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Tourism and global climate change

Global warming threatens tourism in coastal areas and small island developing states as well as in ski resorts. Recent catastrophes – such as the impact of Hurricane Mitch in 1998 – affect tourism as much as other sectors of the economy. In 1989 the cost of Hurricane Hugo to the tourism industry in lost revenue alone was estimated at US$ 8 billion.

Coasts in many countries currently face severe sea-level rise problems as a consequence of tectonically and anthropogenically induced subsidence. Although some states are experiencing relative declines in sea level, others – primarily low-lying island states and atolls – are especially vulnerable to climate change and associated sea-level rise because, in many cases (e.g. the Bahamas, Kiribati, Maldives, Marshall Islands), much of the land area is only 3- 4 m above the present mean sea-level. Islands at higher elevations also are vulnerable-particularly in coastal zones, where settlements, economic infrastructure, and vital services tend to be concentrated.