This Monday, January 17, 2022, the government of the Balearic Islands presented in Madrid its new Autonomous Law of Tourism, especially focused on making the necessary changes to make the islands a more sustainable destination “socially and ecologically”, as explained by President Francina Armengol.
This new law includes several new aspects, but there are two that have been highlighted, the first, the hotel classification, and the second, the government’s requirement that hotels have a circularity plan.
In relation to the new hotel classification, according to information from the government, it will be configured with innovation, digitalization and sustainability criteria. The new classification, which will regulate all tourist accommodations in the Islands, contemplates, among other aspects, the elimination of the use of paper in all hotel services. The pandemic has accelerated digitalization and the use of electronic mechanisms such as QR codes. This will eliminate the use and cost of paper.
For his part, Minister Negueruela said that this new classification “will simplify the current structures in force, since the main objective is to adapt the hotel offer to current times”. To date, the star classification of hotels has been conditioned by customer services and infrastructures, which vary according to the quality of the establishment and determine the price ratios and direct marketing or through touroperation. The Government wants to take advantage of the arrival of the EU Next Generation funds to accelerate the change of the current tourism model.
Regarding the second aspect, the requirement of a circularity plan for food, water, waste and clean energy, these are the first aspects to be considered:
- In the area of food, the use of endangered species will be prohibited and the traceability of fish and seafood of Balearic origin will be established as mandatory.
- Regarding energy, tourist establishments will be obliged to replace fuel oil boilers with natural gas or electric boilers.
- With regard to water, hotels will be obliged to install double push-button systems in toilet cisterns, water-saving devices in sink taps, bathtubs and showers. The use of river water will be a factor to be taken into account in the classification of the establishment. They will also be obliged to measure water consumption.
- In terms of waste, the use of single-use amenities is prohibited, and paper brochures must be replaced by QR codes. Tourist establishments are also obliged to measure the amount of waste generated and control the temperature of the buildings in a comprehensive manner.
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