Five Dubai hotels responsible for using 1.7 million plastic bottles last year are ready to make a change

More than 1.7 million plastic bottles were used by just one hotel group in Dubai last year. JA Resorts & Hotel Groups, which has five properties across the emirate, spent a year tracking its guests' consumption of plastic water bottles in an attempt to become more environmentally friendly. The chain found that of the 1.7 million plastic bottles used, 1.4 million were 500ml. It now says the findings of the report require “urgent attention”. As a result, JA Resorts & Hotels has pledged to replace all plastic water bottles in its rooms and suites with reusable glass bottles, as well as invest Dh1 million into installing new water treatment systems and 40 digital water dispensers, serving fresh, free-of-charge water to hotel guests. The move is the first of several social responsibility initiatives planned for 2019, throughout which JA Resorts & Hotels will proactively tackle other issues such as food wastage and pollution while engaging guests and visitors on the topics, raising awareness and becoming an advocate for change. “We rely on the beauty of nature for our hotels to be successful,” says CEO of JA Resorts & Hotels, Anthony Ross. "Our properties are resorts and hotels on tropical islands in the Indian Ocean, in the incredible Hajar mountains of Hatta and along the pristine beaches of Dubai. It would be remiss if we didn’t do as much as possible to protect these natural attractions and our planet as a whole, for the sake of future generations.”

Five Dubai hotels responsible for using 1.7 million plastic bottles last year are ready to make a change

The hotel group has now pledged to introduce glass bottles and filtered water dispensers