Carribean Tourism Should Brace For Droughts, Stronger Hurricanes, Rising Sea Levels - WP

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SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico -- The Caribbean tourism industry, the lifeblood for many island economies, needs to brace itself for stronger hurricanes, more frequent droughts and rising sea levels resulting from global warming, scientists said Monday. The Caribbean, where more than half the population lives within a mile of the coast, faces some of the greatest risks from climate change, according to the expert panel at the Caribbean Tourism Organization meeting in San Juan.

"The region as a whole is really vulnerable _ it's sand, sun and beaches," said Ulric Trotz, science adviser to the Caribbean Community Climate Change Center in Belize.

Trotz said governments should limit development along eroding coastlines, protect natural resources including reefs and mangroves and take other steps before global warming accelerates in the coming decades, as some experts forecast.

Already, rising ocean temperatures have been blamed for killing off coral that sustains significant marine life and fueling monstrous storms. This year was the first on record when two Category 5 Atlantic hurricanes _ Felix and Dean, which both gained strength in the Caribbean _ made landfall in the same season.

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http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/10/22/AR2007102201628.html