Graph of the Day: What climate change will cost tourism

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has released another industry-specific update from its Fifth Assessment Report, this time analysing the implications of the changing climate on the global tourism sector – one of the world’s largest, accounting for around 9 per cent of global GDP and generating more than $US6 trillion each year.

As the chart below shows (click on it to see a larger version), the report finds the sector – which itself accounts for just under 5 per cent of the world’s total greenhouse gas emissions – exposed to “numerous direct and indirect impacts from climate change,” including sea-level rise and increasingly acidic oceans affecting coastal tourism, shortened winter sport seasons due to rising temperatures, and changes in biodiversity affecting eco-tourism. And while adaptation options exist, many are likely to add costs and offer only short-term relief.