Endangered Places

hehewaitwhat: Recycled island is a research project on the...

Wed, 14 Apr 2010 10:33:24 -0700

Recycled island is a research project on the potential of realizing a habitable floating island in the Pacific Ocean made from all the plastic waste that is momentarily floating around in the ocean.

The proposal has three main aims:

Cleaning our oceans from a gigantic amount of plastic waste.

Creating new land.

Constructing a sustainable habitat.

Recycled island seeks the possibilities to recycle the plastic waste on the spot and to recycle it into a floating entity. The constructive and marine technical aspects take part in the project of creating a sea worthy island.

i hope this really happens! click photo for website.

The Cleanest Line: Rios Libres: The Journey Begins

Mon, 12 Apr 2010 11:48:10 -0700

The Cleanest Line: Rios Libres: The Journey Begins:

Two of Patagonia’s last free-flowing rivers are at risk of being dammed.

When I visited the region several years ago, the opposition movement was just beginning. Most residents of the far-flung places that would be most impacted by the dams still argued in support of it, largely thanks to a misleading PR campaign by the energy company that stands to profit from exporting hydropower.

Public opinion has changed dramatically since advocacy groups at the grassroots and international levels started working to combat the propaganda and the dams.

Among them is Team Rios Libres, a group of conservationists that includes photographers, documentary filmmakers, and the writer Craig Childs. They visited Patagonia in February with the following goal:

to give this threatened area a voice by documenting this incredible natural resource in its pristine state and by highlighting what the area means to the people, plants, and wildlife that make up its ecosystem.

The posts they published on Patagonia’s blog are insightful and alarming.

—KL

9 Coastal Wonders to See Now - CoastalLiving.com When we were...

Fri, 02 Apr 2010 15:05:10 -0700

9 Coastal Wonders to See Now - CoastalLiving.com

When we were doing the research for Disappearing Destinations, we traveled the world investigating places that are as stunning as they are endangered.

In this article for Coastal Living magazine, we share advice for visiting nine sensitive coastal destinations and helping them recover.

utnereader: Righteous activism: End mountaintop removal coal...

Fri, 26 Mar 2010 13:53:00 -0700

utnereader:

Righteous activism: End mountaintop removal coal mining in 2010…

From Utne.com: Calling Out Big Coal at the EPA

Of all the issues we covered in Disappearing Destinations, mountaintop mining is probably the least glamorous. For whatever reason, it hasn’t crystallized in the minds of American progressives in the same way as global warming, endangered species and other environmental threats.

This probably has something to do with the fact that it occurs primarily in regions like Appalachia that lie outside the coastal media markets and have relatively little political clout. (Imagine the uproar if mining outfits started decapitating peaks in California.)

It’s an incredibly destructive practice, and it continues to threaten some of our most fragile landscapes. You can learn about mountaintop mining and the Rainforest Action Network’s campaign to end it, here.

— KL

More than 300 residents of a town in southern Iceland could soon...

Tue, 23 Mar 2010 16:02:21 -0700

More than 300 residents of a town in southern Iceland could soon find themselves in the path of major floods caused by a nearby volcanic eruption.

A scientist at the University of Iceland told Reuters that the volcanic activity, which started late Saturday night, could trigger a massive eruption at the nearby Mount Katla. Because Katla lies beneath a glacier, the resulting melt-off could be devastating.

Hundreds of residents have been evacuated and flights have been diverted while scientists monitor the situation.

The Eyjafjallajoekull volcano had been dormant for 200 years.

Photo by AP photographer Ragnar Axelsson (via National Geographic).

— KL

… by 2012 a road will have been built on this path,...

Mon, 22 Mar 2010 16:29:04 -0700

… by 2012 a road will have been built on this path, destroying this experience and, according to many, placing the last nail in the coffin of what was once the greatest trek on earth.

(via Hiking the Annapurna Circuit in Nepal Before Roads Take Over - NYTimes.com)

This is a beautifully written travel story on the route that made Nepal a trekking destination. The trail’s demise represents more than the loss of a diversion; Annapurna is the centerpiece of the region’s sustainable tourism economy. Its loss will create a void that will likely be filled by more destructive industries.

— KL

dailyme: An Indian village boy runs through a parched field on...

Mon, 22 Mar 2010 15:37:36 -0700

dailyme:

An Indian village boy runs through a parched field on World Water Day in Berhampur, Orissa state, India, Monday, March 22, 2010. Clean Water for a Healthy World is the theme for World Water Day 2010. (AP Photo/Biswaranjan Rout)

When post-earthquake tsunami predictions didn’t manifest...

Tue, 16 Mar 2010 10:57:00 -0700

When post-earthquake tsunami predictions didn’t manifest on the closely watched coastlines of California and Hawaii, many of us stopped paying attention. But water levels did rise elsewhere, with devastating effects.

The residents of San Juan Bautista, 400 miles off the coast of Chile, watched from above as a tsunami destroyed their entire town. The haunting images in this video came from a group of journalists who are trying to help them rebuild.

Tsunami Relief for Robinson Crusoe Island (via jimray)

— KL

Two more awards for Disappearing Destinations

Sun, 07 Jun 2009 21:00:00 -0700

The American Society of Journalists and Authors has awarded Disappearing Destinations the top honor in its 2009 Outstanding Book Awards in the General Nonfiction category. It is a tremendous honor even to be listed among the distinguished nominees, and we are extremely grateful to the judges for their acknowledgment of our work.

We are also proud to have won a “Top Hand” Award from the Colorado Authors League. In support of their decision to honor us with the organization’s Creative Nonfiction award, the judges made the following comments:

“Disappearing Destinations is a well-written and beautifully organized “call to arms,” regarding the environmental degradation of several popular tourist locations around the world.” Robert L. Shoop, author of several non-fiction works.

“I think this book should be required reading for all high school students and legislators—state and federal! It’s beautifully written.” Cheryl Shubert, librarian.

If you’ve read the book, we’d love to hear your thoughts. Post a review!

Between the swine flu, the earthquake and the drug cartel...

Wed, 29 Apr 2009 21:00:00 -0700

Between the swine flu, the earthquake and the drug cartel violence, the media frenzy around Mexico’s recent misfortunes is having a devastating effect on the country’s travel professionals.

Our tourism dollars feed hundreds of thousands of families. Not to downplay the horrors of death by disease or drug violence, but the number of victims does not compare to those affected by the sudden blow to this $13.3 billion industry.

Fact: The plain old flu killed tens of thousands of Americans this year. Fact: Car accidents kill more than 42,000 Americans each year. Fact: The United States has a higher rate of gun deaths per capita than Mexico.

A recent TripAdvisor poll found that one in four travelers will change their trip plans because of the flu scare. The travel website also reported a 50 percent drop in page views of hotels in Mexico between April 27 and April 30, compared to the previous week. Page views for Caribbean hotels went up about 30 percent in the same time period.

We encourage travelers to take reasonable precautions. But please keep your fear in check.

Photo courtesy of the Mexican Tourism Board.

— KL

While speaking to the Department of the Interior yesterday,...

Tue, 03 Mar 2009 21:00:00 -0800

While speaking to the Department of the Interior yesterday, President Obama announced that his administration is reviewing the 11th-hour Bush ruling that allowed agencies like the Army Corp of Engineers to act without consulting federal wildlife experts, even if such projects could harm endangered species. In the interim, scientists must be involved in all decisions.

“…Today I’ve signed a memorandum that will help restore the scientific process to its rightful place at the heart of the Endangered Species Act, a process undermined by past administrations,” said Obama. “The work of scientists and experts in my administration - including right here in the Interior Department - will be respected.”

Photo courtesy of U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service.

— HH

Interior Secretary Ken Salazar turned back the clock yesterday...

Wed, 04 Feb 2009 21:00:00 -0800

Interior Secretary Ken Salazar turned back the clock yesterday on the hotly debated lease of 130,000 acres in Utah for oil and gas development.

The Deseret News reported that Salazar decided to give back the $6 million the Bureau of Land Management made on the deal because the land is too close to “American iconic treasures,” including Arches and Canyonlands national parks, Dinosaur National Monument and Nine Mile Canyon. He said that the sale “did not pass the smell test in terms of the environmental review process.”

In its reporting on the drilling issue, the Washington Post mentioned that Salazar is also now reviewing pending leases for oil shale development in valuable wilderness areas in Colorado and Wyoming. The House Natural Resources Committee also holds its first hearings on offshore drilling next week. Stay tuned.

Arches NP photo courtesy of the NPS.

— HH

We just received some sad news from Baja. One of our favorite...

Tue, 09 Dec 2008 21:00:00 -0800

We just received some sad news from Baja. One of our favorite eco resorts has lost its fight against developers who will soon raze the idyllic, solar-powered outpost to make way for yet another Mexican mega-hotel.

Situated on an isolated cove just south of Loreto, Danzante was a model for sustainability in a region whose natural resources are always at risk. Owners Lauren and Michael Farley were not only stewards of the local environment but also the local community—they hired all of their help from a nearby village and used lodge proceeds to build a school.

Several years ago, as we ate fresh fish tacos and enjoyed Michael’s famous margaritas, I debriefed the Farleys on my first two days at the resort: island hopping by kayak, horseback riding through cactus-studded arroyos, hiking in an arid canyon.

They told me it takes most guests three days to turn from “human doings” to “human beings,” and they were right on target—I spent the following day reading and napping in the hammock outside my palapa.

It’s a shame to see Danzante go, but its passing may help fuel a burgeoning opposition movement. Meet some of Baja’s emerging eco-heroes here.

— KL

Book of the year: Disappearing Destinations

Mon, 17 Nov 2008 21:00:00 -0800

Disappearing Destinations has been awarded Planeta.com’s Tourism Book of the Year Award!

The annual award asks Planeta readers to vote on nominees in four categories: Environment, Food, Guidebooks and Tourism. The other winners were: Watching Giants: The Secret Lives of Whales by Elin Kelsey and Doc White; Eat Smart in Sicily by Joan Peterson, Marcella Croce, Brook C. Soltvedt, and Susan Chwae; and Traveler’s Tool Kit: Mexico and Central America by Rob Sangster and Tim Leffel.

Other notable nominees are Bruce Barcott, for his fascinating The Last Flight of the Scarlet McCaw; David Page, for his comprehensive guide to Yosemite and the Southern Sierra Nevada; and Nicholas Gilman, who braved many a dubious taco stand to bring us Good Food in Mexico City.

Many thanks to the readers who cast their votes!