MANAGING ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES

Meaning of Environment
The term environment has been derived from a French word “Environia” means to
surround. Environment can be defined as the surroundings or conditions in which a
person, animal, or plant lives or operates. The term “environment” refers to all elements
of the physical and biological world, as well as the interactions between them.
Environment plays a pre-eminent role in the life cycle of human beings as human life is
highly dependent on the environment.

It refers to both Abiotic (physical or nonliving) and Biotic (living) environment. The word
environment means surroundings, in which organisms live. Environment and the
organisms are two organised and complex components of nature. Environment controls
the life of the organisms including human beings. Human beings interact with the
environment more vigorously than other living beings. Ordinarily environment refers to
the materials and forces that surround the living organism.

Environmental Management
Meaning
Environmental management consists of organizing different environmental
initiatives to address various ecological issues that are affecting the globe.

Environmental management deals with trying to prevent ecological disaster as well as

aiding in environmental crises and trying to find appropriate solutions. Environmental
management looks at land, marine and atmospheric conditions, such as global
warming, marine-life preservation and deforestation.

The main aim of environmental management is to ensure that we leave the planet in a
healthy state for future generations and to help preserve all forms of life, including
marine life and vegetation. To do so, environmental managers need to consider the
carbon footprint of the current human generation and look at ways to minimize any
irreversible damage we are leaving behind. One of the main studies of environmental
managers is investigating possible renewable sources of energy, to ensure there is
enough fossil fuel, which takes millions of years to regenerate, left once our generation
is gone.

In The Context Of Hotels / Business

Environmental management can be considered all of the practices, policies, and

procedures that your facility undertakes in order to comply with local, state and/or
federal environmental legislation. Generally speaking, this means monitoring your
releases of chemicals and other by-products to the local air, water, or waste streams.

Most manufacturers oversee their environmental management by looking at what goes

into their process and what comes out. Anything entering the facility leaves the facility
as either a final product or as a waste/by-product. Environmental management for
business is all about understanding this balance – what goes in must come out.

A hotel is an important part of the service sector. Hotel stands for comfort and high
standard of living. This would mean a high consumption per capita in energy, water
and other resources, big amounts of waste and pollution as well as high hygiene
standards which mean relevant detergent and material use and waste treatment.

Hotel is also an important part in environment protection in tourism activities. If

located in natural resort area and serving customers who enjoy a well preserved
environment, a hotel will find its environmental impact to be crucial.

In order to ensure the smooth operation of a hotel business within its natural
environment with the least possible burdens and preserve the natural wealth and
sustainability of a tourist destination, it is necessary the implementation of actions and
measures that contribute to this end. Environmental management is a broad concept
which covers a wide range of practices, aiming at reducing the negative impact on the
environment caused by corporate products and services. In particular for companies
within the hotel industry, environmental management constitutes an attempt to
sustainable tourism development and an important component of their
corporate social responsibility.

Hotels that commonly adopt environmental management practices are mostly the large
ones or members of multinational chains. This is mainly due to the fact that large hotels
have the needed resources and capabilities for implementing the above practices,
factors that usually are inhibiting for medium and small units that consider the cost of
investing in such practices as an obstacle, ignoring thus the long-term benefits of such
an investment.
Why Environmental Management

Many hotels nowadays apply environmental management practices and try to

communicate them to all interested parties, in order to Improve their reputation, build a
strong brand-name, further enhance their customer loyalty and avoid the negative
effects of regulations related to environmental protection.

According to Bruns (2000) hotels that plan and adopt environmental policies aim at
reducing their operating expenses, such as cost savings by reducing water and energy
consumption. Areas that offer excellent opportunities for cost savings are the
management of water, energy, and wastewater, the reduction of solid waste and the
supply of ecological materials and products.

Bohdanowicz’s research (2005) on European hotels concluded that the most important
incentives for hoteliers, that encourage them to adopt more environmentally friendly
practices are prioritized to
a - the decrease in operating costs derived by their implementation,
b - the customers’ requirements,
C - the improvement of the hotel image,
d - the desire of a company to reduce the burden on the environment

Characteristic / Features of the environmental management

are:

1. It deals with a world affected by humans;

2. It supports sustainable development (economic development that is conducted

without depletion of natural resources.)

3. It demands a multidisciplinary approach ( integrates physical, biological and

information sciences (including ecology, biology, physics, chemistry, plant science,
zoology, mineralogy, oceanography, limnology, soil science, geology and physical
geography, and atmospheric science)

4. It has to integrate different development viewpoints;

5. It concerns short-term and long-term planning as well as from local to global scale.

6. It seeks to integrate natural and social science, policy making and planning.

7. It shows opportunities & also addresses threats & problems .

* SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

“Sustainable development is the development that meets the needs of the

present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own
needs”. Others refer to it as “improving the quality of human life while living
within the carrying of the supporting ecosystem”.

Now, sustainable development, also referred as ‘eco-development’, has been

accepted as a concept of development by all the nations of the world. Agenda 21,
adopted in the UNCED (3-14 June, 1992) at Rio de Janeiro, is a programmer of
action for sustainable development, also known as ‘Rio Declaration’ on
Environment and Development.

Environmental impacts of the hospitality industries-

Positive impacts

● It sometimes educates the public about the local environment and the importance
of protecting the environment, eg the Great Barrier Reef.
● The tourism and hospitality industries often create employment and business
opportunities in an area, contributing to the local economy.
● Hospitality and tourism buildings and venues are being designed and/or
redesigned so that their impact on the environment is reduced and they merge in
with the local environment better.
● Many enterprises are now employing more sustainable practices in order to
promote a green image that appeals to consumers, eg using organic products,
recycling, using less toxic chemicals and using more energy and water-efficient
fittings.

Negative impacts
 ● The presence of buildings and tourists may destroy the local environment and
habitat of native animals.
● The hospitality industry contributes to waste issues, eg food scraps, oil, and
chemical disposal.
● Many hospitality venues are noisy.
● The hospitality and tourism industries consume a lot of energy and water, eg
electricity for air conditioning, refrigeration

Environmental Concerns relating to the Hotel

Industry
The benefits of tourism are often accompanied by many negative environmental and
social impacts, these include revenue leakage from the community,air noise and water
pollution, degradation and depletion of natural resources, biodiversity, loss, labor
issues, encroachment and overbuilding.

The hotel industry forms a large part of the tourism industry. Individually, hotels do not
have a significant negative impact on the environment. Collectively however, they
consume huge amounts of resources. Hotels and other types of accommodation
contribute 2% of the 5% global CO2 emission by the tourism sector. It has been
estimated that 75% of hotels' environmental impacts can be directly related to excessive
consumption of resources and it creates unnecessary operational costs. Three key
areas of environmental impact are energy, "water, and "waste. In destinations that do
not have the necessary infrastructure and systems to manage these impacts, severe
degradation of the environment can occur.

The need to address environmental problems has become an important point of interest
hoteliers and their managers throughout the world. Making a contribution to solving
these problems is often referred to as greening. Becoming more sustainable or
environmentally responsible are also often used to describe achievements in this field.

Larger companies have been criticized as being the main culprit in releasing excess
greenhouse emissions, climate change, environmental devastation, and unfair
treatment of employees. Due to such criticisms and negative publicity, many hotel
businesses have increased the focus on corporate social responsibility. In a world
looking for new models of economic growth and development, fighting climate change
and adopting sustainable management practices is no longer an option, but a condition
for survival and success.
ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES

The three key areas of negative environmental impact of the hotel industry are energy,
water, and waste.

Energy

According to Gössling et. al. (2005), "the average energy consumption per bed per night
in hotels might be in the order of 130 Megajoules. Hotels generally use more energy per
visitor than local residents, as they have energy intensive facilities, such as bars,
restaurants, and pools, and have more spacious rooms. Studies have determined that a
hotel emits an average 20.6 kg of carbon dioxide per night (Gössling et al., 2005).
Excessive energy use is extremely costly and with minor adjustments, it can lead to
massive cost savings.

Waste

A study conducted by Bohdanowicz (2005) also identified that hotels are not only
resource intensive and that waste generation is one of the most visible effects on the
environment. One estimate identified "that an average hotel produces in excess of one
kilogram of waste per guest per day". Hotel and restaurant waste contributes to around
25-30 % of the total waste generated.
Much of the waste created in hotels is generated within the kitchen, housekeeping
department, hotel gardens, offices etc. At present in India, hotel waste generated is
disposed of directly by the hotels through private contractors to the dumping ground. At
these collection spots it gets "mixed "with all the other kinds of dry and wet waste.
Cruise ships in the Caribbean are estimated to produce more than 70,000 tons of waste
each year. Wastewater has polluted seas and lakes surrounding tourist
attractions,damaging the flora and fauna.

Water

Tourists and residents alike require a clean and dependable supply of water for survival
including drinking, cooking and cleansing. However, water is integral to the amenities
usually expected by tourists, such as swimming pools, landscaped gardens, and golf
courses. Water also supports industries such as agriculture that support the tourism
industry. Thus, tourists demand more water than local residents.In recent years golf
tourism has increased in popularity and the number of golf courses has grown rapidly.
Golf courses require an enormous amount of water every day and this can result in
water scarcity.

HOTELS IMPACT ON BIODIVERSITY

Biodiversity is the shortened form of two words ``biological" and "diversity". It refers to
all the variety of life that can be found on Earth (plants, animals, fungi and
microorganisms) as well as to the communities that they form and the habitats in which
they live.

A hotel impacts biodiversity at each stage of its life cycle, from planning through to
closure:

At the planning stage

The most important issue relates to choices about its siting and design of the hotel.
Even the most sustainably operated hotel will have major impacts if it is built in a
biodiversity-sensitive area. Choices of construction materials, source of those materials
and the total physical footprint of the hotel will also influence the magnitude of impact in
the operational stage.

At the construction stage

Impact is determined by the size and location of the area cleared for development, the
choice of construction methods, the sources and amount and type of materials, water
and energy used to build the hotel, the location of temporary camps for construction
workers, inadequate storage facilities for construction materials, the amount of
construction waste that has to be disposed of, and other types of damage such as
surface soil erosion or compaction caused by construction activities or disruption of
natural water flows and drainage patterns.

In the operational stage:

 A hotel’s impact comes mainly from the energy, water, food and other resources that
are consumed in running the hotel, by the solid and liquid wastes it produces, by the
way its grounds are managed, and by the direct impacts of its guests. In addition,
regular renovation and replacement of furniture, appliances and facilities can cause
impacts through purchasing choices and increased waste generation.In marine areas
many tourist activities occur in or around fragile ecosystems. Anchoring,scuba diving,
yachting and cruising are some of the activities that can cause direct-degradation of
marine ecosystems such as coral reefs.

At the closure stage:

A hotel’s impacts come from the disposal of materials removed from the hotel to
refurbish it, convert it for other uses, or demolish it, and from the work involved in these
activities. There may also be some toxic materials, which will require careful handling
and management.

Best Green Practices

The argument over whether "going green" should really be a priority for the hospitality
industry is over. It is a priority and it has to be a priority for a number of reasons,
including customer loyalty, cost savings, and most importantly, environmental impact.

In addition to the social and environmental advantages to reducing energy

consumption,there are financial and customer-service benefits for the hoteliers.

Increasing awareness about the environmental issues has seen hotel guests becoming
more discerning about the environmental credentials of the hotels. Being sustainable
can enhance hotel business reputation and help to attract more customers. The
investment community is increasingly regarding excellence in environmental
management and performance as an indication of the :quality and aptitude of
management in general. Some insurance companies and lenders are beginning to
selectively adjust their rates based on environmental criteria.

A hotel can genuinely play a part in saving the environment, and here are some of
the ways to do it:

1. Install Energy Saving Technologies

It has been estimated that 75% of hotels' environmental impacts can be directly related
to excessive consumption—including energy consumption. Installing energy-efficient
technologies such as appliances, lighting, and heating and cooling systems can make a
difference for both the environment and your hotel's bottom line.

2. Embrace Recycling
Another huge impact the hospitality industry has on the environment is due to the
amount of waste hotels create. It's time to embrace recycling, and we're not just talking
about using cloth napkins instead of paper.

According to the Green Hotels Association, a hotel in Toronto is recycling stained

tablecloths and napkins, chef's aprons, and neckties, while other hotels are making
cloth laundry bags from retired sheets. These are the sort of initiatives that can make a
long term difference when put into practice.

3. Encourage Guests to be Green

Put cards in each room asking guests to turn out the lights when they leave, or reuse
towels if possible. Make recycling bins readily available to guests and be sure that they
are aware of your green programs. When guests see that your hotel is making an effort
to help the environment, they will generally want to do their part as well.

For those hotels looking to do even more, consider loaning or renting bicycles to guests,
or look into installing a bike-sharing station.

4. Start Composting
An increasing number of hotels are realising the benefits of composting food waste
rather than throwing it out. Not only is it a popular and well-known green initiative that
will impress your guests, it can save your hotel money on landscaping since composted
waste can be used as organic fertiliser.

5. Save Water
There are so many ways hotels can save water: Installing toilet tank fill diverters in older
toilets can save about 3/4 of a gallon of water per flush. Transitioning to low water
laundry machines can save up to 80% of hotel water usage. Making water stations
available to guests can discourage the use of bottled water. Follow the examples from
other hotels that have implemented water-saving initiatives.

For example, in California, hotels are responding to drought conditions by making

immediate efforts to conserve more water.

6. Plant a Garden
If you're considering expanding your outdoor offerings for guests, consider adding a
garden rather than simply extending your patio or pool area. The Green Hotels
Association notes that one Pennsylvania property has a 400-foot garden and produces
organically-grown vegetables for its restaurant.

Now you don't have to go that far, but even a small garden (perhaps even on the rooftop
for those of you with city properties) can help counteract your hotel's carbon footprint.
Raised beds can be installed almost anywhere, and placing benches—made from
recycled materials—around a garden can make for a wonderful guest experience.

7. Support Local, Sustainable Businesses

Hotels can help reduce their environmental impact by making smart purchasing choices
as well. A hotel can reduce waste generation by making an effort to only purchase
environmentally-friendly products, and purchasing locally can also reduce the impact on
the environment and benefit the community.

You may also want to consider promoting other environmentally-friendly businesses to

guests, such as local farm-to-table restaurants.

8. Implement Alternative Energy Sources

A number of hotels have switched at least portions of their energy usage to alternative
sources, with great results. The Willard Intercontinental in Washington D.C. is now
running on 100% wind energy power, resulting in a 12% decline in energy consumption,
according to the Green Hotels and Responsible Tourism Initiative. Other hotels,
particularly those in warmer climates, are making use of solar energy for signage and
water heating. And as the market for alternative energy increases, more solutions will
arise.

9. Take Care of Your Linens

We already mentioned recycling linens as a way to limit waste, but what about
extending the life of those linens in the first place? Using laundry processes that limit
the wear and tear on your linens can keep replacement costs, and your hotel's
environmental impact, down.

10. Practice What You Preach

As you implement green initiatives at your hotel, make sure you're keeping all
employees informed about the changes and what they can do to help. Approach these
efforts as a team, and perhaps the green practices will carry over into your staff's
personal lives as well—making an even bigger difference for our planet.
Energy conservation measures for the
Hotel Industry

The 47,000 hotels and motels in the United States spend about 6 percent of their
operating costs on energy each year. The varied nature of the physical facilities and
activities that they host can make energy management especially challenging. Whether
the facility is a large convention hotel, part of a national chain, or a small inn or motel, it
is important that you tailor your energy plan for your business’ individual needs. The
opportunities for enhanced guest comfort, longer equipment life, lower operating costs,
and an improved corporate image make pursuing energy efficiency worthwhile.

According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, hotels and motels generally
use the most electricity for lighting, followed by cooling.

Hotels and motels operate 24 hours per day, hosting guests and offering various
services and amenities. Guest rooms, public lobbies, banquet facilities and restaurants,
lounges, offices, retail outlets, and swimming pools occupy the building or multiple
buildings. Ice machines, vending machines, and game rooms are often scattered
throughout the facilities. Laundries and kitchens are typically located on-site. The variety
of services and amenities provided, and the need to operate around the clock mean that
hotels and motels present abundant opportunities for energy savings.

Hotel and motel buildings may use more or less energy for many reasons, including
variable equipment efficiency and energy management practices, as well as variations
in climate and business activities. Business activity and climate are often correlated with
energy consumption. For example, hotels that have more workers per square foot, more
commercial refrigeration units per square foot, and/or experience more cooling degree
days (CDD) use more energy, on average.

Tips for saving energy and money at your hotel

LIGHTING

Lighting represents almost a quarter of all electricity consumed in a typical hotel, not
including its effect on cooling loads. Lighting retrofits can reduce lighting electricity use
by 50 percent or more, depending on the starting point, and cut cooling energy
requirements by 10 to 20 percent as well. Here are a few basic strategies to make your
lodging facilities more energy efficient:

● Install timers on bathroom heat lamps and consider connecting bathroom

exhaust fans to light switches to reduce excessive operation.

● Replace light bulbs with more efficient ones.

● Use daylighting. Natural daylight has been shown to improve a hotel’s indoor
environment while reducing energy use and peak demand. Whenever possible,
any lighting renovation should start by using daylighting as much as possible and
reducing electric lighting accordingly.

● Update lighting with ENERGY STAR certified CFL and LED bulbs. In back-
room areas such as kitchens and office space, incandescent and T12 fluorescent
lamps can be replaced with CFLs or LEDs and high-performance T8 lamps and
electronic ballasts, a combination that can reduce lighting energy consumption by
35 percent. In guest rooms, CFLs and LEDs are becoming the standard for table,
floor, and reading lamps, and in recessed and vanity lighting in the bathroom.

● Install occupancy sensors. Occupancy sensors detect the motion of room

occupants, turning off lights in unoccupied areas and turning them back on when
movement is detected. Occupancy sensors save energy and also help to reduce
maintenance costs. Turning fluorescents off for 12 hours each day can extend
their expected calendar life by 75 percent, to nearly seven years. In large
restrooms, ceiling-mounted ultrasonic occupancy sensors detect occupants
around partitions and corners. For hallways, a recommended strategy is to use a
combination of scheduled lighting and dimming plus occupancy-sensor controls
after hours. Guests may not like a totally darkened hallway, but dimming lights in
unoccupied hallways and stairwells and then turning them up to full brightness
when someone enters is a sensible approach. Occupancy sensors are also
appropriate for meeting rooms and back rooms.

HEATING AND COOLING

Heating and cooling represent almost 40 percent of the electricity and more than half of
the natural gas used by hotels and motels. Many hotels heat and cool rooms regardless
of whether they are occupied, despite studies having shown that hotel rooms are
unoccupied for 12 hours each day on average.
 ● Link your energy management system (EMS), reservation system, and
automated check-out system together to keep an unsold room ventilated but with
minimal heating or cooling. A sold room can be heated or cooled to a comfortable
temperature an hour before a guest’s scheduled arrival. Once the guests arrive in
the room, they can then adjust the temperature as they like until they check out,
when the HVAC system returns to the unsold mode. An EMS can enhance guest
comfort while reducing energy costs by 35 to 45 percent, for a return on
investment of 50 to 75 percent.

● Seal cracks around windows, doors, and through-the-wall or window type HVAC
units with caulk and weather-strip doors and operable windows.

● Change your air filter regularly. Check your filter every month, especially
during heavy use months (winter and summer). If the filter looks dirty after a
month, change it. At a minimum, change the filter every three months. A dirty
filter will slow down air flow and make the system work harder to keep you warm
or cool—wasting energy.

● Tune up your HVAC equipment yearly. Just like a tune-up for your car can
improve your gas mileage, a yearly tune-up of your heating and cooling system
can improve efficiency and comfort.

● During periods of low occupancy, close down entire wings or floors and
reduce lighting and HVAC systems in these areas.

● Assign guests to adjoining rooms to allow the heating and cooling of occupied
rooms to act as a buffer or insulator.

HOUSEKEEPING, MAINTENANCE, AND MANAGEMENT

● Housekeepers can turn off guest room lights, televisions, heating or cooling,
and radios when rooms are unoccupied.

● Reduce heat gain in the summer and heat loss in the winter by closing
window draperies and shades when exiting guest rooms.

● Educate your housekeeping staff to use natural lighting when making up and
cleaning guest rooms, limiting their use of artificial light.
 ● Repair leaking water fixtures immediately.

● Always buy ENERGY STAR certified products for your business. The
ENERGY STAR mark indicates the most efficient computers, printers, copiers,
televisions, windows, thermostats, ceiling fans, and other appliances and
equipment.

● Use power management features. Place computers (CPU, hard drive, etc.) into
a low-power "sleep mode" after a designated period of inactivity. You can also
purchase a commercial software power management package.

Smart Lighting Technology

Smart energy-management systems are not limited only to HVAC systems. Smart
lighting technology also enables hotels to better understand their energy needs,
automate their consumption and adapt to real-time to changes in occupancy. Some
companies have managed to cut energy costs by 75 percent and improved productivity
by 20 percent by converting to a smart LED lighting system. Just like EMS helps hotels
adjust energy consumption based on real-time climate-control needs, smart lighting
systems also enable properties to set preferred lighting times and track activity to
improve workflow throughout the facility.

Solar Panel Technology

Rising economic superpowers and Australian suburbanites aren’t the only ones
benefiting from the rise and proliferation in solar technology. Hotels of all sizes are
leveraging increasingly affordable photovoltaic technology to reduce their energy costs.
Solar power technology offers businesses a two-fold opportunity: to reduce energy
consumption from the grid and sell excess production back into that grid. Therefore,
hotels can save on their energy costs and subsidize whatever energy consumption they
still have to pay for.

Automatic Shutdown Sockets

A significant energy cost for many hotels is vampire power draw. Also known as
standby power, it refers to the way electric power is consumed by electronic and
electrical appliances while they are switched off (but are designed to draw some power)
or in a standby mode. This is where automatic shutdown sockets come in. These are
simply smart power outlets that use infrared sensors or timers to cut power to any
connected device when the device is not in use or the room is unoccupied. In other
words, they allow hotels to save on powering devices whenever they are not in use.
WHAT IS HVAC SYSTEM?

First and foremost, HVAC stands for heating, ventilation, and air conditioning. This
system provides heating and cooling to residential and commercial buildings. You can
find HVAC systems anywhere from single-family homes to submarines where they
provide the means for environmental comfort. Becoming more and more popular in new
construction, these systems use fresh air from outdoors to provide high indoor air
quality. The V in HVAC, or ventilation, is the process of replacing or exchanging air
within a space. This provides a better quality of air indoors and involves the removal of
moisture, smoke, odors, heat, dust, airborne bacteria, carbon dioxide, and other gases
as well as temperature control and oxygen replenishment.

ENERGY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

This intelligent energy management software control system is designed to reduce

energy consumption, improve the utilization of the system, increase reliability, predict
electrical system performance, and optimize energy usage to reduce cost. Energy
management systems (EMS) are computer-based systems that measure your energy
consumption and look for areas where there might be room to improve your energy
efficiency.

An Environmental Management System (EMS) is a framework that helps an

organization achieve its environmental goals through consistent review, evaluation, and
improvement of its environmental performance. The assumption is that this consistent
review and evaluation will identify opportunities for improving and implementing the
environmental performance of the organization. The EMS itself does not dictate a level
of environmental performance that must be achieved; each organization's EMS is
tailored to its own individual objectives and targets.

Basic EMS
An EMS helps an organization address its regulatory demands in a systematic and cost-
effective manner. This proactive approach can help reduce the risk of non-compliance
and improve health and safety practices for employees and the public. An EMS can also
help address non-regulated issues, such as energy conservation, and can promote
stronger operational control and employee stewardship. Basic Elements of an EMS
include the following:

● Reviewing the organization's environmental goals;

● Analyzing its environmental impacts and legal requirements;
● Setting environmental objectives and targets to reduce environmental impacts
and comply with legal requirements;
● Establishing programs to meet these objectives and targets;
● Monitoring and measuring progress in achieving the objectives;
● Ensuring employees' environmental awareness and competence; and,
● Reviewing progress of the EMS and making improvements.