Green Tourism

This is news that I read this morning is about how serious our government in emphasize on protecting environment and balance it with tourism development. I do agree that if government could adopt and implementing green technology as it will benefit not only the environment but also our country as whole. Below is the citation from the news.

“KOTA KINABALU: Malaysia is on the right track in tourism development because of its focus on preserving the natural beauty and environment. Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said Malaysia had drawn up specific guidelines on the development of the tourism industry without harming the environment.

"We are on the right track (in striking a balance between tourism development and protecting the environment), but we need to stay focused," he said after launching the 2010 World Tourism Conference (WTC) here yesterday.

Malaysia was mindful that tourists were increasingly more discerning and environmentally conscious, he added.

"Tourists may shy away from Malaysia if we compromise on the environment in our push to make tourism a major revenue-earner," Muhyiddin said, noting that Malaysia was ranked the ninth most-travelled destination in the world last year by the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO).

He called on the UNWTO to develop a mechanism on the best practices in green tourism, saying that promotion of the "green" initiative would benefit member countries in terms of development of green technology, conservation of natural resources and minimizing the negative impact on the environment as a result of tourism activities.

"Green technology could potentially be a driver in generating new areas of growth and promoting sustainable development."

Muhyiddin said it was Malaysia's aim to adopt green technology and best practices in sustainable development to resolve adverse environmental issues often attributed to tourist inflows.

He was confident that developing green technologies would not only benefit the economy by attracting foreign investors but also help preserve the natural environment.

Attended by about 500 local and international participants, including tourism ministers from several countries as well as ambassadors and high commissioners, the three-day WTC, which commenced yesterday, is jointly organized by the Tourism Ministry and UNWTO.

Present were Chief Minister Datuk Seri Musa Aman, Tourism Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ng Yen Yen and UNWTO secretary-general Taleb Rifai.

The conference aims to uncover the secrets of leading destinations and organizations in the tourism industry, which can be adopted to generate income and accelerate growth in the industry.

It is also an avenue for policy-makers, industry players and stakeholders to share experiences and information on tourism trends and innovation, government initiatives and tourism business success stories.

Taleb said it was appropriate that the conference was held in Malaysia as the nation was one of the world's top 10 destinations with 23.6 million in tourist arrivals last year.

Taleb credited Malaysia for its efforts in protecting and preserving its natural beauty and environment.

"I hope Malaysia could share its success in the tourism industry for other countries to emulate."

(5 October 2010, NSTP)

Brighter Future for the Environment

Reading through an old newspaper I came about an article of CFL lamps which stated that by Jan 2014, the traditional incandescent bulb will no longer be available to Malaysian consumers. So part of the article mentioned the environmental impact of CFL and incandescent light bulbs. In a recent announcement, Power, Green Technology and Water Minister Datuk Seri Peter Chin said the government would stop all production, import and sales of incandescent light bulbs in an initiative to promote more efficient use of electricity thereby reducing the nation’s power consumption.

Well from the Wikipedia I got to know that a compact fluorescent lamp (CFL), also known as a compact fluorescent light or energy saving light (or less commonly as a compact fluorescent tube), is a type of fluorescent lamp. Many CFLs are designed to replace an incandescent lamp and can fit into most existing light fixtures formerly used for incandescent.

So let’s get to know what a CFL is and how it operates and what to do when it breaks. All CFLs contain mercury, a neurotoxin that can cause kidney and brain damage. Just why is mercury present in CFLs and why are other elements not used? The simple reason is that mercury is the most efficient element for the generation of ultraviolet light. While the amount of mercury used in a CFL has decreased in recent years, a small amount is still needed. According to the Australian Department of Climate Change and Energy Efficiency website (www.environment.gov.au), CFLs have less impact on the environment than incandescent lamps even though they contain mercury. The reason – coal fired power plants release mercury as well. It estimates that a 20W CFL releases about 2.7mg of mercury into the atmosphere during its life time and equivalent use of 100W incandescent lamps releases 13.4mg! So… even with the 5mg of mercury contained in CFLs, there is less mercury to pollute the environment..

And how do the CFLs work? The CFLs produce light differently than incandescent bulbs. In an incandescent, electric current runs through a wire filament and heats the filament until it starts to glow. In a CFL, an electric current is driven through a tube containing argon and a small amount of mercury vapor. This generates invisible ultraviolet light that excites a fluorescent coating (called phosphor) on the inside of the tube, which then emits visible light.

What to do if a CFL breaks

1. Ventilate

-open a window, shut-off the air conditioning and leave the room for at least 15 minutes.

2. Clean-up

Wear gloves and never use your bare hands. Do not use a vacuum cleaner or broom if possible-scoop up glass fragments and powder with a piece of paper or cardboard, and place them in a sealed container or plastic bag. Use sticky tape to pick up small fragments. Bedding or clothes that come in contact with mercury should be thrown away and not washed.

3. Disposal

Double-bag all the broken pieces and cleaning materials in a sealed bag and dispose of them properly. It would be better to take them to a recycling center capable of handling hazardous materials, but in the absence of such, it should be marked as clearly as possible.

4. Wash your hands

To state the obvious, this is to make sure that there is no residual mercury.

5. What not to do

· Do not use a vacuum cleaner or broom-the vacuum will put mercury into the air, and a broom may just spread it around.

· Never pour it down a drain

· Never wash mercury-contaminated clothing or items as it may contaminate the machine and/or pollute sewage.

See the extra effort we have to take to sustain the environment..Phew..let me know what you think..