year 2025.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Strategic Plan for Evaluating the Toxicity of Chemicals.
To fulfill its mission to protect human health and the environment, EPA must evaluate the risks of adverse health effects resulting from exposure to chemicals in the environment. The traditional risk assessment approach relies heavily on data generated through the intentional dosing of experimental animals. While this approach has provided EPA with sound science to support regulatory decision making over the past several decades, EPA must address ever-increasing demands, including consideration of complex issues such as cumulative exposures, life-stage vulnerabilities, and genetic susceptibilities, not to mention the increasing number of chemicals and cost of toxicity testing. A new approach is proposed to address these demands, an approach based on the application of advances in molecular biology and computational sciences to transform toxicity testing and risk assessment practices.
Environmental Policies of the NTT DATA Group
We believe that, given the increasingly serious nature of global environmental problems, we must address these as management issues and work to resolve the environmental problems facing the world and society.
The NTT DATA Group, which applies information technology to create new paradigms, contributes to environmental protection by providing systems and solutions that can replace or alleviate the need for actual movement of people and goods. At the same time, recognizing the major impact of business activities on the environment, we are promoting an ongoing and planned approach to environmental protection, so as to realize a society that is in better harmony with the earth even as it enjoys the abundance of modern life.
We believe that, given the increasingly serious nature of global environmental problems, we must address these as management issues and work to resolve the environmental problems facing the world and society.
The NTT DATA Group, which applies information technology to create new paradigms, contributes to environmental protection by providing systems and solutions that can replace or alleviate the need for actual movement of people and goods. At the same time, recognizing the major impact of business activities on the environment, we are promoting an ongoing and planned approach to environmental protection, so as to realize a society that is in better harmony with the earth even as it enjoys the abundance of modern life.
