Better environment protection in Ha Long Bay urged for sustainable tourism
Experts voiced concerns over human impacts on the environment in UNESCO-recognised World Natural Heritage Ha Long Bay in Quang Ninh during a conference held in the northern province on November 26.
Quang Ninh's UNESCO World Natural Heritage Ha Long Bay. (Photo: VNA)
Quang Ninh (VNA) – Experts voiced concerns overhuman impacts on the environment in UNESCO-recognised World Natural Heritage HaLong Bay in Quang Ninh during a conference held in the northern province onNovember 26.
Held by the Ha Long Bay management authority both virtuallyand in-person, the conference aimed to evaluate environment carrying capacityof Ha Long Bay as part of the efforts to promote the sustainable development oftourism in the area.
The event also provided policymakers an overview of the bay’scurrent environmental status and thereby, put forward recommendations for theeffective preservation and management of its heritage values and how to maketourism sustainable.
It gathered officials from local departments, agencies andadministrations and experts from Vietnam National University (VNU)’s Central Institutefor Natural Resources and Environmental Studies, National Economics Universityand UNESCO Office in Hanoi.
Human activities, such as industrial production, mining,agriculture, fishing and tourism, have been hampering efforts to protect HaLong Bay, by disposing an increasing amount of solid waste and wastewater,putting enormous pressure on the bay’s environment, landscapes and heritagevalues, said Pham Dinh Huynh, deputy director of the Ha Long Bay managementauthority.
Human activities are also putting its natural resources atrisk of depletion, negatively affecting tourists’ experience and satisfactionin the province, he added.
A representative from the Central Institute of NaturalResources and Environmental Studies urged Quang Ninh to complete its policieson protecting the bay’s environment and build capacity for officials in chargeof managing the bay, and to soon develop and implement a Ha Long Bay integratedmanagement programme for the 2021 – 2030 period, with a vision towards 2045.
Meanwhile, the representative from the Quang Ninh Departmentof Tourism suggested the adoption of exclusive incentives to attract investmentinto developing new tourism products and infrastructure in the bay, probablyunder the Public-Private Partnership (PPP), as well as the development ofeco-tours with active engagement of local communities./.
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Quang Ninh's UNESCO World Natural Heritage Ha Long Bay. (Photo: VNA)
