The Hospitality Business of Going Green

By M H Ahssan

The hospitality industry has always taken an active interest in being environment-friendly. We look at how hotels are now exploring new and more sustainable ways to promote themselves as 'green' properties.

While some think of it as a great marketing gimmick, there are a few who take the 'environmental-friendly' tag very seriously. Nevertheless, it is not easy to fool the discerning globetrotter today. According to a recent TripAdvisor survey in the US, 76 per cent of travellers sometimes incorporate green choices in their plans and 27 per cent of respondents intentionally made environment-friendly travel choices in the past year. Fifty-two per cent regularly find it challenging to incorporate green choices into their travel plans and 44 per cent of travellers find that environmental-friendly options are not readily available when travelling.

The industry has undoubtedly come a long way. Most international brands have a detailed mandate towards protecting the environment: InterContinental Hotel Group (IHG) for instance was awarded the Eco-Lodging Award at China Hotel Investment Summit (CHIS) 2009. On the home turf, Vithal Kamat led the way with his The Orchid brand. Today, giants like ITC (with its WelcomEnviron) and the Taj group (with its EARTH initiative) are going the same way.

Going green today is a simpler prospect than it was earlier. Kamat says, "Simple things like recycled paper at one time was a considered an expensive proposition. But today more and more hotels are opting for this as a great option for their stationery. The basic groundwork has already been done."

Minting the 'greens'
For a long time, the definition of a green hotel was a small lodge-like establishment located in distant wilderness. This definition still exists, but one cannot escape evolution. The green evolution in hotels works on two levels - operational and consequential. Hotel operations have been streamlined through better HVAC systems, re-using water from air-conditioners, recycling bio-degradable wastes, and use of energy-efficient lighting. Consequentially, activities like cleanliness drives and campaigns like Earth Hour and World Environment Day allow hotels to create awareness even among guests. It is often more of a CSR initiative. There are also foundations and causes that chains associate with.

Cost benefits and guest preference are top two reasons why hotels opt for 'green' practices. But it is important to see how many are actually looking at it as a sustainable business option. Regular audits show there is a need for system upgradation. Most hotels have audits to check the use of resources in a hotel and it can be done in a few simple steps. Changing processes depends upon how open the company is to the subject of going green and sustainability, but most hoteliers now assure that there is definite space for change and required investment. Niranjan Khatri, GM of ITC's WelcomEnviron, says, "Apart from the reduction in the impact on nature there is a likely payback period of the investment made. In most cases, payback takes a year or two. However a five-year payback period is also acceptable to the management for such an important cause."

The way the investment is used is crucial. More and more hospitality giants are looking at technology to help them save more energy, like the use of key cards to turn on the power in the room. Hotel designs too have evolved and developers, operators and designers together have been overseeing the creation of an energy-efficient façade.

Unfortunately, these investments may be off the list given the difficult times. Daniel Edward Craig, hotelier and author, mentions in his trends for 2009 that eco-friendly initiatives will be tossed into the recycling bin with hotels instead opting for making the guest realise the importance of his/her choices in going green. He mentions, "Having discovered that guests will tolerate plastic recycling bins and off-white tissue paper, hotels will begin to phase out those adorable little bottles of shampoo, blackberry jam and Dijon mustard in favour of eco-friendly (cheaper) bulk offerings."

There are some who agree with Craig saying that the focus may well be on cost-cutting methods than on supporting sustainable travel. There is the pragmatic lot who believes that this is the ideal time to invest in and enhance 'eco-responsible' practices, keeping in view that most such efforts are simple and low-cost initiatives. A point in fact is IHG's Green Engage initiative. Andy Cosslett, IHG CEO, says, "We estimate that the Green Engage process has the potential to drive up to US$ 200 million of savings for our hotel owners and significantly reduce energy consumption."

A look at India's 'green' hotel chains
While Kamat Hotels India took the lead 14 years ago with The Orchid, Kamat says with great pride, "When we started in Mumbai, we were pioneers for Asia; with our work we were able change the mentality and mindset within the hospitality industry. And this we did without cutting corners on luxury. The idea is that luxury need not be insensitive, deluxe need not disturb."

Today apart from providing eco-friendly luxury, KHIL is also closely linked with social activities that spread the same message to their guests. Their green button has been one such popular initiative, where the guest gets redeemable points which he/she may then donate to the group's green cause. KHIL also has a very detailed environmental plan in terms of creating awareness amongst the city-folk through the Tree Environment & Me program. There have been regular plantation drives and water harvesting treatment projects. Other nature related projects include the preservation of Mahim Bird Park in Mumbai with the recent addition of turtle preservation, especially in the Konkan belt.

Global Hyatt Corporation in India has initiated a range of awareness programmes like the 'No Plastic Bag Zone,' special competitions for employees, plantations drives for guests and employees. There are also plans of setting up rainwater harvesting and feasibility study for waste audits.

The Leela Palaces, Hotels & Resorts will soon have all its hotels ISO 14001 certified by end of this year to early next year. It also has very strong plantation drives; Capt Nair has always believed in breathing spaces for the city and the company therefore takes care of a green belt of around 100 acres in Mumbai.

There are also campaigns and cleanliness drives with posters ('Help keep Mumbai Clean and Green') put up around the hotel. This is supported with waste bins and landscaping. The vegetable oil from the kitchen is converted into bio-diesel. At the Kovalam property, massive rainwater harvesting is conducted four months in a year.
The Oberoi Hotels & Resorts has green teams in each of its hotels responsible for energy conservation and green initiatives. The founder chairman of The Group, Rai Bahadur MS Oberoi's birth anniversary is celebrated each year with employees planting saplings.

Marriott International in India and across the world has decided April to be their Environmental Awareness month. The month sees a number of activities benefiting the local area. For instance the Courtyard by Marriott in Chennai was involved in cleaning the Marina Beach. Its current GM, Karan Berry, claims that this is now an annual activity.

ITC WelcomGroup's biggest achievement is ITC Sonar in Kolkata that is the first hotel in the world to get Certified Emission Reductions (CERs) or carbon credits issued by the CDM executive board. It also has a detailed plan which involves the employees, the city and even its supply chain. All this is worked out at the ITC Green Center in Delhi

The Taj Hotels, Resorts and Palaces has the Environment Awareness & Renewal at Taj Hotels (EARTH) programme aimed at energy conservation and sustainable strategies. This initiative has also been certified by the Green Globe.

The people factor
The need now is to make every one across the hotel sensitive about the issue. Mariott International for instance believes in Bill Marriott's philosophy of taking care of guests by taking care of associates. In his blog, he writes about the initiatives the company will implement including use of 50 per cent recycled plastic pillows out of recycled bottles, oxo-biodegradable plastic laundry bags and coreless toilet papers "which should save about 119 trees, three million gallons of water and 21 tons of packaging waste every year".

Marriott International won the Global Tourism Business Award at WTTC this year, working with Conservation International in a bold initiative to put 1.4 million acres of Amazon Rainforest under conservation protection - Marriott's Juma Sustainable Development Reserve Project in the Amazon.

The message of cleaner and greener environment is best spread through the staff and employees who come in direct contact with guests. Along with guests is the supply chain. A lead in this direction has been taken by ITC. Khatri explains that WelcomEnviron has been involved in creating e-brochures to inform suppliers and vendors and it has so far able to train 1,100 suppliers regarding eco-friendly practices, he claims.

But the statistics are still dismal. Certifications like LEEDS, TERI and GRIHA cover the operational and construction aspects of environment consciousness. The Bengaluru Leela property is an ISO 14001 certified hotel. But others like HVS ECO for instance have always received lukewarm response. "The best certification will be your guests ratifying our efforts. When we started out we needed the certification because we needed to prove ourselves to our guests as well as our competition," says Kamat.

According to a poll conducted by TripAdvisor:
25% donated leftover foreign change or currency
63% took public transport instead of renting a car
89% used hotel towels and sheets more than once
Similarly, users were also willing to promote sustainable tourism where:
22% were ready to pay for a carbon offset
38% were ready to visit a disaster area to aid in relief efforts
58% were ready to pay more for an environmentally progressive hotel

Hotels have definitely geared up with their CSR activities with detailed plans involving the staff as well as local NGOs in cleanliness drives, sapling plantation, and competitions to create awareness and make a commitment to the environment. In India, both local and international brands are on a roll.

But how far do initiatives like Wold Environment Day or Earth Hour go in creating an impact? Nikhil Ganju, director (Marketing) for TripAdvisor India, informs, "These kind of celebrations encourage appreciation and allow people to reflect on how to make positive changes for the planet. Families are becoming more conscious of these days and hence more particular about which hotels they choose to stay in."

He adds that according to some of the reviewers on TripAdvisor, guests not only contribute to the environment by being a part of such initiatives but also towards the welfare of the local people and their culture. "In the process, they also feel good about themselves by supporting such a cause," he says. A euphoric thought indeed.