Eco-warriors contest claims that Dubai has 'already gone too far'

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GREEN TALK: Phil Barnett, Grand Hyatt, Dubai.

Despite the UAE having the world’s second highest carbon footprint, real efforts are being taken to increase its responsibility to the planet.

One of the best examples of green hotels in the region is the Al Maha Desert Resort & Spa, recently named "one of the world's best ecotourism models" by National Geographic magazine.

Emirates-owned Al Maha, which nestles within the 225-square kilometre Dubai Desert Conservation Reserve (DDCR) - which protects almost five percent of Dubai's land area under Decree and is home to the only free-roaming herds of protected Arabian Oryx in Dubai.

But, overall, the UAE's second city has attracted criticism from green activists, including the UK's only tourism watchdog, Tourism Concern.

Patricia Barnett, the organisation's director, claims that Dubai has already gone too far in terms of its energy usage and environmental degradation to warrant labelling any of its hotels truly ‘green'.

"The main ambition in Dubai is luxury and wealth, including the Palm and the World, neither of which appear to be concerned about the energy they are using," she says.

"Dubai needs to learn how to utilise its enormous wasted solar power. It's not just about saving gazelles. It's about being in harmony with your indigenous environment and all that incorporates."

Tony Williams, senior vice president, resorts and projects, Emirates Hotels and Resorts, agrees that not enough is made of the city's vast untapped solar energy, but he also vehemently insists that an organisation like Tourism Concern should be encourage the right activities, and highlight the best examples of environment protection in any region.

"There is no use in throwing the baby out with the bathwater. Painting everything with the same brush is counter-productive," he says.

"There are major concerns within this industry about what has happened in the past, and many in it are looking for leadership examples in order to make their own changes.

"Highlighting the best examples in any destination will benefit others, as well as serving as model developments for other destinations and policy-makers to follow. Bad examples exist everywhere, as do good ones."

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