6 Ways Selfie-Addicted Tourists Are Destroying The World

Van Tilburg says all those vacationers are causing damage to the island's delicate ecosystem, on top of "disrespecting the statues by climbing on them, sitting on graves, and trampling preserved spaces." There are signs reminding people to act like adults and stay the heck off the statues, but noses that large are just begging someone to step right up and pick a winner.

And though the Moai may be huge and heavy, the volcanic rock from which they were carved is actually quite porous and easily damaged ... as rock goes, anyway. Now, in addition to being slowly destroyed by wind, rain, and lichen, their demise is being accelerated by a bunch of outsiders climbing all over them and shoving fingers up their snot boxes. Such is the price of progress, and by "progress" we mean "a Facebook profile picture you'll change in two weeks."

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Mattmangum/flickrAs a general rule, if you're touching a tiger and it isn't mauling you, something is probably up.

A National Geographic investigation of Amazonian port towns found animals being "illegally captured from the rain forest, kept in cages, and hauled out for well-meaning tourists to hold and take selfies with." The investigation further found that "illicit wildlife practices have become endemic" around the world. And it's fueled by so-called "selfie safaris" and the quest for the perfect picture.

There's even an emerging genre of photography that involves models (or even mere mortals) cuddling with wild animals. While they might look awesome on Instagram, what that photo isn't saying is that the animals are often sedated in order to get the shot. Viewed in this light, a hunter's bullet suddenly sounds like the more humane fate.

But how awful was it, really? About 4,000 tourists a day quickly turned the paradise into a "cesspool" and caused "critical" damage to the island's coral reef with their junk, underwater farts, and general obnoxiousness. In 2018, we mentioned that Thailand had announced a plan to close the beach for a few months every year, hoping that annual "time out" could help the tiny island recover. So how's that going? Uh, not well. Upon further assessment, Thailand's Department of National Parks, Wildlife, and Plant Conservation determined that the damage was so significant that they closed the beach indefinitely that October.

20th Century FoxWhy they did that instead of just renaming it "Definitely Not The Beach From The Beach," we'll never know.

On the bright side, a massive coral restoration project is now underway, and the painstaking process of growing a new reef has seen initial success. While there's hope that the bay and beach could eventually reopen to a limited number of tourists, both remain closed for the foreseeable future, giving humans some much-needed time to sit in the corner and think about what we've done. And maybe rethink Leo's Oscar, while we're at it.

Despite all warnings and precautions, even the most conscientious tourists keep bringing one thing on their happy little feet: germs. For the penguins and other wildlife that call Antarctica home, those everyday germs might as well be alien organisms.

ravas51 / Wikimedia CommonsPenguins tensely trying to figure out which of them is the Thing.

Scientists have found "human-linked pathogens among Antarctic seabirds" for the first time in history, and researchers warn that the presence of these new bacterial strains could have catastrophic consequences for the continent's wildlife. As in, there might be considerably less wildlife in the future.

Tourism to Antarctica is regulated, and those who set foot there go through decontamination procedures aimed at preventing anything invasive -- bacteria, seeds, pollen, and the like -- from impacting the fragile ecosystem. But that might not be enough. Despite attempts to enforce "responsible tourism" in Antarctica, research indicates that even the most minimal and careful presence of humans is already altering the continent's biome. If the germs or the melting of the ice caps don't kill the penguins, the stress of it all might.

OK, almost no one's.

... it had the happy-ish side effect of perfectly preserving the city, protecting it from vandalism, looting, climate, and weather for the better part of two millennia. But as of 2019, after enduring Roman conquest, earthquakes, and a volcanic eruption, Pompeii could meet its ultimate destruction at the hands (and feet) of tourists.

The ruins currently endure the presence of some 3.5 million visitors every year, up from 2.3 million in 2010. Why the sudden increase? You can blame those large floating buffets your grandma loves so much. According to one UNESCO official, "Cruise tourists are wearing out the ruins of Pompeii. The entrance steps of the Temple of Apollo, in particular, have been ruined by the influx of tourists." Ironically, the volcanic ash that devastated the city also protected the ruins. Now, open to the elements and swarms of people every year, Pompeii has become extremely vulnerable to wear and tear.

Sarahhoa / Wikimedia CommonsIt survived a volcano, but it will never get past Instagram.

While most of the millions of tourists do try to visit Pompeii responsibly, there are some who have no business ever setting foot there. Earlier this year, a 20-year-old British woman was detained by Italian police after crossing a barrier and removing tiles from a mosaic, causing around $3,000 in damage. In 2018, two French tourists were arrested for stealing pieces of marble and earthenware from Pompeii, and an American man dislodged and damaged tiles while trying to take a photo. On the other hand, in 2014, a 70-year-old Canadian woman traveled to Pompeii to return an artifact she'd stolen 50 years earlier while visiting the site on her honeymoon. Damn, you even steal things nicely, Canada.

For more, check out The 4 Ways We Travel In The Modern World (Are About To Suck):

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