Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
El Niño & Ecuador
El Niño, a term coined by fishermen along Latin America's
west coast, means “the little boy,” though over the years
this force of nature has done far more damage than the
name suggests. In fact, it is named after the Christ Child
because its intensity tends to peak around Christmas.
Rains pick up and persist as waning trade winds and a re-
versal of surface ocean currents causes the eastern Pacific
to warm up well beyond normal. Fishing drops off for rea-
sons other than the rough seas. The cold Humboldt Current
that supplies rich nutrients fails to support the normal
abundance of marine life, which dies off en masse. Winds
and violent tropical storms force everyone inside for days
and even weeks on end. Mountainsides wash away, some-
times taking entire villages with them.
This is a reality inEcuador and Peru, where the last El Niño
caused billions of dollars in damage, tossed national econo-
mies into turmoil and killed hundreds of people. Force of na-
ture? Yes. Enhanced by human hand? Absolutely!
Research from the National Center for Atmospheric Re-
search supports the fact that this phenomenon is increasing
in intensity and duration, while increasing in frequency -
nowoccurring every two to seven years. They suggest global
warming is a contributor. Compound this with regional de-
forestation, which eliminates the earth's natural ability to
absorb water, and it becomes all too apparent what the fu-
ture holds for the coast of Ecuador. The question is, what
can we do about it? The obvious answer includes lifestyle
choices and supporting moves away from a carbon-based
economy. In addition, we can contribute toward re-
vegetation and ecotourism like those occurring in Bahía.
Eco-Travel
Bahía & the Río Chone Estuary
Although Bahía has similarities with other urban centers,
it has managed to develop in a way that is more benign to
the environment. It still has a long way to go, but it is a
step ahead of many cities. They are operating with the
help of
Planet DrumFoundation
, a San Francisco-based organiza-
tion dedicated to bio-regionalism, described as “a grassroots ap-
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