Reduction of single-use plastics in the hotel industry in Cyprus

Background information
Cyprus produces around 570,000 tonnes of waste annually,
88% of which goes to landfill due to limited recycling facilities
on the island. At an individual level, 468kg of solid waste is
produced per person in residential areas and 679kg per
person in tourist areas indicating that tourists produce more
waste than the residents of Cyprus. Much of the waste from
tourism is generated within the hotel sector where tourists
spend the bulk of their holiday time.
The challenge
In May 2009, the Travel Foundation in collaboration with the
Cypriot Hotel Industry held a two-day multi-stakeholder
conference which gathered hotel associations, hotels
representatives and other key actors within the sector. The
objective of the conference was to find solutions to reducing
solid waste in the hotel sector. Hoteliers highlighted plastic
waste as a key area to address first due to ongoing tourist
concerns around levels of beach litter.
The strategy
28 hotels from the resorts of Paphos, Protaras and Ayia Napa agreed to take part in the project. Visits were conducted to
each of them to present the project scope, help with the identification of plastic reduction initiatives relevant to each
individual hotel, provide training to hotel staff to implement such initiatives, and develop customer communications
and training plans for use and implementation by hotel staff.
The plastic reduction initiatives included:
 Replacing one-use plastic cups with multi-use durable cups around the pool area;
 Replacing bottled water with drinking water dispensers and durable cups;
 Stopping the use of bin liners in bedrooms and using in bathrooms only;
 Training hotel employees to use plastic liners of the correct size and thickness;
 Changing plastic liners only when soiled;
 Considering alternative options to wrapping glasses in plastic in bathrooms;
 Discontinuing the wrapping of fruit baskets with plastic;
 Using refillable dispensers rather than individual packaging for soap and shampoos;
 Providing straws only when requested from hotel guests;
 Purchasing cleaning materials in bulk.
Supported by:
based on a decision of the German Bundestag
For further information
Contact person: Julie Middleton,
Head of Sustainable Practice, The Travel Foundation
julie.middleton@thetravelfoundation.org.uk
Lessons learned
The project has been very successful in demonstrating that
significant reductions can be made in the disposal of
plastic from hotels with very little financial outlay (most of the
actions were based on the elimination of plastic items and staff
training) while generating important financial savings for the
businesses involved. It has proven that significant results can be
obtained working with hotel chains when senior managers are
fully engaged and prepared to communicate the importance of
the project from the top-down.
One of the most common barriers to engaging hotels
in waste reduction initiatives is proving that the actions
taken will not have a negative impact on their guests’ holiday
experience. For example, it is assumed that all guests will want
their own water bottle or will want to have a straw in their drink.
This project demonstrates that, provided good communication
is in place, changes can be made without impacting negatively
on the customer experience. In fact, such changes can influence
customers’ perceptions of a business in a positive way.