Tourism Waste Management in the European Union: Lessons Learned from Four Popular EU Tourist Destinations

Abstract

From a sustainability perspective, achieving greater efficiencies in environmental waste manage-ment is at the heart of current academic discussion on climate change science. Over the last few decades the tourism industry has developed exponentially and is now considered one of the most dynamic economic activities worldwide. Solid waste is a commonly identified and ever increasing aspect of tourism; the improper management of which can lead to substantial and irreversible di-rect and indirect environmental, economic and social impacts. However, the management of solid waste in tourism dominated island communities is particularly problematic due to climatic condi-tions, topography, financial restraints, planning issues, changing consumption patterns, transient population, and seasonal variations in solid waste quantity and composition. In addition, there is often a lack of momentum to implement new initiatives and programs as stakeholders involved in the design, construction and operation of tourist resorts have conflicts of interest. Using informa-tion gathered from key informant interviews, participation observations and literature reviews, this article appraises current waste management practices in four European tourist destinations, namely: Mallorca, Tenerife, Kefalonia and Rhodes. Findings indicate that, although there are signs of compliance with global best practice, a variety of locally-based measures need to be imple-mented to enhance sustainability.