Band 6+: In many coastal regions, the rising popularity of underwater tourism is causing significant damage to fragile marine ecosystems. What are the main causes of this environmental degradation, and what steps can governments and tour operators take to mitigate the damage?

In this day and age, the increasing popularity of underwater tourism in numerous coastal areas is being detrimental towards fragile marine ecosystems. The main reason for this is the tourists’ careless attitude towards hydrosphere: individuals do not fully realize the threat they are posing on the ecosystem Government officials and tour operators could run awareness campaigns in order to make people understand the harm they are causing.

Since the majority of tourists may be uneducated about the marine ecosystems, they could damage it without even knowing that they are doing it. Subsequently, they are prone to litter and sometimes scare the inhabitants of the water: fish, dolphins, and other aquatic creatures. As a result, these coastal areas are under the risk of being too polluted and some species can go extinct. If this place is too polluted, the place might no longer be suitable for local fish because the vast majority of them need clean environment for living and reproducing. For instance, plastic bottles, which are thrown into the water, can dispose for more than centuries. They release different toxins which can be poisonous or even deadly to some fish. This would collapse whole ecosystems and some species, which live in only some particular regions, would no longer be found.

To tackle this issue, the government and tour operators could run different awareness campaigns. This is the most viable option because the main cause of the damage is ignorance and little or no education about their harm. For example, they could record different videos about ecosystems that were damaged by human beings. Most individuals would feel guilty and no longer damage the marine ecosystems; however, there are some people who would not listen to these videos. There needs to be a different approach for them. Having a person who stops tourists from harming the local environment by telling them should be enough.

In conclusion, the environmental degradation roots from humans having little to no knowledge about the consequences of their actions. The government and tour operators should raise public awareness in order to stop people from damaging the environment.