Environmental Initiatives in Bed and Breakfast Establishments in Canada: Scope and Major Challenges with Implementation

Sustainability in Canadian B&Bs: comparing the east versus west

“…(2005), who found that accommodations with fewer guest rooms are more manageable in terms of waste disposal as opposed to larger ones. Van Haastert and de Grosbois (2010) found that B&Bs in the Niagara region of Canada (central) are energy and water efficient. This finding also aligns with Vernon et al .…”

“…This could also be due to the high failure rate of small‐ and medium‐sized businesses, as the majority of them fail within their first five years (Kirby, 1986; Nilsson et al ., 2005). Van Haastert and de Grosbois (2010) found in their study that the challenges B&B operators faced were that a heavy workload was required, financial difficulties when buying necessary furniture or making renovations, and a lack of knowledge on how to run their own business.…”

“…However, it was determined that smaller B&Bs felt financially restricted and sought additional financial relief, specifically tax breaks, suggesting the governments' programmes are not accessible or known by B&Bs. As demonstrated by Van Haastert and de Grosbois (2010), a low adoption of more expensive environmental initiatives may be made worse by the overall poor financial situation of the business owners in general. According to Schaper and Carlsen (2004), external pressure is another significant factor that triggered many tourism firms to implement sustainable practices.…”

“…As Getz et al . (2004) and Van Haastert and de Grosbois (2010) outline, it is common for small firms and hospitality firms to struggle with long‐term survival and face challenges with major capital investments.…”

“…Although it was identified by Graci and Dodds (2008) that sustainable development in the hotels sector ‘leads to numerous financial, social and environmental benefits now and in the future’, sustainable practices are not widespread in this industry (Anguera et al , 2000; Pryce, 2001). Few studies have considered the activities of B&Bs with regard to sustainable tourism practices even though these small businesses account for a large part of the lodging industry (Berry and Ladkin, 1997; Van Haastert and de Grosbois, 2010). Together B&Bs can have more influence than some of the bigger chains because these operations do not perceive ‘their impact and potential contribution as insignificant’ (Tzschentke et al , 2008, p. 167).…”