- Tourism development must be done in a sustainable way – Hon. Carlos James
While Caribbean islands seek to expand tourism industries, the Hon. Carlos James, Minister of Tourism, Civil Aviation, Sustainable Development, and Culture of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, has warned that carbon emissions from travel and tourism are expected to rise by 25% by 2030.
Minister James made the argument while delivering a keynote talk at the Climate Action Zone on the sidelines of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) 28th Conference of Parties, which was held last week at the Madinat Jumeirah Conference Centre in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
“We must address this issue at the beginning of the travel and tourism industry.” Airlines must shift quicker to Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF), which decreases carbon emissions by 80% compared to jet fuel, and cruise lines must adopt transitional bio-fuel and zero-emission engines as soon as possible. “These are the steps we must take to reduce carbon emissions,” James stated.
He also warned that small island nations should be wary of overcommercializing their tourism product, and that tourism infrastructure development should include stricter building codes for coastlines and requirements for hotel development to use at least 50% renewable energy. “We have to reduce the carbon footprint on our islands, while at the same time protecting our eco-system through a Ridge to Reef integrated management approach,” he stated.
Addressing concerns such as grey water leakage from coastal infrastructure and hotels into the marine eco-system, according to the tourism minister, is also a big worry for island states.
“Global environmental benchmarks must be set and developed in a way that is sustainable, promoting the build out of protected areas and marine parks, the banning of certain chemical substances in sub blocks to reduce coral bleaching will have a positive impact on our fragile eco-systems,” he said.
As tiny island economies rely more on travel and tourism, tourist development must be done in a sustainable manner that maintains a balance with our fragile eco-systems, according to Minister James.
