Five rules to minimize environmental impacts when you travel
Tourism is the world’s fastest growing sector and that’s because
more and more people choose to spend their free time and holidays
in nature. Besides the positive effects of tourism activities, such
as certain economic benefits and recreation, tourism often affects
the natural environment. For example: destroying forests to build
ski slopes, abandoned waste in an restricted area, uncivilized
behavior of some tourists in natural areas or even the noise
generated by jeeps, wich can disturb birds. All these activities
lead to degradation of nature and may even jeopardize the survival
of certain species of plants and animals.
As nature lovers, you can and have a duty to minimize environmental impacts when you travel. How? By taking responsible attitude when you travel and by complying certain rules of behavior!
These are five rules that minimize environmental impacts of tourism:
Rule no. 1
Plan ahead your trip!
Get accurate information about the rules that must be respected in
the places you intend to visit, prepare appropriate equipment for
bad weather and buy yourself a map of the area and a compass to
eliminate the use of marking paint, rock cairns or flagging. Never
go alone in your journey, take with you at least one person!
Rule no. 2
Walk only on marked paths and pitch your tent only in campsites!
If you don’t find a dedicated area for camping, than pitch your
tent on dry grass, sand or snow but don’t camp on green space
because you will destroy the vegetation. Also protect riparian
areas by pitching your tent at a distance of 200 m from rivers and
lakes.
Rule no. 3
Don‘t leave garbage behind you!
If you are in the middle of nature and there are no rubbish bens,
don’t throw the rubbish anywhere, better use one of those plastic
grocery bags as a portable trash collection devise. Food waste must
be buried at a distance of 200 m from water and at 10-15 cm depth.
Moreover, if you wash dishes, carry the water away from the river
and use biodegradable cleaner, don’t do it directly in the river or
lake.
Rule no. 4
Leave What You Find!
If you visit a museum or a historic structure: examine, admire but
do not touch artifacts! You have to show respect for the historical
past. Leave rocks, plants and other natural objects as you find them,
under a rock or a log, fragile insects may be living.
Rule no. 5
Minimize Campfire Impacts
Where fires are permitted, use camp burn barrels or bring your own
burn blanket. Keep fires small. Only use sticks from the ground
that can be broken by hand and burn all wood and coals to ash. If
you create a fire be prepared to clean it up by breaking and
turning over the ground to heal the burn scar.
