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Wet tropics and World Heritage
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Queensland's
wet tropics
- the coastal belt from the Paluma Range, near Townsville, to the Daintree north of Cairns - has been nominated under UNESCO
World Heritage
listing as containing one of the oldest surviving tracts of
rainforest
anywhere on earth. Whether this listing has benefited the region is questionable, however; logging has slowed, but the tourist industry has vigorously exploited the area's status as an untouched wilderness, constantly pushing for more development so that a greater number of visitors can be accommodated. The clearing of mangroves for a marina and resort at Cardwell is a worst-case example; Kuranda's Skyrail project was one of the few cases designed to lessen the ultimate impact (another highway - with more buses - was the alternative). Given the profits to be made, development is inevitable, but it's sadly ironic that a scheme designed to promote the region's unique beauty may accelerate its destruction. Other useful information
for tourists (each section contains more specific sub-sections): |
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Australia,
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