New toolkit to help hotels reduce plastic waste
New, free resources to help hotels reduce plastic waste have been launched by the Travel Foundation and Travelife, as part of the Make Holidays Greener campaign.
The online toolkit, available at http://www.makeholidaysgreener.org.uk, includes simple actions that hotels can take to reduce vastly the costs and time associated with the use and disposal of plastic in everyday hotel operations. The guide includes tips for each department in the property, such as offering reusable glasses in the bathroom and around the pool, and providing straws only on request. The toolkit also contains a training presentation, plus a customer poster, letter and survey.
In addition, a colourful infographic highlights important statistics about the amount of plastics in our oceans, plus how we can all help when on holiday.
It is estimated that there are around 5.25 trillion pieces of plastic floating in our oceans and that by 2025 there will be one tonne of plastic for every three tonnes of fish in the sea. Plastic never biodegrades, but breaks into smaller and smaller pieces which are ingested by fish, turtles and sea birds, contaminate the food chain and wash up on our beaches.
This year, the Make Holidays Greener campaign is focussing on cleaner, greener beaches, urging tourism companies to sign up to organise beach cleans, helping to remove plastic and other litter from beaches. By also tackling the issue at source and reducing the amount of plastic used in hotels and by customers, companies can ensure they minimise their environmental footprint.
To sign up to the Make Holidays Greener campaign and access the free plastics reduction resources go to http://www.makeholidaysgreener.org.uk.
Valere Tjolle
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