ICELAND CANYON WANTS NO MORE VISITORS, THANKS TO JUSTIN BIEBER

20, May 2019

Prelims level : Geography Mains level :
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Why in News:

  • After bieber’s I’ll Show You was shot at the spot, the footfall of tourists in the region rose,
    leaving deep scars on its vegetation.

Details:

  • A large sign warns motorists that Iceland’s Fjadrárgljúfur canyon is closed to visitors but drivers keep on coming down the narrow gravel road.
  • A ranger at a roadblock has to explain why no one can pass: the vulnerable landscape cannot sustain more visitors. Bieber’s magical music video I’ll Show You was filmed at the
    canyon and seen by millions, creating overwhelming demand for the once-pristine spot
  • Last year, 2.3 million tourists visited Iceland, compared with just 6,00,000 eight years ago. The 20% annual uptick in visitors has been out of proportion with infrastructure that is needed to protect Iceland’s volcanic landscape, where soil forms slowly and erodes quickly.
  • The nearby Skūgar waterfall and the Svţnafells glacier are also backdrops in the fictional Thrones world of warriors and dragons.

Arctic Council

  • It was established in 1996 by Ottawa Declaration.
  • Headquarter: Tromso, in Norway.
  • Members (8): Russia, Sweden, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Denmark (representing Greenland and Faroe Islands), Canada and United States).
  • It is a high-level intergovernmental forum which addresses issues faced by Arctic states, its indigenous people and its other inhabitants seeks to promote coordination, cooperation and interaction among them on common issues but mainly on environmental protection and sustainable development in Arctic.

    • India and Arctic Region

    • Indian researchers have been studying whether there is a co-relation between Indian monsoon and the Arctic region.
    • National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research, an Indian institute under Ministry of Earth Sciences, has set up research station, ‘Himadri’, in Svalbard (Norway). It studies and works on mass balance of glaciers, effect of climate warming on marine system, clouds formation and precipitation and also effect on biodiversity.
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