Whistler and its hotels want visitors to cut back on bottled water

A new initiative in Whistler is asking the resort municipality's nearly three million annual visitors to use tap water instead of bottled water.

The municipality and the local hotel association is reminding tourists that Whistler's tap water is perfectly drinkable and that bottled water has real environmental consequences.

"It's just encouraging people to have the right mindset," Saad Hasan, chair of the Hotel Association of Whistler told On The Coast guest host Margaret Gallagher.

"[Guests] are passionate about the environment. It's just, how do you give them that extra leverage to do the right thing?"

Hasan said guests are reminded about the water quality in several ways depending on the hotel.

One way is through information cards on hotel room bedside tables advising guests that the water is safe to drink. Some hotels, he added, are considering affixing decals to faucets with the same information.

Hasan couldn't estimate how many water bottles Whistler guests use but said it's common to see families check in and then immediately buy a flat of water bottles from a store. The municipality and the association, he said, want to change that habit.

Hasan said no stronger actions than the information campaign is planned. The hotel association is not advocating for stronger action against single-use containers, like a ban.

"Banning something may not be a solution," he said. "You have to change the habit of the person. You can ban it in Whistler but then they can buy in Squamish."

Listen to the full story:

With files from CBC Radio One's On The Coast