The impact of tourism and related activities to a particular ecosystem should be carefully analyzed and documented. The following aspects represent intensity factors which correlate positively with the negative environmental impacts in the tourist areas which include,
• Tourist flow levels (Bateille, 1968)
• Length of stay (Cohen, 1978)
• Activity patterns (Wall and Wright, 1977)
• Degree of facility development (Barbaza, 1970)

Generally, the need for tourism infrastructure grows with increase in the volume of tourism traffic and the intensity of site use (Cohen, 1978). As time passes, the central areas of these intensively developed tourist centers become dramatically transformed and the peripheral staging areas accommodating these persons visiting the core development centers have also changed (Christaller, 1964).

Typically a pattern of ribbon like tourist development emerges which becomes particularly difficult to control. It frequently infringes upon less resilient semi natural and natural areas (Barbaza, 1970). It has resulted in the destruction of certain fragile areas in scores of third world destinations.

In kerala tourist destinations often face increasing pressure from human activity. Until a few decades ago, since independence, one of the major problems encountered in the conservation of nature was that related to illegal poaching. Due to the presence of a lucrative market in certain forest products, the poachers had a field day. Their efforts went on unchecked.

Very recently, the government has stepped in to stop the activities of the poachers. The astronomical prices quoted in international markets for ivory products resulted in a phenomenal increase in poaching for the tusks of elephants and thus a decline in the number of the elephant population was seen. The government initiated measures to ban the trade in these products in the global market. Thus, in recent times there is a significant increase in the numbers of wild elephants.