Environmental Performance Reporting For Hotels Tourism Essay Example

environmental coverage ( UN 1992, Rio Declaration, Chapter 30 ) .

Environmental coverage involves the usage of environmental information to unwrap the impact of corporate activities on natural environment to stakeholders of the entity or organisation ( Edu et al. , 2009 ) . Companies use several ways to pass on societal and environmental information to stakeholders. The largely widely used communicating tool remains the one-year study which is an of import papers that helps an organisation concept its ain societal imagination to all stakeholders ( Grey et al. , 1995 ) . The cyberspace is another medium to convey societal and environmental information to stakeholders ( Cooper, 2003 ) . However, Bronn ( 2004 ) , points out that houses have non to the full tapped the potency of the cyberspace as a communicating tool. Other media to unwrap environmental information include employment booklets, advertizements and merchandise labeling information ( Spence and Gray, 2007 ; Fallan and Fallan 2009 ) . Assorted names are used to measure up societal and environmental coverage ; Corporate Reporting ( CR ) , Corporate Social Responsibility Reporting ( CSR ) , ternary underside line coverage, sustainability coverage, environmental coverage ( ER ) among others.

Several guidelines are available to companies who wish to describe individually on the environmental facets of their activities. Within the cordial reception industry, the followers may be considered: Green Globes 21 ( GG21 ) , the Green Globes Canada ( GGC ) , International Hotel Environmental Initiative ( IHEI ) and the Global Reporting Initiative ( GRI ) . It should be noted that environmental coverage is non a standard pattern worldwide and has largely evolved

on a voluntary footing.

Environmental concern is of paramount importance for a little island province like Mauritius which is non endowed with natural resources. Several enterprises, peculiarly the `` Maurice Ile Durable '' undertaking, show that the Mauritanian authorities has laid much accent on sustainable development. Mauritius is one of the rare states which have given a statutory position to CSR. The Finance Act 2009 requires all onshore companies to lend 2 % of their book net income of the predating twelvemonth to a CSR fund ( Ng Ping Chen, 2009 ) .

1.3 Problem Statement

The execution of sustainable patterns within the hotel industry requires dependable tools for the appraisal of hotel environmental public presentation ( Bohdanowicz et al. , 2005 ) . Hotels really frequently need to benchmark their environmental public presentation vis-a-vis other hotels within their classs. However, benchmarking is non easy since there are no criterions or normally accepted guidelines on environmental coverage. A figure of environmental reporting/benchmarking tools for hotels have been developed worldwide ; nevertheless the literature showing these tools is limited ( Bohdanowicz et al. , 2005 ) . Some hotels have adopted their ain environmental coverage system. For illustration, Hilton has adopted the Hilton Environmental Reporting ( HER ) . The assortment of describing patterns gives rise to an obvious benchmarking job and hence there is demand to develop a common model for environmental coverage within the hotel industry. This will enable the comparing of environmental public presentation.

To day of the month, there has been no important geographic expedition of environmental coverage in the Mauritanian hotel industry. Given the importance of the hotel industry to the Mauritanian economic system and

the acceptance of the MID undertaking, an analysis of environmental coverage is of critical importance.

1.4 Aim and Aims

The chief push of this survey is to invent a conceptual model to heighten environmental public presentation coverage within the Mauritanian hotel industry.

The research besides focuses on the undermentioned aims:

To reexamine bing guidelines on environmental coverage.

To analyze the current environmental describing systems of different hotels in Mauritius.

To measure the environmental public presentation coverage of Mauritanian hotels.

To find the difference in environmental coverage between different hotel classs.

To place barriers to environmental public presentation coverage for hotels in Mauritius.

1.5 Research Questions

The survey efforts to reply the undermentioned research inquiries:

What tools do Mauritanian hotels use for environmental coverage?

Is there any difference in the environmental coverage between hotel classs in Mauritius?

What are the possible barriers to environmental coverage for hotels in Mauritius?

1.6 Structure of the Report

This chapter has identified jobs and stated the research intent and inquiries. The 2nd chapter will show a reappraisal of the literature in the undermentioned countries: the construct of sustainability, the touristry industry, environmental coverage in the hotel industry, environmental coverage enterprises ( EMAS, UNEP, GRI, etc ) , environment enfranchisement ( ISO 14001, Green Globe 21 ) and barriers to the acceptance environmental public presentation coverage. Chapter three will show the research methodological analysis, while consequences of the analysis will be presented in Chapter four. Finally, Chapter five will include a treatment of findings, decision and suggest waies for future research.

Chapter Two: Literature Reappraisal

2.1 Tourism Industry Around the universe

The touristry industry is a new development that can be considered as a creditable concern. It deserves academic concern as it has an of import economic system impact

that can impact the economic systems, environments and societies ( Anon, 2008 ) . In 2011, there were over 983 million international tourer reachings worldwide, stand foring a growing of 4.6 % when compared to 940 million in 2010. International touristry grosss grew to US $ 1.03 trillion ( a‚¬740 billion ) in 2011, matching to an addition in existent footings of 3.8 % from 2010 ( Wikipedia, 2012 ) . The travel and touristry ( 2011 ) reported that there are about 260 million of people employed straight or indirectly in the touristry sector which is cardinal for their supports every bit good as to prolong their households. For the little island the tourers industry showed a feasible replacement to basic agribusiness and has improved the international dealingss, concern and cross-cultural apprehension. However, in the other manus the tourer industry convey with it socio-cultural and environmental impacts, accordingly, the pursue in developing the touristry industry must be considered after measuring the direct and indirect impacts of this industry and at the same clip look upon the local economic system and degree of dependance bing upon employment income and foreign exchange earned ( Anon, 2008 ) .

2.2 Tourism Industry in Mauritius

The touristry industry is the 3rd pillar of the Mauritanian economic system behind the Export Processing Zone ( EPZ ) and the sugar sectors. Tourist reaching has expanded later from 103 000 in 1977 to 656 450 in 2000 ( Ministry of touristry, 2011 ) . Harmonizing to a survey carried out by Desai et Al. ( 2012 ) in 2012 it was noted that 925k tourers visited Mauritius in 2011. The Ministry of Finance

( 2011 ) reported that the tourer industry contributes to around 5 % of the Gross Domestic Product ( GDP ) and the growing rate over the past 5 old ages averaged to 5 % .

Figures... : the reaching of tourers around the universe and in Mauritius and its gross

Beginning: Desai et al. , 2012

2.3 Impact of the touristry Industry in Mauritius

Ramjeawon and Beedassy ( 2004 ) highlighted that under the Environment Protection Act ( EPA ) an EIA licence was listed in the first agenda. It aims at supervising the environment related issues particularly with respects to the growing of the touristry industry and other coastal development that can do considerable environment impacts. Hess at al. , 1991 supported that Mauritius being a little island is really limited in countries, limited in natural resources, economises, geological complexness, isolation, vulnerable to natural catastrophes and most of import they have a really delicate ecosystem.

2.4 Sustainable development

The term sustainable development was defined in the Bundtland study in 1987 as the development that meets the demands for the present without compromising the ability of the future coevals to run into their ain demands and aspirations. As describe in `` Our Common Future, WCED, 1987 '' , it requires the publicity of values that encourage ingestion criterions that are within the bounds of the ecologically possible and to which all could moderately draw a bead on to.

Three cardinal constituents to sustainable development are viz. economic growing, societal equity and environmental protection. The economic system exists wholly within society, because all parts of the human economic system require human interaction. Society in bend, exists wholly within the biophysical system. Although

human activity is re-shaping the environment at an ever-increasing rate, society and its economic systems can ne'er be independent of the biophysical environment.

With globalisation, the demand for sustainable development is aboriginal In an attempt to advance sustainable development, the Prime Minister, of the Republic of Mauritius boldly and seasonably proposed the 'Maurice Ile Durable ' ( MID ) construct and in 2008 a MID Fund was set-up to finance activities or undertakings related to sustainable development and covering with countries such as saving of local natural resources, version to climate alteration, salvaging energy, decrease of usage of fossil fuels and researching beginnings of renewable energy among others.

The roar in the tourer sector has brought about major coastal development every bit good as environmental challenges. Our coastal and marine ecosystem are sing force per unit areas from the tourer sector every bit good as our resources such as land, H2O and energy supply ( Mauritius Environment Outlook Report, 2011 ) .The Tourist Sector Strategy Plan 2009-2005 was set up to accomplish sustainable touristry development every bit good as the Hotel Development Strategy which has been developed.Tourism development in little island developing provinces depend largely on coastal resources, hence accent should be put on sustainable touristry.

In Mauritius merely few hotels groups have adopted an environmental direction system based on ISO 14000 and Green Globe Standards. Sugar Beach Resort, Le Coco Beach Hotel and Le Labourdonnais Waterfront Hotel are Green Globe Certified ( Abdallah W. , 2003 ) .

An environment audit can be used to look into the environmental public presentation of the hotels sectors. The informations collected can be quantitative or qualitative such as information about the

sum of resources consumed every bit good as the sum of waste generated ( Bohdanowicz et al. , 2005 ) .