Antarctica is already a sustainable continent in terms of tourism. Tourists usually remain either on the ship or travel by small boats around the ice bergs, avoiding any contact with the ice. This helps to preserve the current state of the landscape and makes the process of eroding rock slow down, as transportation vehicles, animals and people act as catalysts to the abrasion of Antarctica. The small amounts of tourists setting foot on the continent minimises use of the little facilities provided and also reduces the amount of rubbish and waste brought onto the continent. In the Antarctic Treaty there is a waste management policy, which allows the effective disposal of all waste. Rubbish is organised into 5 categories (burnable, non-burnable, hazardous, recyclable and domestic liquids) and then disposed of according to the category it fits into. For example, burnables are combusted in an incinerator at Scott Base and the ashes, along with the non-burnables, recyclables and hazardous wastes, are returned to New Zealand where the waste can be properly disposed of without damaging the environment. Increasing and promoting waste management is easily done as it is affordable and realistic, and making tourists reduce the amount of waste or rubbish like plastic on their trip would create a healthier and safer environment for the wildlife and also prevent any contamination.
A proposed alternative to improve tourism in Antarctica would be to protect the land is by prohibiting the construction of commercial buildings and developments to accommodate tourists. International businesses would be attracted to building hotels or cabins, as the region has barely been touched and there is a large amount of land, which could be used for tourist related facilities such as man made attractions or activity sites. This would earn money, but it is unlikely that it would go to anywhere else but the multinational companies who would most likely decide not to invest it into any Antarctic projects. By forbidding any buildings or developments used for purposes other than research, this allows visitors to focus on the natural and environmental side of their trip and tourism also. This would protect the environment by maintaining its pure and untouched status, which is also protecting the natural habitat for the animals that inhabit Antarctica.
An additional suggestion that could be put forward is reduce the number of vessels or aircrafts allowed entry onto the continent. Preservation is very important and highly prioritised as it is important for scientific research. Reducing the number of transportation to the icy continent would minimise the potential occurrence of accidents around the region and also help protect the ecosystems, which could be damaged by incoming vehicles and vessels. This could potentially put tourists off coming to Antarctica as times to visit would be limited, but it would definitely make the experience more significant, as it is limited to tourists visiting for a holiday. Cutting down on the use of vehicles would reduce the amount of pollution is released into the atmosphere and the more vehicles we use that require petrol means more oil needs to be drilled from the ocean, which also creates harm to ecosystems, which damages the sea floor.
A meeting would need to be held including representatives from the countries with research bases on Antarctica, countries involved with the Antarctic Treaty and also the travel companies, which transport people to and from the continent. A unanimous decision would need to be made before making any decisions and they would need to be realistic, economically sensible and most importantly, decisions that would make positive impacts on the environment.
A proposed alternative to improve tourism in Antarctica would be to protect the land is by prohibiting the construction of commercial buildings and developments to accommodate tourists. International businesses would be attracted to building hotels or cabins, as the region has barely been touched and there is a large amount of land, which could be used for tourist related facilities such as man made attractions or activity sites. This would earn money, but it is unlikely that it would go to anywhere else but the multinational companies who would most likely decide not to invest it into any Antarctic projects. By forbidding any buildings or developments used for purposes other than research, this allows visitors to focus on the natural and environmental side of their trip and tourism also. This would protect the environment by maintaining its pure and untouched status, which is also protecting the natural habitat for the animals that inhabit Antarctica.
An additional suggestion that could be put forward is reduce the number of vessels or aircrafts allowed entry onto the continent. Preservation is very important and highly prioritised as it is important for scientific research. Reducing the number of transportation to the icy continent would minimise the potential occurrence of accidents around the region and also help protect the ecosystems, which could be damaged by incoming vehicles and vessels. This could potentially put tourists off coming to Antarctica as times to visit would be limited, but it would definitely make the experience more significant, as it is limited to tourists visiting for a holiday. Cutting down on the use of vehicles would reduce the amount of pollution is released into the atmosphere and the more vehicles we use that require petrol means more oil needs to be drilled from the ocean, which also creates harm to ecosystems, which damages the sea floor.
A meeting would need to be held including representatives from the countries with research bases on Antarctica, countries involved with the Antarctic Treaty and also the travel companies, which transport people to and from the continent. A unanimous decision would need to be made before making any decisions and they would need to be realistic, economically sensible and most importantly, decisions that would make positive impacts on the environment.