Rainbow Mountains in Peru
Do we not have a responsibility to always protect nature first?
Only four years ago, this beautiful mountain was entirely covered in snow, making it impossible to witness its beauty.
As the snow melted, likely due to the impact of Climate Change, the rainbow-like appearance was created by the sediment of minerals throughout the area giving the mountain turquoise, lavender, gold, and other colours.⠀
Rainbow Mountain is at an altitude of more than half of Mount Everest where the weather can change rapidly from snow to rain to the blistering sun in the space of an hour.⠀
What considerations ought to be made for the future of this landscape? Turning it into another tourist attraction will only impact the untouched beauty of this place.
Infrastructure to accommodate the influx of tourists has already begun to erode the landscape, a 2.5-mile trek affected by hikers and a swamp now converted into a parking lot.
While this work has also created jobs for the local community, do we not have a responsibility to ALWAYS protect nature first? Must we always turn natural landscapes into a place for human entertainment? ⠀
Its discovery (while wonderful) is only due to the detriment of human activity on our planet. Will this be yet another landscape we destroy? ⠀⠀
Or will we do everything in our power to protect it, its landscape, wildlife, and surrounding communities so we may admire it at a distance for many years to come? ⠀
— Gaia
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