Research for this report included focus group discussions, interviews with key stakeholders and extensive literature reviews.

Some key recommendations are:Reducing the tourism industry’s carbon footprint by enabling the public to identify accommodation • and tour operators who are committed to reducing carbon emissions.

Setting benchmarks for the usage of utilities or services such as water consumption, electricity, • solid waste management and waste water treatment systems to reduce energy usage and

prepare for future resource scarcity.

Planning for adaptation in Bali’s future development strategies. A fi rst step will be to identify areas • that are especially vulnerable to climate change and working with partners to determine

appropriate responses.

Promoting and applying more environmental friendly transportation modes is strongly • recommended starting with widespread use of catalytic converters, LPG fuel, and bio-diesel fuel for public transport.

Advocating for more responsible and climate friendly tourism in Bali, beginning with the Bali • Provincial government.

Pushing for greater protection of Bali’s natural environment and recognizing these are the • ‘assets’ upon which Bali’s economy depends.

Implementing and enforcing existing environmental and planning policies.•

For a copy of the full report please contact Richard Leck – rleck@wwf.org.au

Help us protect the Coral Triangle for future generationsThe beauty and magnifi cence of the Coral Triangle is being destroyed at an alarming rate. WWF is working closely with governments, the fi sheries and travel industries, non-government organizations and civil society to safeguard our marine heritage.

Photo credits: Front cover: © Robert Delfs, Melasti ceremony in Pantai Seseh Bali: © Willem Loots, Hawksbill turtle © WWF-Canon / Cat HOLLOWAY

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What is the role of tourism - Bali’s most valuable industry? The eyes of the world are keenly focused on Bali to observe what outcomes will come from the United Nations Climate Change summit. Ministers from 190 countries will come together for what WWF hopes will be a crucial meeting in setting the agenda to drastically reduce greenhouse gas emissions post-2012.

This is an exceptionally exciting time to be in Bali. Agreements reached here over these two weeks will help determine whether the world continues on the path towards dangerous and irreversible climate change or whether nations collectively shift to a low emission and less risky future.

While WWF cannot emphasize enough the importance of this meeting, we are also conscious that for most people in the world it is diffi cult to relate to high level negotiations on climate change.

Therefore WWF commissioned a study of Bali to examine what does climate change hold for this most magnifi cent island – how might the future unfold and how will actions taken today craft tomorrow’s Bali?

At the centre of marine biodiversity

The StudyThe study provides an insight into the physical, social and economic impacts of climate change on Bali, and focuses on what this will mean for tourism – it’s most valuable industry. Of course Bali is just one small island, and WWF hopes lessons from this study will show how local communities, industries and governments can play a vital role in the global effort to tackle climate change.

This is particularly important as momentum builds around the Coral Triangle Initiative on Coral Reefs, Fish-eries and Food Security. This is a new approach to conservation in the region and one in which the tourism industry will need to play an important role. The six countries within the Coral Triangle region (Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands and Timor Leste) and its neighbours such as Fiji and Australia are all facing similar severe pressures on their seas and coasts. By working together, the Initiative hopes to achieve the large scale conservation wins needed to tackle these threats.

The natural environmentThe effects of climate change on islands, coasts and beaches - the playground of a signifi cant percentage of the world’s leisure tourists - probably produce the most severe repercussions for the tourism industry.

There are a number of different impacts:• sea level rises cause coast and beach erosion, inundation of fl ood plains, rising water tables, destruc-tion of coastal eco-systems, salinisation of natural water reserves and, at worst, the total submersion of islands or coastal plains.

• warmer sea temperatures of 1-2oC cause coral bleaching and dying. This leads to a breakdown in the reef protection surrounding most tropical coastlines and an amenity loss for divers and snorkellers. It is

predicted that coral bleaching will increase in intensity and frequency to the extent that in the Caribbean and South East Asia it will occur annually by 2020 and in the Pacifi c by 2040.

• increasing storm frequency especially in conjunction with rising sea levels, leads to damage to sea defenses, protective mangrove swamps and wetlands, to beach erosion and causes storm-surge damage to coral reefs.

• wider incidence of communicable diseases will occur as ‘tropical’ areas expand with in-creasing temperatures. A surge in mosquito-born diseases such as Dengue fever, malaria and Ross River fever are of particular concern.

Potential impacts of climate change on BaliBali currently faces a number of environmental issues such as pollution, inappropriate development and destruction of key natural habitats. These issues are not new and, with or without climate change, they need to be addressed. However climate change has the potential to dramatically increase the pressures on Bali’s already stressed natural and built environments. Below are some examples of the types of stresses that may occur.

Bali Snapshot At just over 563,000 hectares, Bali constitutes 0.3% of Indonesia’s landmass.• About 3,263,000 live in Bali - approximately 1.4% of Indonesia’s total population.• 80% of Bali’s population relies to some extent on income-generation related to the • tourism industry.The estimated number of foreign tourists visiting Bali in 2007 is 1,700,000.• Domestic tourism is growing rapidly - 53% of airport arrivals are now domestic fl ights.•

Bali Snapshot At just over 563,000 hectares, Bali constitutes 0.3% of Indonesia’s landmass.• About 3,263,000 live in Bali - approximately 1.4% of Indonesia’s total population.• 80% of Bali’s population relies to some extent on income-generation related to the • tourism industry.The estimated number of foreign tourists visiting Bali in 2007 is 1,700,000.• Domestic tourism is growing rapidly - 53% of airport arrivals are now domestic fl ights.•

A way forwardBali is famous globally as an exotic tourism destination of rare beauty populated by a strong and resilient community. It was recently voted as the best island destination in the world by New York-based Travel & Leisure magazine.

Less well known are the environmental pressures currently affecting Bali and how susceptible its natural and built environments are to the future impacts of climate change. Bali’s economy is almost entirely reliant on a thriving tourism industry, and the tourism industry largely depends on a healthy environment. The wise course for Bali’s future is therefore for the tourism industry, government and local community to be at the forefront of efforts to reduce greenhouse emissions, secure food and water supplies and plan properly for the potential impacts that climate change will bring.

The Balinese tourism industry is not alone when it comes to being concerned about climate change. In 2003, the World Tourism Organization organized the fi rst International Conference on Climate Change and Tourism. A recurrent theme of the conference was the need to recognize a two-way relationship between tourism and climate change. On the one hand, tourism has an obligation to minimize its adverse impact on the environment and thus on the emission of greenhouse gases which in turn contribute to climate change. On the other hand, it was recognized that changes to the world’s climate would have a direct impact on many tourism destinations, which could have far reaching implications, not just for the tourism industry, but for other economic sectors.

The tourism industry needs to be made aware of these consequences and set in train planning processes which will enable it to adapt and adjust its activities accordingly. It needs to play a leading role in reducing its own emissions, using its global networks to raise awareness of climate impacts and its economic and social prominence to persuade decision makers to take action.

The built environmentIn many countries climate change is already causing planning authorities to revise many aspects of policy, such as re-defi ning fl ooding risks and areas at risk of severe weather events.

Unless deep cuts in global emissions are made rapidly, by 2050 Bali could be facing:

• Regular closures of Ngurah Rai airport, which may be underwater, or at least suffering regular inundation due to wave action.

• Destruction of tourism infrastructure in the

low-lying parts of Bali. Most of these areas have negligible buffer zones separating built areas from the ravages of the sea.

• Increasing pressure and demand on the island’s interior for housing land caused by displacement of Bali’s population from low-lying areas.

• Insecurity in food supply as changing weather pat-terns make current agricultural practices unviable.

• Problems in water supply due to changing rainfall patterns and salinisation of natural water reserves.