瑪雅島因過度旅游而關(guān)閉

How tourists and fame ruined the most pristine beach in Thailand

泰國最原始的海灘是如何被游客和名望摧毀的?

In the 2000 Leonardo DiCaprio movie “The Beach,” the eponymous Thai destination is a sought-after, stunning blue cove, prized as much for its pristine waters as its secrecy. Few are aware of it; those who are keep its location on the down-low.

2000年萊昂納多·迪卡普里奧的電影《海灘》中，同名的泰國勝地是一個備受追捧、令人驚嘆的藍色海灣，其原始的水域和其神秘性同樣值得珍視。很少有人知道這一點;那些低調(diào)的人獨自珍視著它。

Or at least they’re supposed to.

或者至少他們應該這么做。

Ironically, it is because of this movie that today the situation is quite the opposite. After “The Beach” was released, two decades ago, its real-life inspiration — Maya Bay on the small island of Ko Phi Phi Leh — became overrun with tourists. Up to 5,000 visitors a day swarmed by the boatload on day-trip junkets from the nearby hot spots of Phuket or Koh Phi Phi.

諷刺的是，正是因為這部電影，今天的情況恰恰相反。20年前，《海灘》上映后，它的現(xiàn)實靈感來源——科皮皮勒小島上的瑪雅灣——擠滿了游客。每天有多達5000名游客從附近的普吉島(Phuket)或Koh Phi Phi的熱門景點乘一日游的游艇蜂擁而至。

For a place as small as Maya Bay, that number packed a punch. Last summer, in an attempt to salvage the island’s marine ecosystem and give coral time to recover from decades of destruction, the island was shut to tourists. Originally the closure was to take place only from June to September, during Thailand’s low season. But this summer, Songtam Suksawang, director of Thailand’s National Parks Department, announced that the bay will be off-limits to tourists until at least June 2021.

對于一個像瑪雅灣這樣小的地方，這個數(shù)字很有沖擊力。去年夏天，為了拯救該島的海洋生態(tài)系統(tǒng)，讓珊瑚有時間從數(shù)十年的破壞中恢復過來，該島對游客關(guān)閉了。最初，只是在泰國6月至9月的淡季進行。但今年夏天，泰國國家公園管理局局長松塔姆·蘇薩旺(Songtam Suksawang)宣布，至少在2021年6月之前，該海灣將禁止游客進入。

“We will review again then if it is ready to open to tourists,” Suksawang told CNN Travel. “We need more time to allow nature to fully recover. Our team will reassess the situation every three months.”

蘇薩旺在接受CNN旅游頻道采訪時表示:“我們將再次評估它是否準備向游客開放。”“我們需要更多的時間讓自然完全恢復。我們的團隊將每三個月進行一次重新評估。”

The closure of Maya Bay, one of Thailand’s most famous attractions, follows the temporary closure of the popular Koh Khai islands and Koh Tachai, both also due to overcrowding. “Thanks to its beauty, Koh Tachai has become a popular tourist site for both Thai and foreign tourists,” Tunya Netithammakul, director general of the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plants Conservation, told the Bangkok Post in 2016. “We have to close it to allow the rehabilitation of the environment both on the island and in the sea without being disturbed by tourism activities before the damage is beyond repair.”

在泰國最著名的景點之一瑪雅灣(Maya Bay)關(guān)閉之前，受歡迎的高開島(Koh Khai islands)和高他沙(Koh Tachai)也因過度擁擠而暫時關(guān)閉。泰國國家公園、野生動物和植物保護部部長Tunya Netithammakul在2016年接受《曼谷郵報》采訪時說:“由于它的美麗，Koh Tachai已經(jīng)成為泰國和外國游客的熱門旅游景點。”“我們必須關(guān)閉它，讓島上和海里的環(huán)境得以恢復，而不會受到旅游活動的干擾，以免破壞無法修復。”

About 10,000 corals have been replanted around the Maya Bay area since last year, which had been thriving until Thailand’s recent heat wave. That mercury rise caused the sea temperature to increase, too, resulting in some bleaching. The extra time closed to tourists will give the coral time to recover.

自去年以來，約有1萬珊瑚被重新種植在瑪雅灣附近。在泰國最近的熱浪來襲之前，瑪雅灣地區(qū)一直欣欣向榮。汞的上升也導致了海水溫度的升高，導致了一些白化現(xiàn)象。對游客關(guān)閉的額外時間將給珊瑚恢復的時間。

Suksawang tells CNN Travel that the closure will also allow for expansion of the island’s visitor facilities. Plans include a new floating dock, an eco-focused boardwalk and new washrooms. In addition, an electronic ticketing system is being developed to limit visitor numbers to 1,200 people per day spread over four blocks of time.

蘇薩旺對CNN旅游頻道表示，關(guān)閉也將允許擴大島上的游客設(shè)施。計劃包括一個新的浮船塢，一個以生態(tài)為中心的木板路和新的洗手間。此外，正在開發(fā)一種電子售票系統(tǒng)，將游客數(shù)量限制在每天1200人，分布在四個時間段內(nèi)。

“Our aim is to achieve sustainable tourism,” says Suksawang. “We want to pass on this natural heritage to our next generations.”

“我們的目標是實現(xiàn)旅游業(yè)的可持續(xù)發(fā)展，”蘇薩旺說，“我們想把這一自然遺產(chǎn)傳給我們的下一代。”