Residents of the Galápagos are staging angry protests against plans by their government plans to open the islands to foreign investment in luxury tourism. According to a recent article in The Ecologist: “They fear for the fragile ecology of the islands, for water shortages caused by golf courses and swimming pools, and for their livelihoods which depend on current ‘low intensity’ tourism.”
In Brief
- In 2007 UNESCO classified the Galápagos Islands as a world heritage site in danger, due to the threats of a huge population increase, increasing tourism and the invasive non-native species visitors inevitably bring with them.
- When the islands were placed on Unesco’s danger list, there were 145,000 visitors a year (2006). In 2014 there were 215,000.
- In January 2015, the Ecuadorian government launched Investour – a website designed to attract international investment into Ecuador’s growing tourist economy, and now featuring several potential projects on the Galapagos.
In Depth
- Read the original article on The Ecologist website.
- Follow The Ecologist on Twitter
- Discuss the issues raised on the Outbounding discussion forum
