Monday, March 31, 2008

Antarctica under threat

This time, not from climate change, but from the thousands of 'saga generation' (I wonder if they count me in that category?) tourists and the shipping that brings them down under.

According to the Telegraph, last year more than 40,000 tourists visited the Antarctic. Staggering!

I suppose it is still probably the best place to spot whales, penguins and various southern seal species before they all become extinct?

1 comment:

Emma said...

I think we have been banging on for a while that the thing most likely to hurry the extinction process is the queue of such folk, along with various journos who just have to stand on a lump of white stuff to show how much they care about the damage being done to it by.. er.. them.


Hence my eyebrow comes ready-cocked when I see 'Eco-tourism' in anything purporting to 'help' the planet via travelling more than is absolutely necessary.

It's not the fact of it I mind so much (if I could I most lilely would), but the sanctimony if not hypocrisy applied.

We simply have a ton of folk with money to burn, and not buying stuff or going places to burn* it is simply not going to be an option for them.

What gets me is the ad pages of Sunday supps in such as the Indy and Guardian catering to them whilst getting kickers in a twist over PMWNCC.

Maybe you can have it all ways. Unless you're a penguin.

* Maybe they should be called 'Cooking Tours'. 'If you love something, set it free' is obviously not up there vs. 'grab it before its gone'.