Sri Lanka’s hotel industry turns towards substitute single use plastics with sustainable products
Sri Lanka’s Colombo City Tourist Hotels Association (CCTHA), which consists of 37 hotels, has reportedly announced its pledge to eliminate the use of single-use plastic to preserve the country’s appeal as a top tourist destination.
Members of the CCTHA have reached an agreement to identify key items within their hotel operations that can be substituted by sustainable products for a unified approach to resolve the need for single-use plastic.
The CCTHA’s sustainability committee has formulated a short and long term plan to ensure that the sustainable tourism efforts are introduced to preserve, converse, and introduce hotel best practices to retain the aesthetic and environmental value to travellers and local communities, the local media has reported.
The committee has pledged to do their utmost to drastically reduce the use of single-use plastic in its Colombo city hotels by March 2020.
Supplier kiosks introducing sustainable products that could substitute single-use products found in hotels were also present at the launch of the plan last month.
Recent surveys have indicated that the southern coastal belt in the country, which is a hotspot for tourism, has become increasingly contaminated by single-use plastic.
CCTHA President and Ramada Colombo Director Operations M. Shanthikumar has been quoted as saying, “I believe that the hospitality sector has an important part to play in preserving our environment. It is alarming to note that the main pollutant debris found in oceans are straws and water bottles. The sustainability committee of the CCTHA has been formed to finding solutions to these key challenges.”
He has further elaborated some measures that have been taken with the formulation of the specialised arm to introduce best practices to hotels.
Renowned environmentalist and Tourist Hotels Association of Sri Lanka (THASL) past President Srilal Miththapala has said, “The annual plastic production in the world is 378 million metric tonnes to meet the demands; there are many reasons why plastic has become an integral part of our lives – it’s durable, inexpensive, retains hygienic conditions, and is lightweight – however, despite these advantages, it’s impossible to destroy, which is why it retains in oceans and environment. Only an estimated 15% of the plastic is recycled – the rest ends on land or oceans and are often ingested by marine life.”
Meanwhile, CCTHA Sustainability Sector Head Linda Giebing has said that the local hotel industry must be aware of the newer demands of the new generation of travellers who opt for environmentally-friendly accommodation.
“The sustainability committee of the CCTHA is committed to drastically reducing the use of single-use plastic in our hotel operations. Our efforts are to identify how we can replace plastic with non-harmful substitutes so that we can attract a new generation of socially and environmentally conscious travellers who look for businesses that align with their values and retain Sri Lanka’s attractiveness as a top travel destination,” Giebing has noted.
OSL take:
The continuous growth recorded by Sri Lanka’s tourism industry has resulted in the expansion of the business/investment opportunities in the country’s leisure and hospitality sectors. Sri Lanka continues to maintain the top slot as the destination of the year in several key global travel publications, resulting in a continuous increase in tourist arrivals to the country. As a result, foreign investments to the tourism industry have recorded an increase. Given the ongoing developments in Sri Lanka’s tourism industry, foreign businesses/investors could explore business/investment opportunities in Sri Lanka’s tourism industry.
| Article Code : | VBS/AT/20191122/Z_5 |