Water consumption patterns of hotels and their response to droughts and public concerns regarding water conservation: The case of the Barcelona hotel industry during the 2007-2008 episode

Abstract

Water supply is a constraining factor in many mass tourist destinations, such as those of the Mediterranean region. Intensifying and increasingly frequent droughts in the context of climate change raise concerns about the sustainability of the tourist sector. Does the hotel sector respond to such concerns, and if yes, how? How do drought episodes affect the adoption of conservation practices and how may adaptive responses differ according to the characteristics of hotel establishments? We survey hotel managers in the Mediterranean city of Barcelona and analyze the annual water consumption of the hotels in the city over a period of 10 years, including four drought events. We find that droughts act as drivers of technological and behavioral change, with the effects being more pronounced in higher star hotels. Drought regulations issued by the government appear to send important signals to the hotel industry, and trigger the adoption of conservation measures. Hotel heterogeneity should be taken into account in future analysis and policy design.

Small and medium ‑sized accommodation managers and opportunities for water conservation

“…Challenging observations by authors such as Bohdanowicz (2006), Chan & Wong (2006), Charara et al (2011), Dinarès & Saurí (2015, Lee et al (2010) or Millar et al (2012), our results do not provide strong support for cost reductions or corporate image enhancements to be the main incentives driving business decisions to save water. This might be explained by external factors, such as the relatively low cost of water for the operation of accommodation establishments in the study area (with the result that the adopted measures require longer to amortize), and by internal factors, including the possibility that the subsequently examined motivations might have a stronger influence on management decisions.…”

“…Most of the demands made by the 18 sampled SMAEs to the environmental authorities nearly exactly match the results obtained by Kasim (2009, p. 720) in 17 interviews with hotel managers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The important role of the government in more actively promoting water conservation has also been noted by other researchers, such as Charara et al (2011), Deyà Tortella andTirado (2011) and Dinarès and Saurí (2015).…”

“…In addition, it should be noted that the sample may be slightly biased in favour of establishments with a stronger commitment to environmental concerns and water conservation. This bias has commonly been observed in other empirical studies on the Spanish hospitality industry (Carmona -Moreno et al, 2004;Céspedes -Lorente et al, 2003;Dinarès & Saurí, 2015). Moreover, a degree of non -response error, which occurs when a minimum response rate of 50% is not achieved, must also be assumed (Fowler Jr, 2013).…”

“…The literature assessing motivations in the tourism industry to adopt greener practices, including water conservation, frequently identifies cost reductions as main drivers -if not the most important driver -with respect to innovation (Bohdanowicz, 2006;Carmona -Moreno, Céspedes -Lorente, & De Burgos -Jiménez, 2004;Céspedes -Lorente, de Burgos -Jiménez, & Álvarez -Gil, 2003;Charara, Cashman, Bonnell, & Gehr, 2011;Claver -Cortés, Molina -Azorín, Pereira -Moliner, & López -Gamero, 2007;Dinarès & Saurí, 2015).…”

“…In Spain, environmental regulations do not incentivize innovation in the hotel sector, as Claver -Cortés et al (2007) and Molina -Azorín et al (2009) argue. In addition, Charara et al (2011), Cole (2014, Dinarès and Saurí (2015) as well as Kelly and Williams (2007) attribute water -use regulation failures to enforcement, power struggles and compliance issues in regions as diverse as Barbados, Bali, Spain and Canada.…”