Tourism Impacts on
the Environment
Presented by : Ms. Chrisdie L. Flores

Learning Outcomes
 Explain the concept of the environment;
 Identify the differentiate its components;
 Identify the causes of such impact;
 Enumerate the positive impacts of tourism on the
environment; and
 Enumerate the negative impacts of tourism on the
environment.

The Concept of Environment
The scope of the concept of environment
covers the following aspects (Swarbrooke 1999):
1. Natural environment (e.g., caves, mountains,
beaches, seas, coasts, beaches)
2. Wildlife (flora and fauna)
3. Farms
4. Built environment (e.g., infrastructure, villages and
cities, buildings)

The Concept of Environment
The scope of the concept of environment
covers the following aspects (Swarbrooke 1999):
5. Natural resources (climate, water, air)
6. Weather/Climate
7. Natural phenomena (eclipses, volcanic eruptions,
animal migration, aurora borealis, tides)

The Concept of Environment
 According to Ecosystem.org, there are two major
types of ecosystems: terrestrial and aquatic.
 Terrestrial ecosystems include forests, desert,
grassland, and mountain ecosystems.

The Concept of Environment
 Forest ecosystems are ecosystem in which there
is an abundance of flora and fauna in relatively
small space, or where the density of living
organisms is quite high.
 Forest ecosystems may be tropical evergreen
forests (ruled by tall trees), tropical deciduous
(shrubs and dense bushes), temperate evergreen
forest (trees, mosses, and ferns),

The Concept of Environment
 Temperate deciduous forest (trees with leaves shed
during the winter months), and the taiga (situated
just before the arctic regions, defined by evergreen
conifers).
 Forest ecosystems may be used for a variety of
tourism or leisure activities, including camping,
hunting, and orienteering.

The Concept of Environment
 Desert ecosystems are located in regions that
receive an annual rainfall less than 25 inches.
 They occupy about 17% of all the land on our
planet.
 They are characterized by extremely high
temperature, low water availability, intense sunlight,
and constantly scarce fauna and flora.

The Concept of Environment
 Vegetation consists mainly of shrubs, bushes, few
grasses, and rare trees, with their stems modified to
conserve water as much as possible.
 Desert ecosystems may be utilized for dune
bashing, caravanning, or motor rallies.

The Concept of Environment
 Grasslands are located in the tropical and
temperate regions.
 The main plants are grasses, plants, and legumes
that belong to the composite family.
 A lot of grazing animals, insectivores, and
herbivores inhabit the grassland.

The Concept of Environment
 The main types of grasslands ecosystems are
savana (tropical grassland, which are dry
seasonally and have few individual trees) and
prairies.
 They support a large number of predators and
grazers.

The Concept of Environment
 Prairies are temperate grasslands which only have
different types of grasses.
 Grasslands offer camping and hunting
opportunities.

The Concept of Environment
 Mountain ecosystems provide diverse habitats for
large number of animals and plants.
 High altitude mountains are homes to thick-furred
animals, who hibernate in the winter season.

The Concept of Environment
 Lower slopes are covered with coniferous forests.
 Mountains could be used for mountaineering,
skiing, rock-wall climbing, base jumping, camping,
and the like.

The Concept of Environment
 Aquatic ecosystems are either marine (saltwater)
or freshwater ecosystems.

The Concept of Environment
 Marine ecosystems cover about 71% of the earth’s
surface and 97% of the planet’s water.
 Marine ecosystems should be oceanic, profundal,
inter-tidal estuaries, and coral reefs, salt marshes,
and hydrothermal vents.
 Oceanic is relatively the shallow part of oceans
which lies on the continental shelf.

The Concept of Environment
 Profundal refers to deep or bottom water part of the
sea.
 Many fish and other marine animals live in marine
ecosystems.
 Marine ecosystems may be used for such tourism
activities as sailing, diving, snorkeling, fishing,
parasailing, jet skiing, and many other water
activities.

The Concept of Environment
 Freshwater ecosystems cover only 0.8% of Earth’s
surface and contain 0.009% of the total water.
 Three basic kinds of freshwater ecosystems are
lentic (slow-moving or still water);
 Such as lakes or ponds; lotic (fast-moving), such as
streams and rivers, and wetlands in which the soil
is saturated for lengthy period of time.

The Concept of Environment
 These ecosystems are home to reptiles,
amphibians, and about 40% of fish species.
 Turbulent waters contain a greater concentration of
dissolved oxygen, which can support greater
biodiversity than slow-moving waters.
 Fresh water ecosystems may be used for fishing,
camping, sailing, white-water rafting, canoeing, and
the like.

The Concept of Environment
 Since tourism could exist in most of these
ecosystems, ecosystems are also prone to tourism-
induced impacts.
 Furthermore, ecosystems are interlinked; impacts
on one will be felt in the others.

The Concept of Environment
 For example, land clearing to build a theme park in
a forest could cause soil erosion, which could be
washed by heavy rain and cause siltation in rivers.
 Silt and other pollutants eventually reach the sea.

The Concept of Environment
 The environment plays a significant role in the
tourism industry.
 Several tourism forms and activities are nature-
related, such as ecotourism, wildlife tourism,
(hunting and photo safari), ski tourism.,
mountain tourism, cruise tourism, dive tourism,
coastal tourism, marine tourism, trekking,
camping, and glamping.

Causes of Impacts of Tourism
 The impact may be caused by:
o tourist behavior
o Construction
o the quality of infrastructure
o the dynamics between tourism supply and demand
o Design of facilities and infrastructure, and their
siting.
 Other cause of impact is violation of tourism
development guidelines by developers and
ineffective law enforcement.

Causes of Impacts of Tourism
 Tourists can impact the environment through their
behavior, such as throwing trash, rowdiness, or
spitting.
 They could actually affect the environment by their
mere presence.
 Humans emit moisture through their breaths and
body heat.

Causes of Impacts of Tourism
 This moisture can increase humidity in confined
spaces.
 Other causes of impact are poor design and poor
choice of location or siting.

Causes of Impacts of Tourism
 For example, our malls and office buildings are
constructed right beside the main thoroughfares,
which cause traffic build-up especially during rush
hours.
 In Malaysia, the major highways are flanked by
service roads, which avoid the situation described
above.

Causes of Impacts of Tourism
 Similarly, airports built very close to the city center,
such as Ninoy Aquino International Airport, will be
prone to traffic congestion.
 For this reason, many international airports are
constructed on sparsely populated locations or built
on dedicated reclaimed land, or man-made island
to isolate their effects.

Causes of Impacts of Tourism
 Improper siting
 Imposition of guidelines

NEGATIVE IMPACTS OF TOURISM ON THE
ENVIRONMENT
 Tourism development has an effect on wildlife and
plants, environmental quality, topography, and even
climate change.
Hunter and Green (1996) in Swasbrooke (1999)
o Disruption of breeding habits of animals
o The killing of animals in hunting or a source of
souvenirs
o Migration of animals
o Trampling of vegetation
o Clearing of vegetation to accommodate tourist
facilities
o Creation of sanctuary for animal conservation

NEGATIVE IMPACTS OF TOURISM ON THE
ENVIRONMENT
 Tourism also produces pollution of various types
(air, water, noise, and light)
 Contributes to erosion
 Depletion of water
 Fossil fuels
 Fish stocks
 There are visual impacts of tourism caused by litter,
sewage, and algal blooms.

NEGATIVE IMPACTS OF TOURISM ON THE
ENVIRONMENT
Huttche, White, and Flores (2002) observed the
following effects of tourism on coastal areas:
o Bacterial contamination
o Siltation from dredging or construction
o Pollution and excess nutrients from poor waste
disposal and sewerage
o Overfishing to provide fish to tourists
o Coral breakage from diving and anchoring, or for
sale as souvenirs.

NEGATIVE IMPACTS OF TOURISM ON THE
ENVIRONMENT
Land Degradation
Defined as “the temporary or permanent lowering of
the productive capacity of land”.
Wastes
Tourists and tourism establishments contribute to
environmental degradation through the production of
wastes.

NEGATIVE IMPACTS OF TOURISM ON THE
ENVIRONMENT
Pollution
The major forms of pollution are air, water, light, visual
and noise.
Air pollution is caused by the release of chemicals
and particulates into the atmosphere.
Light pollution which according to Globe at Night
(n.d.), is the “excessive, misdirected, or obtrusive
artificial light.”

NEGATIVE IMPACTS OF TOURISM ON THE
ENVIRONMENT
Pollution
Noise pollution includes roadway noise, aircraft
noise, industrial noise as well as high-intensity sonar.
Visual pollution or the loss of aesthetic appeal is
caused by the presence of eyesores, such as
overhead power lines, motorway billboards, scarred
landforms, open storage of trash or litter.

NEGATIVE IMPACTS OF TOURISM ON THE
ENVIRONMENT
Pollution
Water Pollution is caused by discharging wastewater
from commercial and industrial sources into surface
waters.

NEGATIVE IMPACTS OF TOURISM ON THE
ENVIRONMENT
Climate Change
Water Stress
Habitat Fragmentation
Animal Species Extinction

NEGATIVE IMPACTS OF TOURISM ON THE
ENVIRONMENT
Tourism Impacts on Coral Reefs
Beach Encroachment and Crowding

POSITIVE IMPACTS OF TOURISM ON THE
ENVIRONMENT
Environmental Quality and Infrastructure
Improvement
Species Regeneration