International Journal of Tourism, Travel and Hospitality Law financed measures”. Different economic aids to the sector made urgent approving this rule2. All the obligations that the law gives to tourism companies make the economic aids to carry them out especially important. After the pertinent parliamentary processing, Law 3/2022 of urgent measures for the sustainability and circularity of tourism in the Balearic Islands was finally approved on the 15th of June, with some changes from the decree law with the same name, but with the same budgets and fundamental aspects. Sustainability and circularity are the key and the basis of both rules. The World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) defines sustainable tourism as: “tourism that takes full account of its current and future economic, social and environmental impacts, addressing the needs of visitors, the industry, the environment and host communities”3. The law in the Balearic Islands takes this definition into account to substantiate the proposed measures. Both rules agree with the essential objective: ordinance, planning, promotion, discipline of tourism and quality in the provision of tourism services. All of this while promoting sustainable and circular tourism, which makes it a ground-breaking law in the sector4. As it is stated in article 1 of Law 3/2022: “…with the goal of advancing towards a regenerative impact of tourist activity in our territory and our society”5. A specific title is also introduced, with measures to move towards a circular economy in order to turn the Balearic Islands into “the first circular destination in the world”6. How will this leap towards circular economy happen? With an innovative approach, the rule states: “with strong support in the optimisation of processes and the new design of products and services, which allows to 2 For this matter, v. FERRER TAPIA (2022), Revista General de Derecho del Turismo, p. 2. 3 Cf. “Making Tourism More Sustainable - A Guide for Policy Makers”. UNEP and WTO, 2005 (https://www.e-unwto.org/doi/book/10.18111/9789284408214). In relation to sustainability, the World Tourism Organisation states that: “Sustainability principles refer to the environmental, economic, and socio-cultural aspects of tourism development, and a suitable balance must be established between these three dimensions to guarantee its long-term sustainability. Thus, sustainable tourism should: 1.- Make optimal use of environmental resources that constitute a key element in tourism development, maintaining essential ecological processes and helping to conserve natural heritage and biodiversity. 2.- Respect the socio-cultural authenticity of host communities, conserve their built and living cultural heritage and traditional values, and contribute to inter-cultural understanding and tolerance. 3.- Ensure viable, long-term economic operations, providing socio-economic benefits to all stakeholders that are fairly distributed, including stable employment and income-earning opportunities and social services to host communities, and contributing to poverty alleviation”. (In: https://www.unwto.org/sustainable-development). V. MORANDI (2018), The UNWTO Draft Convention on the Protection of Tourists and on the Rights and Obligations of Tourism Service Providers, Sustainable Tourism Law, Lisbon, p. 230 and foll. 4 Article 2 (that modifies article 1.1 of the General Tourism Law 8/2012, of 19 July, on Tourism in the Balearic Islands) of Decree Law 3/2022, and the same article of Law 3/2022, of 15 June, agree with this. 5 Regenerative impact is defined by the law in article 93, i) as the “capacity of restoring the caused ecological damage”. 6 Circular economy is defined by the law in article 93, a) as the “model of production and consumption, strongly based on the optimisation of processes and the redesign of products and services, that tries to maintain the functional value of products and materials for as long as possible, through biological and/or technical cycles and with a clear intention of minimising both the pressure on resources and the generation of residues”.
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