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‘Global warming threat to Med holidays’
Most Mediterranean seaside resorts will become out of bounds during the peak summer, a climate change expert has warned.
Dr David Viner, from the Climatic Research Unit at the University of East Anglia, made the prediction at the annual conference of the European Tour Operators Association in London.
He told operators: “As a result of increasing temperatures, most of the Mediterranean coastal areas will become unsuitable for tourism during the summer months.”
Viner pointed out that nine of the 10 warmest years on record have occurred in the last decade. And in 2003, the World Health Organisation attributed more than 25,000 deaths in Europe to the July-August heat wave.
He said that the European summer of 2003 provided a useful guide for the future and he forecast dramatic implications for the tourism industry.
These included:
*Sea-level rise in the Mediterranean will damage the quality of beaches, the environment and the tourism infrastructure.
*Travel patterns will change, creating new pressures on infrastructure and the environment.
*The ski season will become shorter, as many low-lying ski-resorts in Alpine regions are vulnerable to an increase in winter temperatures and reduction in snow amounts
*Semi-arid destinations will become vulnerable to decreases in water availability. For example, a golf course in Spain uses the same amount of water as a town of 10 000 people.
*Increased fuel costs associated with increases in demand, decreases in supply and emissions taxation will result in higher prices.
*The tourism industry, as an increasing contributor to Greenhouse gas emissions, will need to adopt various greenhouse gas mitigation measures and contribute financially to the costs associated with climate change.
ETOA executive director Tom Jenkins commented: “Climate change is becoming an ever more important issue, which the tourism industry can not afford to ignore.
“I look forward to seeing a growth in popularity of sightseeing holidays by coach, as the environmentally friendly alternative to hiring a car.”
Report by Phil Davies
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