Pastoralism and Rangeland Management on the Tibetan Plateau in ...

get their supplies from a fixed wholesale point in Lhasa. Currently most of the
local herders of Tashi Duo Isl<strong>and</strong> have had little education. Consequently, their
innovative abilities <strong>and</strong> adaptability are often poor, with little market awareness
<strong>and</strong> a strong risk consciousness. They are simply engaged in traditional manual
work. It is difficult for them to open up new revenue channels. Therefore, it is
very important for local authorities to provide them with training. We should
instil the advanced concepts of development into the minds of local herders,
train local residents as tour guides <strong>and</strong> help develop new tourism products such
as hiking around the lake, lakeshore visits <strong>and</strong> other ecotourism products.
4.4 With the steady increase of tourist traffic, the ecological
environment of the scenic area is facing a severe test
A healthy ecological environment is the foundation for sustainable development
of tourism in Namtso. Its condition determines the sustainability of tourism
development in pastoral communities. As more <strong>and</strong> more tourists come to the
scenic spots of Namtso, the ecological environment of the area will face varying
negative impacts. Although there has been no large-scale ecological destruction,
there have been a number of ecological <strong>and</strong> environmental pollution
incidents. For instance, the hada – a long piece of silk used for greetings <strong>and</strong>
other ceremonies (in Tibetan: ������ kha btags) – <strong>and</strong> prayer flags (������
dar lcog) left behind on the tops of the mountains by tourists <strong>and</strong> the garbage
left by nomadic pastoralists can cause problems. In the case of hada <strong>and</strong> prayer
flags, they are usually plastic products. Tourists <strong>and</strong> religious pilgrims are
keen on throwing hada <strong>and</strong> hanging prayer flags in high places, some for the
promotion of good will <strong>and</strong> compassion <strong>and</strong> some are just for fun. According to
preliminary investigations, a hada shop on Tashi Duo Isl<strong>and</strong> has sales revenues
of more than 400 Yuan per day in the peak season, selling more than 1,000
hada each day. The tourists sometimes leave the hada in crevices, at mountain
peaks or by the lake, creating one of the major sources of “white garbage” in
the scenic area (as shown in Photo 1). In particular, during the Tibetan Year
of the Horse, the pressure on the environment shot up, with tens of thous<strong>and</strong>s
of religious people buying hada <strong>and</strong> prayer flags (Photo 2). In addition, the
exhaust emissions from tourist vehicles, the garbage <strong>and</strong> emissions from tourist
restaurants <strong>and</strong> hotels, ab<strong>and</strong>oned beverage bottles, food bags <strong>and</strong> other waste
have a certain impact on the various scenic spots.
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