A comparative study of waste management practices in pre-COVID and during-COVID scenarios: an overview of the hotel industry

ABSTRACT

The COVID-19 pandemic has been challenging for the hotel industry, with rooms being converted into quarantine centres and leading to an increase in waste volume and composition. With frequent lockdowns and stringent guidelines by governments on social distancing, 60% of hotels converted 10% of their rooms into quarantine facilities, which drastically changed the composition of hotel waste (JLL, 2020). This waste may lead to environmental degradation if handled inappropriately. The primary objective of this study is to identify, compare and highlight the challenges faced in waste management practices in two different circumstances, namely pre-COVID and during-COVID, in the hotel industry. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire put to hoteliers in selected hotels in India. A total of 61 responses were recorded out of 100 respondents. Descriptive analysis indicated new practices in hotel housekeeping such as use of single-use PPE kits, arrangement of separate zones for disposing of medical waste and digitalization of services. Another interesting finding of the research is the aggravation of single-use plastic in the form of disposable crockery, cutlery and packaging of PPE kits. Lastly, the study showed an increase in operational costs and highlighted innovative procedures in existing waste management disposal practices and suggested new practices that will be of great significance for dealing with similar episodes in the future.