Ecotourism

Let’s travel closer to nature.


Teeming with the mesmerizing variety of landscapes and wildlife, the natural world draws thrill-seekers and vacationers who wish to explore nature in the raw, adventure into its untamed jungles, trek through its deep canyons or conquer its towering peaks! Rewarding and rejuvenating, a vacation in Nature's lap also brings with it a risk of the degradation of our fragile natural environs. One such place which lures thousands of tourists and hikers each year is the Himalayas. In the past, heavy foot traffic in the Himalayas brought unmanageable amount of garbage and its clean up became a formidable task owing to the lack of transportation and recycling facilities in the area.


From the Everest Base Camp (which is littered with discarded oxygen bottles and climbing gears) to fragile reefs (which suffer damages from irresponsible snorkelling and by tour boat anchors), our natural world bears the negative impact of thoughtless travellers.


For example, each year a large percentage of vacationers head to coastlines around the world where they have an enormous impact on marine ecosystems. Plastic toys, bags, bottles and other litter left by careless beach visitors often ends up in the seas and cause hazards to marine animals and birds either because they become entangled in it or they mistake it for food and consume it.


Large-scale tourism in sensitive areas has also had detrimental effects on many natural environments, including rainforests and mountainous areas. Some negative effects on the environment are…


1. soil erosion and plant damage (often caused by camping, driving or walking on sensitive spots)


2. disturbance to wildlife (high levels of noise or bright lights in the nesting or breeding grounds can disturb sensitive wildlife)


3. improper garbage disposal, water contamination, air pollutiorrand loss of biodiversity


However, to your surprise, embarking on a journey to discover nature can also turn out to be a means to preserve and sustain our fragile natural world. This is possible by ecotourism.


Ecotourism is an eco-friendly way of discovering nature. It is a form of tourism that involves responsible travelling to fragile and relatively unspoiled natural areas, especially to support conservation efforts and observe flora and fauna. It aims at minimal environmental impact on the areas visited.


Besides fostering respect towards our natural environment,ecotourism also helps in creating socio-economic benefits for the communities of the area visited. Ecotourism offers a travelling experience like no other by giving us an opportunity to contribute to environmental conservation besides bringing us closer to nature. So the next time you go backpacking or exploring nature — make yourself stand out from the crowd - be an ecotourist!


To be an ecotourist, follow the guide to ECOTOURISM.


Adopted from the writings of Classmates Note Book - ITC – INDIA.