Beyond Greening - Tourism Watch

Beyond Greening: Reflections on Tourism in the Rio-Process | Positioningpaperthe Kyoto Protocol until a new global regime is agreed. The first commitment period of theKyoto Protocol is going to end in 2012.The Kyoto Protocol, adopted in 1997 in Japan, is a protocol to the UNFCCC, aimed atfighting global warming. Under the Protocol, the rich countries commit themselves to areduction of four types of greenhouse gases and two groups of gases produced by them.Developing countries also made general commitments. The rich countries collectively agreedto reduce their greenhouse gas emissions by 5.2 percent on average for the period 2008-2012relative to their annual emissions in the base year 1990. Unfortunately, these emission limitsdo not apply to emissions from international aviation and shipping – the majority ofemissions caused by tourism.UNWTO's approach to climate changeThe UNWTO would be the appropriate UN body to tackle any issues related to tourism,including climate change. However, UNWTO does not have a mandate to develop aframework under which to negotiate binding regulations for the mitigation of tourismemissions. Rather, UNWTO may develop guidelines and recommendations for theirmembers.Tourism is a victim of global warming, but also contributes to it. This led the UNWTO tohold the 1st International Conference on Climate Change and Tourism in Djerba, Tunisia, in2003. The conference brought together tourism authorities, organizations, businesses andscientists to exchange views on the consequences, opportunities and risks for the tourismsector as a result of climate change.The UNWTO, together with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and theWorld Meteorological Organization (WMO), held the Second International Conference onClimate Change and Tourism in Davos, Switzerland, in 2007. The conference outcome wasdocumented in the Davos Declaration which gives detailed advice, guidance andrecommendations to all stakeholders in tourism. As it is only a recommendation and not abinding agreement, the Davos Declaration lacks ambition to motivate the relevantstakeholders. It does not require concrete implementation or transparent information.UNFCCC: Slow progress on bunkersEven though emissions from tourism are notdirectly subject to the negotiations, tourismdoes play a role in the UNFCCC process, intwo ways: Emissions from tourism areindirectly negotiated as part of the emissionsfrom aviation and shipping. However, thealleged economic benefits generated bytourism are used to sabotage bindingregulations for emissions in the aviationsector. The tourism industry lobby argues thata regulative framework capping emissionsfrom international air traffic – for instance aglobal fuel tax, levy or emission trading scheme – could affect tourism revenues that areassumed to contribute to poverty alleviation in developing countries. It might result inincreased costs for passenger transportation, which would reduce demand, which in turnwould impact negatively on the economies of developing countries. It is claimed that people indeveloping countries that are heavily dependent on tourism revenues would be doublyaffected – on the one hand through direct impacts from climate change, and on the other47