期刊名称：International Journal of Innovative Research in Science, Engineering and Technology
印刷版ISSN：2347-6710
电子版ISSN：2319-8753
出版年度：2014
卷号：3
期号：6
页码：13740
出版社：S&S Publications
摘要：Tourism is one of the biggest and fastest growing sectors in the global economy and has significantenvironmental, cultural, social and economic effects, both positive and negative. Tourism affects the environment of anarea either directly or indirectly. The quality of the environment, both natural and man-made, is essential to tourism.But tourism, if unplanned and unregulated can be extremely harmful to the environment because tourism andenvironment have a very complex and interdependent relationship. In the state of Jammu and Kashmir also, tourism isthe largest retail industry. Pilgrimage tourism to Katra town constitutes an important component of total tourism inJ&K and has contributed significantly to the growth and development of Katra town, base camp of Shri Mata VaishnoDevi Shrine. The number of tourists/pilgrims to the Shrine is increasing with each passing year. Presently, 30,000-35,000 pilgrims visit the town every day, on an average. But this increasing number of tourist is directly or indirectlyinfluencing the environment of the town. It has put enormous pressures and lead to impacts such as soil erosion,increased pollution, waste generation, natural habitat loss and strains on water resources. Many of these impacts arelinked with the construction of general infrastructure such as roads and airports and of tourism facilities, includingresorts, hotels, restaurants, shops etc. Therefore, the present paper aims to highlight the possible environmental impactsarising from the construction and further development of facilities for tourism and associated activities and to describemeasures to avoid or minimise damage to the environment.
关键词：Tourism; Environmental impacts; Sustainability; Katra
