How to improve Uluru's sustainability
Although efforts are being made to increase sustainability in the Uluru-Kata Tjuta national park and the tourism based industry in the surrounding area, there are still many ways it can be made more sustainable and lessen its effects on the environment and here are some ways to do so.
1.Transportation around Uluru could do with significant upgrades to make it more environmentally friendly. Currently many of the tourism operators use diesel powered busses to transport tourists which produces co2 and nitrogen oxides which can be harmful when breathed in. To improve this, electric busses and vans could be introduced (see figure 1) as they can receive their energy from renewable sources such as solar and geothermal instead of just fossil fuels, additionally they release a far smaller amount of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.
2. To improve the environmental impact of tourism renewable energy sources such as wind turbines and solar panels could be installed. With large expanses of empty desert surrounding the areas around Uluru there is plenty of space to install solar panels and wind farms (see figure 2), additionally a large battery storage unit could be installed to hold onto excess energy for the nights or to be sold off. Care would have to be taken, when installing large amounts of infrastructure, to make sure that the local ecosystems are not upset.
3. Since rainfall is often low and sparse in the areas around the Uluru-Kata Tjuta national park except for a few days a year when it buckets down (see figure 3), water is a precious resource and more efforts should be made to help conserve it and improve the efficiency of its use. Water can be obtained from groundwater reservoirs through techniques such as boring, by prioritising water conservation to help manage over-consumption we can further reduce the human impact on the natural environment around the Uluru area. Use of grey-water could help in maintaining water supplies as water that has been used for showering or cleaning can be diverted into reservoirs for other uses such as watering, fire-fighting and flushing toilets. Water saving
4. Plastics can be found dumped in large amounts around Uluru (see figure 4) and pose a large threat to the ecosystems around Uluru as it takes a long time to degrade and animals can mistake it for food and die from consuming it. Biodegradable plastics or bans on plastics could be a requirement of hotels and tourist based industries by the government. Eliminating plastics from tourist based industries would rapidly decrease the amount that are put into the environment by tourists each year. Biodegradable plastics that could be made of materials digestible by native creatures, reducing chances of poisoning and choking.
5. Food waste is a big issue when it comes to sustainability and composting can help combat this issue. Composting is a process in which bacteria are cultivated to speed up the breaking down of organic matter, making it perfect for re-using food scraps. Composters (see figure 5) could installed or made mandatory around Uluru and waste that would be shipped to landfill, can be turned into nutrient rich soil used to grow plants in other parts of the country.
1.Transportation around Uluru could do with significant upgrades to make it more environmentally friendly. Currently many of the tourism operators use diesel powered busses to transport tourists which produces co2 and nitrogen oxides which can be harmful when breathed in. To improve this, electric busses and vans could be introduced (see figure 1) as they can receive their energy from renewable sources such as solar and geothermal instead of just fossil fuels, additionally they release a far smaller amount of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.
2. To improve the environmental impact of tourism renewable energy sources such as wind turbines and solar panels could be installed. With large expanses of empty desert surrounding the areas around Uluru there is plenty of space to install solar panels and wind farms (see figure 2), additionally a large battery storage unit could be installed to hold onto excess energy for the nights or to be sold off. Care would have to be taken, when installing large amounts of infrastructure, to make sure that the local ecosystems are not upset.
3. Since rainfall is often low and sparse in the areas around the Uluru-Kata Tjuta national park except for a few days a year when it buckets down (see figure 3), water is a precious resource and more efforts should be made to help conserve it and improve the efficiency of its use. Water can be obtained from groundwater reservoirs through techniques such as boring, by prioritising water conservation to help manage over-consumption we can further reduce the human impact on the natural environment around the Uluru area. Use of grey-water could help in maintaining water supplies as water that has been used for showering or cleaning can be diverted into reservoirs for other uses such as watering, fire-fighting and flushing toilets. Water saving
4. Plastics can be found dumped in large amounts around Uluru (see figure 4) and pose a large threat to the ecosystems around Uluru as it takes a long time to degrade and animals can mistake it for food and die from consuming it. Biodegradable plastics or bans on plastics could be a requirement of hotels and tourist based industries by the government. Eliminating plastics from tourist based industries would rapidly decrease the amount that are put into the environment by tourists each year. Biodegradable plastics that could be made of materials digestible by native creatures, reducing chances of poisoning and choking.
5. Food waste is a big issue when it comes to sustainability and composting can help combat this issue. Composting is a process in which bacteria are cultivated to speed up the breaking down of organic matter, making it perfect for re-using food scraps. Composters (see figure 5) could installed or made mandatory around Uluru and waste that would be shipped to landfill, can be turned into nutrient rich soil used to grow plants in other parts of the country.