Tourism impact on water consumption in Mediterranean islands with special reference to Malta

Abstract

The purpose of this dissertation is to study the impact of tourism on the water demand on four islands within the Mediterranean region, with special focus on Malta. The countries under study are Crete, Cyprus, Mallorca and Malta. This dissertation will also identify the factors which influence the demand and supply of water and what can be done to regulate demand for water, particularly in the tourist sector in Malta and in the islands under study. This study is important since tourism can trigger water shortages on the islands with major social and health repercussions. The research hypothesis of this dissertation is that tourist have a higher demand for water per capita when compared to the Maltese residents. To test this hypothesis, questionnaires were distributed among four hundred respondents during two seasons namely summer and winter, in 2012. Results obtained from these surveys confirm the hypothesis and show that tourists water consumption is higher that that of local residents. One implication of this study is that the tourist industry in Malta could take measures to reduce water consumption by tourists. To identify whether such measures exist in the tourism industry fifteen hotels were surveyed. Results show that several hotels in Malta are using different techniques to increase the supply of water or reduce the demand for water. This study suggests that the tourism industry in the four islands under study should develop approaches to balance water demand with water supply, particularly by reducing demand for water.