14 DAY TRIAL // Just today, Tourism Concern made public a report that clearly shows how, in developing countries, tourists receive preferential treatment when it comes to access to water.
This study focuses on the communities of people living in Bali, The Gambia, Zanzibar, Goa and Kerala, south India, and aims at raising awareness with respect to a most unfortunate situation: in spite of the water crisis currently going on in this part of the world, tourists have virtually no problems when it comes to using and abusing this precious resource.
What makes matters even worse is that, as visitors to these areas use more and more water unhindered, fewer is left for the people who are actually trying to make a living here.
Thus, the aforementioned report make a case of how, although beneficial for the local economy, tourist activities in these parts of the world usually end up exhausting the available natural resources and therefore threaten both the environment and the traditional lifestyle of the people.
To put it bluntly: raw figures show that a five-star resort requires 1785 liters per day in order to meet the demands of just one of its guests, while the people living in nearby communities use just 14 liters of water throughout the same period of time.
Moreover, some tourists choose to spend their vacations in houseboats, rather than in hotels, and this adds extra strain on local water resources as sewage waters are released directly into the natural ecosystems here, affecting wildlife and the fishing activities of indigenous people.
It is not difficult to guess that this situation might soon lead to social conflicts arising between locals and government officials, on the grounds that the latter favor major businesses over small-scale entrepreneurs.
From where we stand, it is not worth sacrificing public health on behalf of tourism, and immediate action should be taken to remedy this issue.
More information on this topic can be read on Tourism Concern's official website.