Dubai hotels are renowned worldwide for being glitzy and glamorous - but not often for being green.
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That is changing fast as the emirate once famed for proposing underwater hotels and air-conditioned beaches approaches its target of reducing the carbon footprint of its top hotels by almost a fifth.
These days the emirate is taking a far more measured approach to hotel development and some operators are even managing to boost their bottom line by reducing their environmental impact.
Raki Phillips, the area director of sales and marketing at Fairmont Hotels and Resorts, said it had managed to reduce costs by Dh3.5 million (US$952,769) last year by introducing eco-friendly measures.
These included changing the lighting on the outside of the building. This cost Dh1.5m, but the hotel got a return on its investment after one year, Mr Phillips said.
"One thing that is missing is an international ratings system on what's required," he said.
The Dubai Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM) two years ago set a target of reducing the carbon emissions of participating hotels in the emirate by 20 per cent by this year. To date, it says there has been a reduction of 17 per cent.
Hoteliers said changes they had made, partly because of the demands of their own company aims and the targets set by the DTCM, had helped to improve profitability.
Abu Dhabi is also trying to reduce the carbon footprint of its tourism industry as the sector grows.
The emirate last year announced new-build hotels would be awarded a rating for their environmental friendliness.
Industry experts speaking in Abu Dhabi yesterday were also calling for mass tourism to be made sustainable, rather than focusing on a niche "eco-tourism" market.
"Sustainable tourism doesn't have to be niche," said Ruth Holroyd, the group head of sustainability at the Thomas Cook Group. She said the tour operator was working with governments and hotels to try to make mass tourism more sustainable.
There is much debate, however, over who should take responsibility for making the industry more environmentally friendly - whether it should ultimately lie with the Government or tour operators and travel companies.
"What really matters is that people in the travel and tourism industry take responsibility for making the change," said Harold Goodwin, the director of the International Centre for Responsible Tourism.
Ms Holroyd said the Government had to play the main role in leading the charge for sustainable tourism.
"I believe that we have been seen in many international news and media that we are the most constructive destination," said Shaikha Ebrahim Al Mutawa, the director of business development at DTCM, speaking at the Word Green Tourism conference, which began in Abu Dhabi yesterday.
"We have a lot construction for hotels. But … if a visitor steps into Dubai today, they will feel that there are some changes in the hotel [sector]."
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