Climate Change and Tourism - UNEP - Division of Technology ...

158 Climate Change and Tourism – Responding to Global Challenges
Such societal trends and the socio-cultural adaptation process going along with these are not
easily reversed, and measures to regulate emissions from aviation could face growing resistance
by part of the population in the future. In the light of this, it seems prudent to re-consider the
implications of a common trading system.
An alternative is to include aviation in a trading scheme of its own. In such a system, aviation
would have to reduce its own emission levels, and pressure on airlines would thus increase faster.
The industry is currently opposed to such a system, as it is feared that this will limit the options for
the aviation sector to grow and disrupt economic systems dependent on aviation. However, this
problem could be dealt with by allowing moderate growth rates in the sector, which are reduced
annually until emissions become constant (for instance, by 2015, when no further growth in global
emissions of greenhouse gases is acceptable 707 ). Economically, this would have the consequence
that ticket prices will increase, as only a limited number of air miles can be sold. However, this
would boost the profitability of the aviation sector, as prices for tickets can be increased despite
stable costs of operating flights. At the same time, this will lead to a greater interest by the industry
to invest in more fuel-efficient aircraft and to increase load factors.
12.2 Tourism Establishments
‘Tourism establishments’ include a variety of accommodation businesses, such as hotels, motels, bed
and breakfast, camping grounds, holiday apartments, and second homes, as well as tourist attractions,
such as entertainment facilities, historic buildings, recreational facilities, hospitality and information
centres. The focus in the following will be on the commercial accommodation sector, which is of
greater importance in terms of emissions than tourist attractions.
The accommodation sector represents, globally, approximately 21% of emissions from tourism (see
previous Chapter on emissions). However, initiatives in this sector are important, as many hotels have
considerable options to reduce energy use, which are usually economical. Initiatives such as the use of
renewable energy or participation in certification schemes can have important repercussions for tourist
perceptions of the importance of pro-environmental engagement in the tourism industry. The value of
initiatives at the destination level thus also lies in their symbolic power for involving a larger number of
tourists in environmentally proactive behaviour.
12.2.1 Technological Mitigation Options
Mitigation measures in tourism establishments focus largely on energy efficiency and renewable energy.
The hotel sector is particularly well organised (especially the larger hotel chains) and there are a number
of practical sources of information to help managers implement energy conservation and efficiency
measures. One long-standing institution is the International Hotels Environment Initiative (IHEI),
which was founded in 1992 to support and improve environmental performance by the hotel industry
worldwide. IHEI provides benchmarking tools and publishes a quarterly magazine, the Green Hotelier.
A similarly useful website is the Australian ‘Twinshare: Tourism Accommodation and Environment’.
In the following we will discuss energy conservation and efficiency measures in buildings, and provide
an overview of renewable energy sources for tourist accommodation.
“The first step [for energy saving programs] is to build consumption history so you can see how you
use energy. Understand what your costs are and where they are coming from.”
UNWTO, 9 July 2008
Dan Gilligan, Vice President of Utilities and Administrative Service, Accor 708