Radio Havana Cuba | Climate change will cause major tourist destinations to disappear

London, June 4 (RHC) The Maldives, some Pacific islands, Kilimanjaro, Venice and many places that receive millions of visitors today are now threatened by climate change that could redesign the global tourism map by 2050, according to several studies published in the journal Scientific Progress.

Several reports issued by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) warn of the dangers of rising sea levels, storms, melting glaciers, and the deterioration of ecosystems in areas that attract tourists because of their natural beauty.

After the recent floods that devastated the state of Rio Grande do Sul in Brazil, many experts point out that the planet is facing a very intense process of transformation, whether due to urbanization or the use of natural resources.

A study conducted by UNESCO and the International Union for Conservation of Nature in 2022 revealed that some glaciers considered world heritage sites will disappear by 2050, and their effects apply not only to those places, but also extend to beaches, islands and mountains on several continents.

With these projections, projections made by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) indicate that the Maldives and some islands located in the Pacific Ocean may disappear by 2100.

This is because sea levels could rise between 0.38 meters and 0.77 meters, respectively, according to the report “Oceans, Cryosphere and Sea Level Change.”

On the other hand, and even more alarming, is another investigation conducted by Science Advances and scientists from the United States Geological Survey, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and the University of Hawaii, which showed that the region could become uninhabitable as early as 2060.

The melting of glaciers will affect other tourist areas, such as Los Alerces National Park, in the Patagonia region, in Argentina, and the glaciers in Huascaran National Park, in Peru. Yellowstone National Park in the United States, and Waterton Glacier International Peace Park on the border with Canada.

As for Kilimanjaro National Park in Tanzania, and Mount Kenya in Kenya, they are expected to disappear in 2050, and the glaciers in the western Tien Shan, in the border region between Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan, are in a similar situation. .

They also predict what will happen to the Pyrenees on the border between France and Spain and the glaciers in the Dolomites in Italy.

Experts suggest that sea level rise caused largely by this melting will put the Caroline Islands, Cook Islands, Gilbert Islands, Line Islands, Society Islands, Spratly Islands, Seychelles and the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands at risk.

Regarding the city of Venice in Italy, UNESCO noted in 2023 that although the country was undertaking work to contain sea level rise, attempts to implement them were in fact very limited.

“They may succeed in the future, but Venice is particularly vulnerable to climate change,” the organization said at a meeting of its World Heritage Committee. (Source: Bell)