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PrideInn Group of Hotels Management team led by its Managing Director Hasnain Noorani (middle),the PrideInn Paradise Beach Resort General Manager Mohamed Omar (left) and Flamingo Beach General Manager Victor Shitaka (right) display their proposed water bottles at their beach grounds in Mombasa at the weekend in an effort to reduce Marine Plastics Pollutions .[Maarufu Mohamed,Standard]
The Pride Inn Group of Hotels has made a first after announcing plans to scrap use of plastic water bottles in efforts aimed at protecting marine eco-system.
Building on the momentum of climate action from the 2018 Conference of Parties, (COP24) in Poland and the Blue Economy Conference in Nairobi, the hotel group has pledged its commitment in reducing the use of single use of plastic especially water bottles within all its 8 hotels in Mombasa and Nairobi effective March 1, 2019.
The hotel is set to launch a campaign dubbed ‘ELIMINATE PLASTICS CAMPAIGN’ mid-February which will focus on encouraging conference delegates and holiday makers to use water from dispensers rather than bottled water.
It will also put emphasis on collecting plastics along the beach, supporting plastic collectors, creating awareness to plastic end users and creating the eliminate plastics movement.
“The bold commitment is our drive to do our part in reducing plastic pollution especially in our ocean. This is our first step in our Going Green Initiative and part of this commitment is to ensure use of plastic bottles within our hotel facilities has reduced and eventually done away with,” said Hasnain Noorani, Pride Inn Group Managing Director.
Researchers estimate that more than 8.3 billion tones of plastic has been produced globally since the early 1950s. About 60% of that plastic has ended up in either a landfill or the natural environment.
“Plastics are killing sea creatures in the Indian Ocean and are an environmental hazard, because plastics find their way deep into the ocean killing many iconic species such as turtles, sharks and whales. This is why we want to sensitize our customers and Kenyans at large to reduce the use of plastic bottles”, added Mr. Noorani.
More than 99% of plastics are produced from chemicals derived from oil, natural gas and coal — all of which are dirty, non-renewable resources. If current trends continue, by 2050 the plastic industry could account for 20% of the world’s total oil consumption.
“We’re seeing some other worrying trends. The rate of plastic production is growing faster than that of any other material. We’ve also seen a shift away from the production of re-usable plastic towards plastics that are meant to be thrown away after a single use”, said Mr. Noorani.
Globally, one million plastic drinking bottles are purchased every minute, while up to 5 trillion single-use plastic bags are used worldwide every year. In total, half of all plastic produced is designed to be used only once — and then thrown away.
Plastic waste is now so ubiquitous in the natural environment that scientists have even suggested it could serve as a geological indicator of the Anthropocene era.
Other notable Coast hotels and resorts that have also announced similar moves includes Mombasa Serena Beach Resort and Spa and the Diani Reef Beach Resort and Spa in Kwale County.
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