Sustainable Tourism Law

236 SUSTAINABLE TOURISM LAW XXII. Compulsory Environmental Contribution XXIII. Recommendations as Legal Provisions to the Malta Travel and Tourism Services Act I. INTRODUCTION The significance of addressing sustainability within the tourism accommodation sector is extremely important, mainly focusing on the holistic aspects relating to the economic, social and environmental future and presenting impacts on the industry, the environment as well as the host communities. These criteria are embodied within Article 3 of the Global Code of Ethics for Tourism for Responsible Tourism published by the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) Guidelines, whereby there are stipulations that all the stakeholders in tourism development should: ( a) safeguard the natural environment; (b) save rare and previous resources, in particular water and energy; (c) reduce pressure from tourism activity on the environment and enhance its beneficial impact on the tourism industry; (d) design and program tourism infrastructures to protect the natural heritage composed of ecosystems and biodiversity; (e) recognize nature tourism and ecotourism to enhance the standing of tourism, provided they respect the natural heritage and local populations ”. In this paper, emphasis will therefore be placed put on the role of the hotel industry and other tourist accommodations 2 . It could be stated that this sector is one of the most salient contributors to the tourism industry, since it provides accommodation for tourists – whether for a short while or a long stay and it may also provide meals, since most hotels offer catering establishments. In this respect, this paper will discuss as to what extent, if at all, the hotel industry: (a) contributes towards sustainable tourism; 2 This paper excludes shared economy accommodation providers – such as those hosting accommodation through Air BnB and Expedia, but restricts itself to hotels, regardless of their classification and also to farmhouses rented to tourists.