Summary
The presentation responds to the results of the research project "Work strategy to obtain and / or maintain the Environmental Guarantee in the categorization process in the hotel facilities of the territory for the period 2010 -2015", has as background the results obtained in the consultancies in environmental management carried out by the professors of the "José Smith Comas" Hotel and Tourism School in Varadero in 2007, 2008 and 2009; These first steps showed the need to organize and streamline this process through different concrete actions that integrate advisory services, training, and student scientific work, to join efforts to certify compliance with the legislation on environmental performance in hotel facilities.
Abstract
The paper responds to the results of the research project «Strategy work to obtain and / or maintain the Environmental Aval categorization process in the territory accommodations for the period 2010 -2015, has as its background the results of the advisory environmental management undertaken by the faculty of the School of Hospitality and Tourism «Jose Smith Comas» Varadero in 2007, 2008 and 2009, these first steps showed the need to organize and streamline this process by different concrete actions serve on the advisory, training and student scientific work to unite efforts to certify compliance in environmental performance in the hotels.
Introduction
The research project "Work strategy to obtain and / or maintain the Environmental Guarantee in the categorization process in the hotel facilities of the territory for the period 2010 -2015", has as background the results obtained in the environmental management consultancies carried out by the professors of the "José Smith Comas" Hotel and Tourism School in Varadero in 2007, 2008 and 2009; These first steps showed the need to organize and streamline this process through different concrete actions that integrate advisory services, training, and student scientific work, to join efforts to certify compliance with the legislation, in environmental performance in hotel facilities that they choose to be categorized."The request for classification by category will be submitted to the Quality Office and will contain the following documents… Endorsement of compliance with current environmental regulations issued by the Ministry of Science, Technology and Environment." (Resolution 36, 2002, p.10)
For the creation of the strategy, a diagnosis was made of the necessary certifications in the classification process held by the hotel facilities of the Ministry of Tourism (MINTUR) in the territory, in order to be able to act firstly with those that had not obtained the Environmental Guarantee that granted by the Ministry of Science, Technology and Environment (CITMA) and subsequently with those who needed to renew it. The 2010 diagnosis confirmed that some facilities did not have the Environmental Guarantee.
The strategy is aimed at all MINTUR hotels in the tourist destination and consists of actions aimed at:
- The consultancies in Environmental Management. Environmental training of managers and workers, through postgraduate courses, courses, workshops, trainings and specialized conferences, according to the needs of the facility, to improve performance in the aspects identified in the environmental diagnosis carried out.. Postgraduate training for specialists representing environmental activity in the facilities. Strengthening of environmental information. Student scientific work tutorial. Follow-up to the Action Plan. Follow-up to the certification obtained.
The strategy has as its center of action the realization of environmental management consultancies, for which it is necessary to plan the work during its realization and as a result of the experience accumulated in this process, the methodological recommendations presented in the presentation were designed.
The hotel facilities where the result was applied include Sandals, Brisas del Caribe, Playa de Oro, Blau Varadero, Velasco, Palma Real, Las Morlas, Arenas Doradas, Playa Caleta, Sol Palmeras, Breezes Bella Costa, Breezes Varadero, Barlovento, Pullman- Dos Mares-Ledo Kawama and Tortuga.
The problem to be solved is the preparation and set-up of the installation to opt for the guarantee of compliance with the environmental legislation in force in the country (Environmental Guarantee), which is granted through the State Environmental Inspection carried out by CITMA. “The State Environmental Inspection is defined as the activity of control, inspection and supervision of compliance with the legal provisions and regulations in force regarding the protection of the environment and the sustainable use of natural resources with a view to evaluating and determining the adoption of pertinent measures to guarantee said compliance. ” (Resolution 130, 1995, p.10). As the most notable results of the application of the methodological recommendations, the organization of the advisory process itself stands out,the integration of the other actions of the strategy with the consultancy, the formation of work teams made up of the advising professor and the specialists of the facilities for the conformation of the environmental diagnosis, the integration of the investigative and labor component, as well as the implementation of the Environmental Education Manual for Tourist Facilities of the Sabana - Camagüey Ecosystem.
The fundamental impacts are from the environmental point of view, since the methodological recommendations help to improve the consultancies and these, in turn, to improve the performance of the facilities by implementing the designed action plans, which include good environmental practices which are they translate into savings of material and natural resources, it contributes to raising the environmental education and information of its workers and managers, in order to work for an increasingly sustainable development. “Organizations of all kinds are increasingly concerned with achieving and demonstrating strong environmental performance by controlling the impact of their activities, products or services on the environment, taking into account their environmental policy and objectives. They do this in the context of increasingly stringent legislation,development of economic policies and other measures to encourage environmental protection and a widespread growth of concern among stakeholders regarding environmental issues, including sustainable development. ” (Cuban Standard ISO 14001, 1998, p.7)
The best performance is certified by obtaining the Environmental Guarantee or its renewal, which has been achieved by most of the facilities mentioned above. This result has been exposed in different events and in the context of the Sabana-Camagüey ecosystem, for its generalization in the facilities; Currently, it constitutes the basis of the work carried out by the Environmental Management group in the facilities of the territory and in 2011 and 2012, it obtained the Relevant Result Award, Mention category of the Tourism Training System (FORMATUR).
Development
The implementation of the consultancies within the research project "Work strategy to obtain and / or maintain the Environmental Guarantee in the categorization process in the hotel facilities of the territory for the period 2010 -2015", has allowed to generalize a group of ways of do that have become regularities that make work easier.
The aspects presented below do not constitute guidelines, they are only methodological recommendations to be taken into account in the environmental management consultancies for hotel facilities, which allow establishing phases during their execution.
Phases for the execution of consultancies in environmental management
In each of the phases of the environmental management consultancies, concrete actions are carried out that differentiate them from each other.
Preparatory phase of the advisory
- Interview with the management of the facility to find out their interest in developing the consultancy. Carrying out the hiring. Forming the work team. Determining responsibilities and tasks.
Consulting development phase
In the development phase, the greatest number of actions envisaged in the consultancy are designed and executed, totally or partially.
1. Review of the documentation that the facility has on environmental performance.
2. Analysis of the results obtained in different visits and controls that cover the environmental issue:
to. Standardization Inspections.
b. CITMA inspections.
c. Public Health Inspections.
3. Evaluation of the environmental conditions of the facility, following the Guide for conducting the State Environmental Inspection of MINTUR hotels and restaurants that are in the process of being categorized, through the agreement between CITMA and MINTUR that includes; the investments necessary to eliminate or mitigate the negative environmental impacts generated by the entity; liquid waste treatment and disposal; solid waste (Cuban Standard 133, 2002), chemicals, fuels, and lubricants; hazardous waste (Resolution 136, 2009); analysis of the refrigeration and air conditioning equipment and the refrigerant gases they use that do not affect the ozone layer; water and energy management (Law 81, 1997), sanitary and hygienic conditions of the facility and its surroundings; green areas,gardening or outdoor areas; analysis of compliance with what is established in the Pool standard (Cuban Standard 441, 2006); fuel and lubricant storage; compliance with the provisions of the Noise standard (Cuban Standard 26, 2007); emissions into the atmosphere; the environmental education, information and training program (Law 81, 1997), and beach and coastal zone management in general (Decree Law 212, 2000), as well as the determination of environmental violations (Decree Law 200, 1999).and management of the beach and the coastal zone in general (Decree Law 212, 2000), as well as the determination of environmental violations (Decree Law 200, 1999).and management of the beach and the coastal zone in general (Decree Law 212, 2000), as well as the determination of environmental violations (Decree Law 200, 1999).
4. Exchange with specialists who attend to different processes in the facility, to corroborate data and evaluate environmental performance in different areas.
5. Information to the board of directors of the problems detected, through a conference on the "Environmental characterization of the facility and compliance with the environmental legislation in force in each case".
6. Design or redesign of the Environmental Policy of the facility and the proposed environmental objectives.
7. Design of the action plan to eliminate or mitigate the problems detected, with the allocation of responsibilities and compliance deadlines.
8. Implementation of the action plan.
9. Formation of the Environmental Education Program of the facility, which allows organizing the training and environmental information processes within the framework of the advisory service and continuing it once it is completed, with the aim of preparing personnel from the different areas to mitigate the deficiencies detected. What it includes: Postgraduate courses, Postgraduate training, courses, trainings, seminars, conferences or workshops depending on the interest of the installation.
10. Implementation of the Environmental Education Program of the facility.
11. Preparation or reworking of the Hazardous Waste Management Plan.
12. Implementation of the Hazardous Waste Management Plan.
13. Preparation of the file to be submitted to CITMA, which includes the completion of the guide for conducting the state environmental inspection (CITMA-MINTUR Agreement) and the Action Plan.
14. Preparation of the Environmental Strategy at the request of the facility.
Consultation completion phase
- Delivery of the file to the management of the facility for approval. Assessment of the implementation of the action plan for the set-up of the facility, to receive the one that evaluates the environmental performance of the facility, by analyzing compliance with legislation current environmental inspection. State Environmental Inspection, carried out by CITMA specialists to grant or not the Environmental Guarantee. Obtaining the assessment of the facility on the conformity or otherwise of the development of the advice.
Monitoring follow-up phase
- If the Environmental Endorsement is not obtained, it allows to check the implementation of the action plan once the assessment has been completed until the facility reaches certification. It makes it possible to follow up on the Environmental Education Program of the facility. It favors the good performance to be maintained environmental of the organization.
Among the results obtained in the consultancies carried out by the group according to the planning of the work strategy, in 2010 it was applied to 6 facilities and 5 of them obtained the Environmental Guarantee, in 2011 it was applied to 4 and reached it 3, for its part in 2012, 2 facilities obtained it, 5 advised, those that have not obtained it remain in the monitoring phase of the execution of the Action Plan.
Brief description of the result
In the advisory process for each of the hotel facilities, the following actions were carried out:
For the Environmental Diagnosis, the guide of the CITMA-MINTUR Agreement was taken into account to obtain the Environmental Guarantee in the Classification process. An Environmental Management System was created, defining the Environmental Policy, objectives, goals and actions for each of the environmental aspects evaluated. “Environmental management system starts from the general management system that includes the organizational structure, planning activities, responsibilities, practices, procedures, processes and resources to develop, implement, carry out, review and maintain environmental policy”. (Cuban Standard ISO 14001, 1998, p.11).
The Environmental Strategies 2010 -2013 of the hotel facilities of the Ministry of Tourism advised were designed; Among the aspects addressed in each of them are: their shared values, general objectives, strategic analysis that led to taking into account the strengths and weaknesses, opportunities and threats of the environment, consequently with the environmental theme and the Mission and the Vision established for the period, the problems stated in the diagnosis and critical examination, so that future strategic projections and objectives can be conceived. In addition, the strategic objectives, period, responsibilities of the main actors, the definition of the functions, and the ways for reaching the strategy were defined.
The Hazardous Waste Management Plan was prepared, according to CITMA Resolution No. 136, 2009. The object, scope, responsibilities, diagnosis of the existing situation in the facility and the compliance schedule for the execution of the actions foreseen in the hazardous waste management plan are reflected.
The Environmental Education Program was designed and, in each case, the general objectives, goals, analysis of the context and of the people who learn, didactic resources, and to achieve a better distribution of actions and to assess their compliance, were formed. dimensions with their specific objectives and definition of activities (Martínez, RM, Huerta, LF & Vázquez, N. A, 2013 p. 24). Dimension one addresses the strengthening of institutional capacity, dimension two on strengthening environmental training of human resources, and the third is aimed at strengthening environmental communication at the facility.
Conclusions
- The proposed methodological recommendations help to organize the process of advising on environmental management in hotel facilities and make it possible to establish a link with the other elements of the designed strategy, with the aim of combining efforts to obtain the Environmental Guarantee As a result of The organization of the consultancy following the methodological guidelines, an installation can have: the updated environmental diagnosis according to the CITMA-MINTUR agreements, an action plan to improve environmental performance, the hazardous waste management plan, the Environmental Education program, as well as the solid waste management plan and the Environmental Strategy if it is of interest to you. The development of environmental training in a hotel facility,can contribute to the establishment of best practices in the management of energy and water, solid residues and hazardous wastes, the coastal zone and biodiversity in general, in short, to show responsible environmental performance through the certification of the compliance with the environmental legislation in force in our country.
Bibliographic references
- Official Gazette of the Republic of Cuba (1997, July 11) Law No. 81 on the Environment. Extraordinary Edition, Year XCV. Number 7. Page 47. Havana. Official Gazette of the Republic of Cuba. (1999, December 23). Decree Law 200. Of environmental violations. Ordinary Edition, Year XCVII Number 83 Page 1339. Havana. Official facet of the Republic of Cuba. (1995, July 24) Resolution No. 130/1995. Regulation for the State Environmental Inspection. Ordinary Edition, Year XCIII Number 21 Page 331. Havana. Ministry of Science, Technology and Environment of the Republic of Cuba. (2009) Resolution 136. Regulations for the comprehensive management of hazardous wastes. Havana.Ministry of Tourism of the Republic of Cuba. (2002) Resolution 36. Regulation of classification of accommodation establishments. Havana.Martínez, RM, Huerta, LF & Vázquez, NA (2013). Environmental education manual for tourist facilities of the Sabana Camagüey ecosystem. Havana: PNUD / GEF Project 51311 National Office for Standardization. (1998) NC ISO 14 001: 1998 Environmental management systems. Specification and guidelines for its use. Havana, National Standardization Office (2002) NC 133: 2002. Urban solid waste storage, collection and transportation hygienic sanitary and environmental requirements. Havana, National Standardization Office (2006) NC 441: 2006. Environmental health swimming pools hygienic sanitary and safety requirements. Havana, National Office for Standardization (2007) NC 26: 2007. Noises in habitable areas. Sanitary hygienic requirements. Havana.Environmental education manual for tourist facilities of the Sabana Camagüey ecosystem. Havana: PNUD / GEF Project 51311 National Office for Standardization. (1998) NC ISO 14 001: 1998 Environmental management systems. Specification and guidelines for its use. Havana, National Standardization Office (2002) NC 133: 2002. Urban solid waste storage, collection and transportation hygienic sanitary and environmental requirements. Havana, National Standardization Office (2006) NC 441: 2006. Environmental health swimming pools hygienic sanitary and safety requirements. Havana, National Office for Standardization (2007) NC 26: 2007. Noises in habitable areas. Sanitary hygienic requirements. Havana.Environmental education manual for tourist facilities of the Sabana Camagüey ecosystem. Havana: PNUD / GEF Project 51311 National Office for Standardization. (1998) NC ISO 14 001: 1998 Environmental management systems. Specification and guidelines for its use. Havana, National Standardization Office (2002) NC 133: 2002. Urban solid waste storage, collection and transportation hygienic sanitary and environmental requirements. Havana, National Standardization Office (2006) NC 441: 2006. Environmental health swimming pools hygienic sanitary and safety requirements. Havana, National Office for Standardization (2007) NC 26: 2007. Noises in habitable areas. Sanitary hygienic requirements. Havana.(1998) NC ISO 14 001: 1998 Environmental management systems. Specification and guidelines for its use. Havana, National Standardization Office (2002) NC 133: 2002. Urban solid waste storage, collection and transportation hygienic sanitary and environmental requirements. Havana, National Standardization Office (2006) NC 441: 2006. Environmental health swimming pools hygienic sanitary and safety requirements. Havana, National Office for Standardization (2007) NC 26: 2007. Noises in habitable areas. Sanitary hygienic requirements. Havana.(1998) NC ISO 14 001: 1998 Environmental management systems. Specification and guidelines for its use. Havana, National Standardization Office (2002) NC 133: 2002. Urban solid waste storage, collection and transportation hygienic sanitary and environmental requirements. Havana, National Standardization Office (2006) NC 441: 2006. Environmental health swimming pools hygienic sanitary and safety requirements. Havana, National Office for Standardization (2007) NC 26: 2007. Noises in habitable areas. Sanitary hygienic requirements. Havana.National Standardization Office (2006) NC 441: 2006. Environmental health swimming pools hygienic sanitary and safety requirements. Havana, National Office for Standardization (2007) NC 26: 2007. Noises in habitable areas. Sanitary hygienic requirements. Havana.National Standardization Office (2006) NC 441: 2006. Environmental health swimming pools hygienic sanitary and safety requirements. Havana, National Office for Standardization (2007) NC 26: 2007. Noises in habitable areas. Sanitary hygienic requirements. Havana.
