Mixed results for
two hotel-based
environmental efforts
While they launched
just nine months apart, the California Green Lodging Program has
quickly grown to more than 85 hotels, but Florida’s counterpart is
finding hotel chains slow to commit to a code of environmental
responsibility.
Part of the problem is that many
Sunshine State properties “have stacks of policies and procedures
they have to go through at the corporate level, and they are just
not participating,” said Peter Goren, environmental manager of the
voluntary Florida Green Lodging Program, which was launched in
March 2004 by the Tallahasse-based Florida Department of
Environmental Protection. “Right now, Disney and the Hilton in
Gainesville are our biggest collaborators. The rest are mostly
smaller inns.”
By contrast, the California program got
its start in June 2003, part of a joint partnership between the
state’s San Diego-based Department of General Services and the
Integrated Waste Manage-ment Board, in an effort to encourage state
employees to stay at environmentally responsible hotels. According
to IWMB, two percent of California’s food waste, about 112,000 tons
per year, comes from the lodging industry. And the state estimates
annual state employee business travel spend at $50 million.
The program’s success is largely a
result of a commitment from the Beverly Hills, Calif.-based Hilton
Hotels Corp. and San Francisco-based Kimpton Hotels &
Restaurants.
Hilton joined the program last October,
immediately committing its 50 properties in the state, including
Hilton and Embassy Suites brands, to undergo certification. Several
already have achieved the distinction. To be certified, hotels must
meet specific operating criteria, such as initiating recycling
programs and using water and energy conservation equipment.
In Florida, where similar criteria
apply, Goren said his department also would like to add standards
such as indoor air quality, in light of the state’s humid climate.
“That means addressing issues like the ongoing maintenance of
air-conditioning systems and carpet cleaning, where mildew and mold
are potentially hazardous,” he noted.
The state’s Environmental Pro-tection
Agency is working with Florida Atlantic University to research
energy consumption and costs to show hotels the savings that can be
achieved by moving to more energy-efficient systems in their
back-of-the-house operations. “Maybe when they see the hard data
and hear about the cost avoidance, they will take notice,” said
Goren.