From NOT A LOT OF PEOPLE KNOW THAT

By Paul Homewood

What would we do without the internet?

For as well as being blessed with sun-kissed paradise islands and pale, white sands, this tourist haven is cursed with mounting evidence of an environmental catastrophe.

The country is portrayed by travel companies as a tropical paradise

To the naked eye, the signs of climate change are almost imperceptible, but government scientists fear the sea level is rising up to 0.9cm a year.

Since 80% of its 1,200 islands are no more than 1m above sea level, within 100 years the Maldives could become uninhabitable.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/3930765.stm

That was 21 years ago.

Since then, twelve new airports have been opened on the Maldives, plus a new passenger terminal at the Velana International Airport.

Velana Int Airport

Tourists numbers have tripled to more than 2 million last year. Tourism now drives 28% of GDP, supported by more than 170 resorts. Last year alone, another seven new resorts were opened.

Far from disappearing beneath the waves, the Maldives are thriving!