Nature and tourism

1994/12/01 Elhuyar Zientzia Iturria: Elhuyar aldizkaria

• Ingurumena

International tourism figures have increased in recent years. The latest calculations estimate that it has reached 324 billion dollars and has advanced to oil in international exchange. According to experts, ecological tourism accounts for 5% of international tourism. Thanks to this, natural reserves around the world have a great source of income.

According to the survey conducted by UNESCO in its 70 reserves as “world heritage”, tourism is the main source of income, ahead of agriculture and livestock. Economists have extracted very curious data. For example, the East African lion has been valued at $27,000 on average and the elephant at $610,000.

However, when you arrive too tourist to the natural reserves, the environment deteriorates and you have to be careful. Everest, for example, is the highest landfill in the world and the Galapagos Islands are increasingly affected.