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Standard established to measure carbon footprint of hotel stays
18/6/2012
Hotel carbon measurement initiative is a step towards a global approach to green assessment
The carbon footprint of hotel stays and meetings can now be calculated, thanks to a methodology developed by the International Tourism Partnership (ITP) and the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC). The two organisations worked with 23 international hospitality companies, including such industry names as Marriott International, Premier Inn – Whitbread Group, Hilton Worldwide and Hyatt Corporation.
The hotel carbon measurement initiative (HCMI) working group has devised a unified methodology based on available data to address inconsistencies in hotel companies’ approaches. The methodology, HCMI 1.0, is intended to be a consolidated move to establish a global standardised approach. Informed by the greenhouse gas protocol standards, it has already been tested in hotels and refined with input from KPMG, and has been reviewed by the World Resources Institute.
Whitbread’s environmental progress
News of the development came as Whitbread announced that its sustainability strategy had saved more than 1,500 tonnes of CO2 in 2011 in its hotels, restaurants and coffee shops, while expanding its operations. Its newly published environmental report highlights actions including equipping all existing hotels and restaurants with meters to log electricity, gas and water data, to record consumption and help eliminate waste. The company is also creating greener developments, having opened its tenth such scheme in Camborne, Cornwall, in January.
Whitbread has set itself the target of reducing carbon emissions by 25 percent, and water consumption by 15 percent. It is aiming for zero waste to landfill from direct operating activities by 2017, relative to sales and measured from a 2009 baseline. The company has also published a new target to deliver a 10 percent carbon reduction across supply chain activities by 2017 as part of its latest environment report.
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