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  Yahoo News 26 Jun 07
Too much tourism: Galapagos islands go on UNESCO's danger list

The Galapagos Islands in the Pacific Ocean have been put on a list of endangered world heritage sites by UNESCO because of the growing pressure from tourism, the UN's culture organisation said Tuesday.

Situated 1,000 kilometres (625 miles) off the coast of Ecuador, the 19 islands have a unique wildlife and were the first ever site to be placed on UNESCO's list of World Heritage Sites in 1978.

UNESCO's World Heritage Committee is currently meeting in Christchurch, New Zealand to consider new additions to the prestigious list as well as sites under threat.

In a statement released at its headquarters in Paris, UNESCO said that the Galapagos islands were "threatened by invasive species, growing tourism and immigration."

"The number of days spent by passengers of cruise ships has increased by 150 percent over the past 15 years.... This increase has fuelled a growth in immigration and the ensuing inter-island traffic has led to the introduction of more invasive species," it said.

The islands are home to several species not found elsewhere in the world including the giant tortoise and the land iguana. The unusual local fauna inspired British scientist Charles Darwin in his formulation of the theory of evolution.

UNESCO also placed Niokolo-Koba National Park in Senegal on the endangered list because of the threat of poaching and a proposed dam on the Gambia river.

Placing a site on the endangered list is intended to be a goad to greater conservation efforts. Without change, the site can ultimately lose its world heritage status.

The World Heritage Committee committee is considering 45 applications to join the list from 39 countries. It currently contains 830 sites.

UNESCO's decision came despite steps taken in April by Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa to limit tourist pressure on the Galapagos archipelago. Correa signed a decree declaring the islands to be "at risk and a national priority" and issued orders limiting tourist visits and residence permits for non-natives.

According to the Charles Darwin Foundation research group, invasive species threaten the future of large numbers of native plants and animals.

"Studies show that 60 percent of the 1,880 local plants are threatened. We have discovered 490 insect species that have been introduced as well as 53 new invertebrate species, 55 of which are particularly invasive," foundation chief Graham Watkins said.

"The first thing is to shore up the ecological barrier by limiting the ports of entry: one heliport, one port and a quarantine declaration," he said.

A major factor in the ecosystem's decline has been the introduction of dogs, cats, goats and donkeys. Over the past three years, UN workers teamed up with the park to eliminate as many as 80,000 wild goats.
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