Chapter 10 - The Hospitality Sector

Abstract

This chapter discusses water conservation opportunities in the hospitality sector which includes hotels, stand-alone restaurants and other food-preparation establishments. The rapid growth in tourism has a significant detrimental impact on the environment. More hotels will need to be built to cater for the increased tourist arrivals. On the other hand, operationally hotels are also large users of water per square area. Therefore, through water conservation, hoteliers can save money and the environment. Some hotel resorts are located in remote areas where town water supply is non-existent and hotels depend on alternate supply sources such as bore water and tankers from nearby sources. Especially for these establishments security of supply is a critical issue and the financial benefits of water conservation are most compelling. Water conservation also provides other benefits, such as reduced infrastructure costs to store water, pumps, and reduced volumes of wastewater that need to be treated and discharged to the sewer or to the environment. In particular, remote locations can incur significant costs. Some large hotel chains participate in the UK-based International Hotel Environmental Initiative (IHEI) to foster sustainable tourism practices within the tourism industry. Organizations such as the Green Hotels Association, the Coalition for Environmentally Responsible Economies (CERES) and the Green Hotels Initiative are spreading the benefits of green hotels. Hotel certification programs such as Green Globe 21 provide hoteliers with marketable certifications. Not withstanding, water consumption per room still remains high in many hotels.