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Tourism is a major means of recreation and it may be defined as “organized tour”. It encompasses the activities of the tourists and all those who cater for them. When people leave their place of permanent living and stay for a short time as tourist, it is called tourism and the enterprising catering to the needs of these constitute the tourism industry. Tourism referred to as an industry on the basis of the income and employment generated for skilled and unskilled manpower(Jain, Y. 1998).Tourism is generally considered as a social movement with a view to rest and relaxation, recreation and appreciation and enjoyment of natural and cultural attributes (Roy, H.C. 1998).Tourism defined as “the activities of persons travelling to and staying in place outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purpose” (UNWTO). Actually, it includes movements of all purposes. In developing countries tourism has become one of the major sectors of the economy.It contributes a large proportion of the national income and it is also able to create huge opportunities in job creation.

Tourism is considered as one of the largest and fastest growing industries of the world as well as a socio-economic phenomenon and as such an instrument of social and economic growth. As an industry, the impact of tourism is manifold. Tourism industry nourishes a country’s economy, stimulates development process, restores cultural heritage, and helps in maintaining international peace and understanding.It has significant impact on environment, culture, society and also on economy both positively and negatively.

Tourist inflow is a major source of development of any tourism destination. Tourism has the potential to create beneficial effects on the environment by contributing to environmental protection and conservation. It is a very way to raise awareness of environmental values and it can serve as a tool to finance protection of natural areas and increase their economic importance.Except the positive impact of environment, there are many negative impacts that result from tourism. Environmental destructions are a major problem of tourism activities. if the level of visitor use exceeds the ability of environment to cope with, it causes a serious threat to the environment. Tourism not only contributes to environmental degradation, but at the same time affected by it as well. Tourism is linked with the construction of general infrastructure such as roads and airports, and of tourism facilities, including resorts, hotels, restaurant, shops, etc. The negative impact of tourism development can gradually destroy the environmental resources on which it depends.Therefore, tourism is a doubled edge activity as on the side contributes positively to the socio-economic achievement, on the other side its fast, unmanaged and uncontrolled growth is proving to be the major cause of degradation of the environment. In tourism rich countries, depletion of natural resources and environmental degradation associated with tourism activities are considered a serious one. So, a complex problem for different levels of government is the management of natural resources to reduce the depletion of natural resources and environmental degradation. The reality is that in most tourist areas tourists adopt a relatively high pattern and as a result there is a lot of waste generation. This paper discusses impact of tourism industry on environment.

Tourism has very different impact on environment including human life. According to the author, this study investigates the effects of tourism upon quality of life in Shiraj, Iran.According to the survey, the strongest tourism impact are found to be linked with emotional wellbeing, community wellbeing, income and employment.(A.Fariborz, 2011).Tourism development can put pressure on the natural resources when it increases consumption in areas where resource are already scare. The author explains the effects of tourism on natural resources, environmental pollution and physical environment. He also explain environmental impacts of tourism on global scale, industrial impacts on tourism and finally he maintain how tourism can contribute to environmental conservation.(Sunlu U, 2003). Shiji.O,(2016) highlighted the relation between tourism and environment. Main objective of his paper is to understand the negative impact of tourism on environment. Mainly these impacts upon the environment can gradually destroy the environmental resources on which it depends. According to the author, if we want to achieve economic development without harming the environment, we need to increase the importance on sustainability and eco-friendly tourism. Tourism has many positive and negative impacts on the environment.The purpose of the paper is to increase the knowledge about some concept on environment and tourism, sustainable development and tourism, ecotourism and their relationship.Finally, the author refers to some challenges and recommendations regarding to tourism and environment.(Faraji and Aghajani, 2010). The relationship of tourism with the environment is complex. Main purpose of the paper is to review various environmental impacts of tourism and the effects of tourism on various natural resources, environmental pollution and on physical environment.(Rath. N and Gupta. R, 2017). The risk of dealing with or losing the sustainability of the tourism industry could greatly damage the entire economy of Vietnam. Therefore, the development of tourism is very important for the sustainable development of the national economy. (Tien.H, Dung T, Vu.T and Due M, 2019).

The study has been carried mainly on the basis of literature survey and secondary information. The secondary data was collected through various articles, journals, books, newspapers and online sources and various organization like world tourism organization, world travel and tourism council, ministry of tourism, environmental policy etc.

Interrelation between tourism and environment

The relation between tourism and environment is very complex and both are interrelated and inter dependent to each other. Tourism always consumes natural resources and will continue to do so in the future. Tourism is the main reason for carrying the natural environment, both positive and negative. Tourism involves various activities which can have positive and negative effects on the environment of the concerned area. In terms of tourism, environment is always understood as a nature or atmosphere of a destination or a place which is used for tourism. Nature consists of mountain, water resource such as sea side, rivers, waterfalls etc. green environment includes plants, forests, parks, rainforests etc. when elaborated to wilderness it consists wild life, animals, forest species and so on. Socially; heritage sites or cultural uniqueness is also a part of an environment. The relationship between tourism and environment is multifaceted and its impact is double sided.

Tourism can or does have a positive impact on the environment by contributing to the protection and preservation of the environment. Understanding tourism can create ideas about environmental values in people’s minds. On the contrary, it can be said that tourism can gradually eliminate or reduce the dependence on the environment on a regular basis.

Each environment has its own carrying capacity, when the number of tourists increases this capacity, it affects the balance position of the environment. Generally adverse environmental effects are mainly related to infrastructure development of street, air force, hotel, restaurant, golf courses, resorts etc. This potential threat to the environment can put a huge strain on any one region and lead to impacts such as natural habitat loss, soil erosion, increased pressure on endangered species, increased pollution etc.It can therefore be said that uncontrolled conventional tourism poses a potential threat to the natural environment.It is truly ironic that tourism destroys the very things it is depends on. The negative impacts of tourism development can gradually destroy the environmental resources on which it depends.

It is not all negative, however! Tourism has the potential to create beneficial effects on the environment by contributing to environmental protection and conservation. It is a way to raise awareness of environmental values and it can serve as a tool to finance protection of natural areas and increase their economic importance.

Positive environmental impacts of tourism

Tourism is one of the largest industries in the world, having eye-catching growth over the past three decades. During these decades, tourism has been converted into a complex phenomenon, with economic, social, cultural and natural or environmental dimensions. Environmental dimension contains the major attractions among different tourists in the recent (Holden, 2000).  Although there are not as many positive environmental impacts of tourism as there are negative impact, it is important to note that tourism can help preserve and conserve the environment. Tourism industry can help environment through several ways. These are as follows:

1. Tosave the environment:Positive environmental impacts can also be induced through the need for the environment. Tourism can often not succeed without the environment due the fact that it relies on it. Therefore,the tourismindustry can play a key role in developing the environment.These roles include protecting the environment where the stakeholders in the tourism industry take part in restoring and conserving the varieties of biological and sustainable natural resources. Due to presence of attractions, wildlife or national parks can be created to mark ancient sites and natural areas as valuable and sustain that attraction.

2. To raising environmental awareness: The most commonly noted positive environmental impact of tourism is raised awareness. Many destinations promote ecotourism and sustainable tourism and this can help to educate people about the environmental impact of tourism. 

3. To contribute direct finance:  Conservation of sensitive areas and habitat can be helped through direct financial contribution, which can be consideredas an avenue for tourism. Payment can be made for the protection and management of ecologically special areas. In that case revenue derived from park entrance fees and similar sources may be appropriated. Special fees for park conservation and operation can be collected from tourists or may be from tour operators.

4. To contribute government revenues:Government can collect money from different indirect ways that are income taxes, user fees, taxes on sales or rental of recreation equipment and license fees for activities such as hunting and fishing can provide governments with the funds needed to manage natural resources. Apart from park ranger salaries and park maintenance, such funds are needed for overall conservation. 

5. Toimprove environmental management and planning: For better environment management of tourism there is a need of providing hotel facilities which will increase the benefits to natural environment.  Tourism development can be brought about through better planning and destructive and costly mistake can be avoided. The development of tourism has encouraged the Indian government towards this direction leading to improved and quality environmental management.

6. To measures regulatory system: Regulatory measures can also be helpful for offsetting of tourism negative impact on the environment. In that case, the impact on the ecosystem can be limited by controlling the number of tourist activities and the movement of tourists within the protected areas. It will even play a role in maintaining the integrity and vitality of the area. Such limit can also reduce the negative impacts on resources.

7. To development of metropolitan cities: The natural environment is also a source of attraction to very many people especially with the development of many metropolitan cities in the world. Therefore, if the metropolitans ensure that they maintain good environments, it will be a source of attraction to the tourists who will then contribute finance for its development.

Negative environmental impact of tourism

Every environment has its own carrying capacity. When the number of tourists increased above this capacity it affects the balanced position of environment. In this case, it is clear that uncontrolled tourism carries the message of potential threats to the natural environment. These potential threats include enormous pressure on an area and lead to impact such as natural habitat loss, soil erosion, increased pressure on endangered species, increased pollution, heightened vulnerability to forest fires and discharges into the sea(Shiji.O, 2016).

There are two main ways that tourism negatively impacts on the environment: first one, through the development of area and last one, through the behavior of tourists.   

According to United Nations Environment Programme(UNEP), there are three negative environmental impacts of tourism. These are- Natural resource depletion, pollution and physical degradation of ecosystem. In some situations it is very difficult to understand this negative effect until much later. We already have a few negative example and data to look at to see the degrading tendency.Thus, the major negative environmental impacts of tourism are discussed below-

1. The depletion of natural resources

Natural resource depletion means consumption of resources faster than it can be replaced. In the case of tourism resource depletion occurs when the scarce resources are exceedingly consumed. The important types of depletion of natural resources are:

i. Water resources: One of the major critical natural resources is water and especially fresh water. Tourism industry is also using water for a lot of purposes. In many tourist destinations, water is overused by tourists in hotels, swimming pools, golf courses and personal use. Resulting in larger quantities of wastewater and creating water shortages which affect local residents. 

ii. Local resources: Tourism can create a huge pressure on the local resources like land, food, water, energy, recreational amenities and other raw materials that may already be in limited supply. Many tourist destinations have ten times more inhabitants in the high season than in the low season for the seasonal nature of the industry. A high demand is placed on these resources to meet the high expectation of tourists (proper food, light, hot water etc). of course, this can put pressure on local resource and infrastructure. Even local people are affected by it.

iii. Land degradation: Rapid increase in construction of tourism and recreational facilities in any tourist destination increased pressure on the important land resources like forests, wetland and wildlife, fertile soil, minerals resources, scenic landscape etc. Development in terms of facilities such as accommodations, hotels and restaurants, and other recreational activities involves mining of sand, soil and other crucial mineral resources and also leads to soil erosion and extension paving (Singh.S and Bahadur.R, 2018). Negative impact of tourism on forests due to deforestation caused by fuel wood collection and land clearing. For example, one trekking tourist in the Himalayan region (Nepal, Sikkim Assam) use four to five kilograms wood a day (UNEP, 1999).

2. Pollution

Pollution is a negative impact in the tourism industry same as in other industries. Uncontrolled tourism development can create air, water, sound pollution, solid waste and littering, releases of sewage etc.

i. Air Pollution:A major source of air pollution in the context of tourism is associated with transportation system. As the number of tourist arrival is increasing rapidly day by day, the air and road transport is also increasing significantly in recent day. Air pollution from tourism development may result from excessive use of vehicles (car, buses and motorcycle) by and for tourists at major tourist attraction areas that are accessible only or mainly by road. This increase in transportation has given rise in the release of carbon dioxide (CO2), Sulphur dioxide (SO2) and emission of greenhouse gases. Again, Shops and restaurants in any tourist areas installed their air conditioners’ exhaust outlets close to the local residents’ homes, chlorofluorocarbons (CFC) are come out from this exhaust. As a result, the area has faced the problems like Acid rain, global warming, photochemical pollution which has directly affected the natural ecosystem, landscape, human health, vegetation of the area.

ii. Noise Pollution: Noise pollution is now a growing problem of modern life. Noise may be generated by a concentration of tourists, vehicles, aircraft, cars, buses and motor boats. Sometimes certain types of tourist attractions such as amusement parks, car or motorcycle races and also from the recreational vehicles such as snowmobiles and jet skis may generate noise that is unacceptable and irritating. As a result, humans and animals are affected by this noise pollution.

iii. Visual Pollution: visual pollution may result from several sources, like; Poorly designed buildings, e.g., hotels that are not compatible with local architectural style or environment, use of large and ugly advertising signs, Overhead utility (electric and telephone) lines and poles, Buildings obstructing scenic views etc.

iv. Solid Waste and littering disposal: Solid wasteis the unwanted or useless solid materials generated from human activities in residential, industrial or commercial areas. It is due to large number of people using one area and the kind of activity they engage, like picnicking, trekking etc. Tourism is one of the main sources of solid waste and littering. This is another a serious problem found at all the tourist destinations, where tourism related activities are very high. Solid waste is mainly dumped in areas such as hotels, restaurants, small shops, lodges etc., and is scattered around in the form of littering. The unmanaged disposal has become a serious threat to the natural environment of rivers, streams, lakes, flora and fauna etc of the area. It can create significant health problems and a very unpleasant living environment if not disposed of safety and appropriately.

In mountain or hilly areas of Himalayas, Darjeeling, Chotonagpur plateau trekking tourist generate a great deal of waste. During the expedition travelers leave their garbage, oxygen cylinders and even camping equipment. For example, in march 2021, about 70 sacks of plastic items were unloaded from top of Sushunia hill in Bankura district of West Bengal.

v. Sewage Problem:The development of tourism in an area increases the construction of hotels, restaurants, roads, recreation and other facilities in that area, which amounts to sewage. It is the primary agent of degradation of water resources and natural flora and fauna. Increased tourism as the area becomes urbanized, the number of tourists also increases rapidly, which increases the amount of sewage. This untreated sewage runoff pollutes rivers, streams and any lakes or ponds or other local waters in the vicinity of tourist destinations and causes serious damage to coral reefs and coastal environment and natural ecosystem. For example, oil spills from cruise boats in resort harbors, untreated sewage from kitchens and bathrooms of island resorts may cause adverse effect on the aquatic ecosystem and reduce the enjoyment of the tourists swimming there. Sewage pollution can threaten the human health and animals also. Examples of such sewage pollution can be seen in the coastal states of Goa, Kerala, Dal Lake of Jammu and Kashmir state, Chilka lake of Odisha state of India.

3. Others Physical Impact on Environment

i. Deforestation: Plants are basis of life on this earth and all living things, including humans, depend on it. Forests play an important role in environmental conservation and deforestation can damage the entire ecosystem. Forests serve as a source of oxygen, wood, food, wildlife habitat on the one hand and absorb all pollutants, including carbon dioxide, on the other. But Rapid growth of tourism and urbanization are two major causes behind uncontrolled destruction of forests. Because, Hotels, restaurant, lodges, houseboats, roads and various construction are done to improve tourism in any tourist destination. Even in hilly region, forests are being cleared for road construction. As a result, deforestation creates serious problems such as soil erosion, loss of biodiversity, climate change and also effecting negatively to overall water cycle and environment of the region.

ii. Ozone layer depletion:  The ozone layer is the layer present in the lower stratosphere that is near about 20 to 35 km above the earth. This layer is important for the earth because it protects the earth by absorbing harmful UV (Ultra violate) radiation that comes from the sun. But now the indiscriminate activities of human beings are leading to the destruction of this ozone layer. The tourism activities may be part of the problem.  Ozone depletion substances (ODSs) are present in air conditioner, refrigerators used in hotels, lodge, restaurant etc., which are widely used in the tourism industry.  even toxic fumes emitted from jet air craft are main source of ODSs. Which are thinning ozone layer and creating pores.

iii. Climate Change:Environment and climate change are the most important factors for tourism. Climate change is one of the most burning issue which tourism is facing globally recently because tourism is a climate sensitive industry. Mainly the vital reason of climate change is rapidly increase of greenhouse gases, which is generated when fossil fuels (coal, oil, natural gas etc) are burned (e.g. in industry, electricity generation and automobiles) and the forest area cut to develop hotels and resorts. The relationship between tourism and climate change is twofold; tourism impacts on climate change and climate change impacts on tourism. In the tourism sector only the movement of people from their home to other destinations accounts about 50% of traffic (air, railways and road) which is the main contributor of global emission of CO2, SO2 and other greenhouse gases.  Thus, tourism is the important contributor to the increasing concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. Increase temperature of air and ocean, changing rainfall pattern, decreasing snow and ice cover, coral bleaching is including with climate change. Recent estimates shows that transport sector including airways, railways and road generates the largest proportion, with 75% of all emission and the accommodation sector accounts for almost 20% of emission from tourism. (UNWTO et al., 2008)

iv. Loss of biodiversity:tourism, especially natural tourism, closely related with biodiversity and the attractions created by a rich and varied environment. Biodiversity can suffer from overuse of land and resources. The reckless activities of tourists are causing destruction of terrestrial and aquatic ecosystem as well as biodiversity, which is disrupting the ecological balance. This loss of biodiversity in fact means loss of tourism potentiality.

Developing ecotourism to reduce negative environmental impact

Ecotourism is a new form of modern tourism.The term ecotourism itself refers to a segment within the tourism sector, In the field of tourism, well-planned and managed ecotourism is one of the most effective tools for long-term conservation of biodiversity. The international ecotourism society (TIES, 2015) defines ecotourism as, "responsible travel to natural areas that conserves the environment and sustains the well-being of local people, and involves interpretation and education". Its purpose may be to educate the tourists, to provide funds for ecological conservation, to directly benefit the economic development and political empowerment of local communities. It minimizes negative impacts upon the natural and socio-cultural environment through its own positive aspects. These are:

i. Conservation of biological diversity and cultural diversity through ecosystem protection.

ii. Promotion of sustainable use of biodiversity, by providing jobs to local people.

iii. The development of ecotourism can be used as a special tool for natural resource management.

iv. It increases the awareness and understanding natural and cultural systems of an area.

v. It supports the protection of natural areas and contributes to the conservation and management of legally protected and other natural areas.

vi. It provides special opportunities for the local people and natural tourism employees to utilizes and visit natural areas.

Some environmental challenges of tourism

Discussing the tourism industry and its impact on the environment, many environmental challenges have been found in tourism. Here are some discussion points that can be studied in future.

i. Practical steps need to be implemented to achieve a proper balance between tourism and environment.

ii. Various forms of tourism such as ecotourism, adventure, cultural tourism need sustainable growth that adheres to international standards and principles.

iii. Tourists and familiar local people need to be deeply educated about the value of natural resources and cultural heritage.

iv. The right balance needs to be found between encouraging the expansion of tourism and protecting the environment.

Suggestions and Recommendations

So, from the above discussion it is clear that unplanned and uncontrolled tourism growth is extremely harmful to the earth’s natural environment. Therefore, to overcome its negative effects, tourism needs to be planned and managed in a way that is environmentally sustainable and socially beneficial. Some suggestions to prevent environmental degradation as a negative consequence of tourism are discussed below-

i. Stop deforestation: Stopping deforestation is crucial for our survival and for the development of the ecosystem. Forests conserve greenhouse gases, produce oxygen and as natural habitat for many animals and plants, we should not cut down or burn trees. It is even possible to promote tourism by focusing on forests and using the beauty of plants. Therefore, a large afforestation campaign should be started in the interest of environmental protection. Even through tree planting plans we can have a positive impact on the environment.

ii. Governmental step:The government should intervene and set up a framework to address issues such as environmental degradation. Even complying with the tourism protection act (1986) highlights the negative aspects of tourism to local communities and tourists in tourist destinations as well as focus should be on environmental protection.

iii. Fines and punishment for illegal dumping: To reduce this adverse effect on the environment, there should be higher fines for illegal dumping from the tourism area. Garbage generated and emitted from various tourist centers is dumped illegally. They know that even if they are caught, the fines are quite low. So, the government should increase the fines for illegal dumping, so that the waste is dumped in the right place and the incentive to dispose of waste is created.

iv. Reduce consumption level:The use of various products like plastic products such as water bottles, plastic buckets and other plastic products used in tourist centers should be gradually reduced. Legal action must be taken to reduce the amount of non-degradable products that even foreign tourists use.

v. Advertising and promotion:The awareness of the environmental degradation is largely promoted by the media and NGOs. There is a need for public and private advertising and publicity campaigns on environmental degradation and to address this degradation. NGO should conduct research and surveys on the environmental degradation.  At the same time humanitarian awareness must be raised.

vi. Role of recreationists: Undisciplined behavior of the recreationists is responsible to a large extent for environmental degradation. Recreationists can not be seen separately from resort hotels whose chief aim is to provide recreation and pleasure. They should keep themselves disciplined and should not throw litter, trample and pollute the area in any manner.

vii. Role of hoteliers: Hotel industry is a lucrative enterprise. Hoteliers can play an important role to reduce environmental degradation. Hoteliers should locate a site where construction of buildings is ecofriendly and does not spoil the landscape. They should provide the employees as well as the tourists a list of instructions of do’s and don’ts. Even they should seek the help of plantation companies who plant ecofriendly trees.

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