Fatal effects of tourism: Natural wonders in Yellowstone Park probably destroyed

As is well known, tourism also has its downsides, which can be observed in Yellowstone National Park, where a body of water was probably destroyed by tourists.

Munich – There are many unique places in the world that can captivate you. For many travelers, Yellowstone National Park in the USA is one of them. It is known, among other things, for its hot springs and geysers, which regularly emit fountains of hot water. The U.S. national parks are real tourist magnets - in 2021 alone, the national park was able to attract more than four million visitors, reports the Tagesschau. But these become a problem for the park, because people leave garbage behind, which affects the delicate ecosystem in Yellowstone. One attraction, the Mornging Glory Pool, is acutely threatened and may even have already been destroyed.

Fatal effects of garbage on Yellowstone National Park: Morning Glory Pool loses its color

Apparently, tourists threw their waste into the Morning Glory Pool in Yellowstone National Park for decades, reports the travel portal travelbook.com. In the meantime, all the waste has turned into a catastrophe for the water.

The Morning Glory Pool was best known for its blue color - which even gave its name to the water, as its color is reminiscent of the flower Morning Glory. The special coloration of the water was caused by bacteria that arise at an average temperature of over 70 degrees Celsius, informs the portal nationalparkstraveler.org. Air that heats up inside the earth and leads into the water via air shafts is responsible for the high temperature. In the meantime, however, there is so much garbage in the water that these air shafts are clogged and the water is therefore getting colder. The color of the Morning Glory Pool therefore changes.

The Morning Glory Pool in Yellowstone National Park has hardly anything left of its eponymous color. © IMAGO

This color change is exacerbated by other organisms that spread in the water at the lower temperatures. These new bacteria tend to be yellow to orange and gradually displace the original, blue bacteria.

Natural wonders in Yellowstone National Park probably destroyed – tourists are probably to blame

However, the problem is far from new. According to the travel portal, the contamination with garbage is said to have been so strong in the 50s that the Morning Glory Pool is said to have been notorious as a garbage can. In the 70s, there were even efforts to drain the water to rid it of garbage and thus restore its original appearance, but the project was unsuccessful.

According to the tourism website visittheusa.de, visitors hope that the waste will be expelled during eruptions and that the body of water will recover. But scientists from the volcanic observatory fear that the Morning Glory Pool will probably never again be the same color as it used to be.

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Effects of tourism not only felt in Yellowstone National Park

Last year, the national park was not only troubled by garbage, severe flooding in Yellowstone led to extremely dangerous conditions, so that even people had to be brought to safety.

Tourists have an impact not only on nature, but also on the inhabitants of popular resort areas. For this reason, red zones have already been set up in some regions of Italy to put a stop to mass tourism. (Kiba)