Sustainable Tourism Law

LEGAL PROVISIONS PERTAINING TO SUSTAINABLE TOURISM 255 “to advance the economic and social activity of tourism in the national interest, by working with all stakeholders to develop a sustainable industry for current and future generations. Our vision is to achieve a healthy, sustainable and equitable tourism sector for the Maltese Islands, attracting regular inflows of quality visitors throughout the year from a diverse range of source markets, whilst ensuring that those who choose our destination are served with professionalism and care ” 50 . Indeed, it would be opportune for the Malta Travel and Tourism Services Act and its relative Subsidiary Legislations to be updated in order to be in line with current developments, particularly in relation to sustainable criteria, since as seen from this paper, sustainable initiatives tend to be contemplated under various Maltese Laws, and not under one specific legislation. One such proposal would relate to a generic legal provision relating to Environmental Sustainability Standards and Reporting, so that the Malta Tourism Authority would have quantitative and qualitative data in relation to licensed accommodation providers, including those who provide accommodation through internet web- -sites and shared economy. This would also assist the Malta Tourism Authority to monitor the industry’s standards, conformity and relative biodiversity and climate change impacts. The Tourism Authority may also liaise with the National Statistics Office with regard to sustainability, so that the correct monitoring of data would be carried out with respect to the hotel and accommodation sector in relation to consumption and utilization efficiency of water, energy and cooling systems, and other contributors to the business’ carbon footprint in the construction, facilities management and business operations. Since sustainable provisions should provide for the identification of the supply chain of goods and services to the business through procurement processes in construction, management and operations, indicating certified ethical and sustainable supplies, it would also be an excellent initiative if this were enacted into legislation so that the Malta Tourism Authority would be able to monitor and identify the strengths and weaknesses with regard to sustainable impacts in this industry. Furthermore, identifying consumption, recycling and production of solid and fluid wastes within this industry as a separate market could assist in the 50 http://www.mta.com.mt/mta – as accessed on 22 February 2018.