Waste management practices of small hotels in Accra: An application of the waste management hierarchy model

One of the most visible impacts of hotels on the environment is waste. Waste generated by hotels tends to have adverse impacts on the environment. There are, therefore, concerns that the proliferation of small hotels in Accra, the capital city of Ghana, could have adverse impacts on the environment since small hotels have been found to take little action to address their environmental impacts. This paper examines the waste management practices of small hotels in Accra, based on the Waste Management Hierarchy (WMH) model. A survey of 260 managers of small hotels in various parts of Accra was undertaken, employing the simple random sampling method. Results of the study indicate that waste management practices of hotels did not strictly adhere to the WMH model. Waste disposal, prevention and reduction practices were the most frequently undertaken whilst practices relating to reuse, recycling and recovery were less frequently undertaken. It is recommended that the hotels should employ the sufficiency approach by positively influencing the attitudes of employees and guests toward waste prevention and reduction.