How big is the 'water footprint' of your holiday?

In the run up to the UN's World Water Day this Sunday (22 March), leading responsible holiday company responsibletravel.com warns of the serious impact that tourism is having on the world's water supply.

Many tourism destinations such as Barcelona and Mexico City are facing water shortages and in developing countries visitors use several times the amount of water each day that a local person would use.

Justin Francis, managing director, responsibletravel.com said:

"We hear a great deal about the need to reduce the carbon footprint of our travels but there's also a real need to consider our water footprint. The tourism industry is a heavy consumer of water and it's no longer enough for hotels to claim they don't wash towels unless guests ask. This is the ultimate responsible tourism bluffer's tactic - they need to go further.

"Swimming pools, golf courses, water parks and landscaped gardens all place extra demand on local water supplies. Tourism's water consumption can lower the water table in destinations, meaning local communities face water shortages as a result. In developing countries, nearby communities may still lack access to clean water supplies themselves, with women walking several hours a day to a water source."

Francis would like to see destinations, tourism providers and travellers working together and taking joint responsibility for the problem:

"It's not enough for hotels to go on wasting water supplies and attempting to compensate by buying a bore hole for the local area - they need to make concerted efforts to reduce and they need the support of local authorities within destinations too. Tourists can also do their bit by considering their water use whilst on holiday.

"I'd like to see hotels of the future offering guests a discount for lower than average water use - this kind of pricing incentivising scheme could help to put a real value on this precious natural resource."

Tips for tourists

Pack your eco habits with you! Just as you would at home, try and remain aware of your water usage and take steps to minimise it where possible.

Ask questions of your hotel or tour operators. Do they measure their water usage? Do they set reduction targets? Do they have dual flush toilets? Are they harvesting rainwater? Do they have a water butt?

Take shorter showers and less baths.

Think about your 'virtual' water use whilst on holiday too - vast amounts of water are used to produce food stuffs as well as textiles such as cotton.

Golf courses can be serious water guzzlers. The average amount of water used by one golf course in Thailand is enough for 60,000 Thai villagers for one day.* If you want to play golf, check with the club as to what steps they are taking to minimise their water usage.

Swimming pools are another water drainer - natural or salt water pools are better. Hotels should also be covering their pool at night to reduce evaporation.

Does your tour operator or hotel work with local communities to ensure access to clean water and sanitation facilities?

Ensure your hotel only washes your towels and bed linen when absolutely necessary. This is just one step amongst many that they should be taking to reduce water usage.

Fill up a reusable bottle with drinkable water in your hotel or guesthouse if you can - not only will you save money by buying less bottled water but you'll also help with the problem of plastic bottle waste. It can be even harder to recycle these in developing countries in particular.

If you come across leaky pipes and dripping taps, report them to hotel staff and keep badgering them until you see it fixed!

Holidays where water consumption is minimized.

Syangboche lodge in Nepal collects and uses rain water so as to minimise the need to use community water resources. It also asks visitors not to throw away mineral water bottles.

An eco lodge in Yucatan, Mexico recycles all its water biologically. The greasy waters of the kitchens and laundry have special filters with sand, gravel, stone and bacteria - this water is used for the garden. Gray waters (showers and waterbasins) are filtered naturally, this water is then used for the gardens. All water comes from a salty well and the owners take great care not to pump too much water out of the well.

At a self-catering cabin in the Dordogne visitors to the cabin are given written info on saving water and using the shower which only holds 5 litres at a time.

An ecolodge in Dominica uses low flow taps, rocks in the toilets for displacement, and grey water passes through a trap in the plug hole, a grease trap outside and then a soakaway.

For more information, visit responsibletravel.com.

*According to worldwatch.org.