Climate Change and Tourism - UNEP - Division of Technology ...

34 Climate Change and Tourism – Responding to Global Challenges
Figure 6.3 Contribution of various tourism sub-sectors to CO 2 emissions (%)
Shares per tourism element
100
80
60
40
20
UNWTO, 9 July 2008
0
CO 2 -emissions
Activities
Accommodation
Other transport
Car transport
Air transport
The analysis also showed that emissions can vary greatly per tourist trip, between a few kilograms
of CO 2 up to 9 t CO 2 for long-distance, cruise-based journeys. A globally averaged tourist journey is
estimated to generate 0.25 t of CO 2 emissions. A small share of tourist trips, however, emits much more
than this: while the aviation based trips account for 17% of all tourism trips, they cause about 40% of
CO 2 emissions from tourism. Long-haul travel by air between the five UNWTO world tourism regions
represents only 2.2% of all tourist trips, but contributes 16% to global tourism-related CO 2 emissions.
In contrast, international tourist trips (i.e., overnight tourist trips) by coach and rail, which account for
an estimated 16% of international tourist trips, stand only for 1% of CO 2 emissions generated by all
international tourist trips (transport emissions only).
These results show that mitigation initiatives in the tourism sector will need to strategically focus on the
impact of some particular forms of tourism (i.e., particularly those connected with air travel) if substantial
reductions in CO 2 emissions are to be achieved. This also implies that climate change mitigation should
primarily focus on a minor proportion of tourist trips.
6.5 Mitigation Policies and Measures
4
21
3
32
40
Climate change mitigation relates to technological, economic and socio-cultural changes that can lead
to reductions in greenhouse gas emissions. Tourism-related emissions are projected to continue to grow
rapidly under ‘business-as-usual’ conditions in contrast to the substantial emission reduction targets the
international community agreed was required in the latest round of UNFCCC negotiations (“Vienna
Climate Change Talks 2007”), where it was recognized that global emissions of GHG need to be reduced
to well below half of the levels in 2000 by mid-century. * Mitigation is thus of particular importance
in tourism; however, mitigation policies need to consider a number of dimensions, such as the need to
stabilize the global climate, the right of people to rest and recover and leisure **, and attaining the United
Nations Millennium Development Goals. As the emission reductions required for tourism to contribute
* The ‘Vienna Climate Change Talks 2007’ represent the latest international negotiations on GHG emission reductions under
the auspices of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. www.unis.unvienna.org/unis/pressrels/2007/
unisinf230.html.
** The universal right to tourism must be regarded as the corollary of the right to rest and leisure, including reasonable limitation
of working hours and periodic holidays with pay, guaranteed by Article 24 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights
and Article 7.d of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights; (http://www.gdrc.org/uem/eco-tour/
principles.html).