WYNDHAM HOTELS & RESORTS
Halanen adds : “ It ' s critical to track consumption utilities on a monthly basis , baselining it , and understanding how operational changes can be made to help properties reduce emissions .”
Measuring environmental impact of hotels ‘ pivotal ’ Measuring a hotel ’ s impact is pivotal to Wyndham Green : “ If you don ' t know what your impact is now , you can ’ t credibly set a target for carbon reduction .
“ The simplest way for a hotel to baseline their energy consumption is to do it on a month-by-month basis . This will show how much energy they ’ re using to operate the hotel , and will then baseline this over six months and see what it ' s telling them .”
Halanen points out that this is why Wyndham is encouraging its properties to start that measuring process as soon as possible – because “ the more data they have , the better able they are to baseline what they ’ re using and then set strategies in place to reduce consumption ”.
Once a hotel has a picture of its energy consumption , the next step is to reduce energy use , such as by making sure energy efficient light bulbs are used throughout a property , where possible .
“ For such a relatively small change , this will have a big impact on the amount of energy a hotel will consume ,” Halanen says . “ And then there ’ s the use of renewable energy . Hotels can install solar power , or buy electricity from green sources .”
Water conservation is also another crucial sustainability area in many areas across the EMEA region , where water stress is not uncommon . Halanen says water use in bathrooms , public areas , laundries and kitchens must be monitored and regulated . Waste recycling is a further plank of
“ A simple way for a hotel to baseline energy consumption is to measure utility usage on a monthly basis ”
PHILIP HALANEN HEAD OF SOURCING AND SUSTAINABILITY EMEA , WYNDHAM HOTELS & RESORTS
Wyndham Green , as Halanen and his team help hotels recycle , reducing what is sent to landfill .
“ It ’ s about ensuring we continue eliminating items such as single-use plastics , and that we make sure that – when scarce items are used – they are recycled at property level ,” he says .
Recycling programme a challenge in some EMEA regions One challenge when engaging hotels to participate in recycling programmes is the lack of recycling facilities available in certain countries . “ Governments really should enable basic recycling for any hospitality business ,” comments Halanen . “ But if , like us , you ’ re a hotel company with five or six properties within a given city , you can bring people together and create the demand locally for recycling , speaking to the local government authorities or waste businesses to try to create such a service in that area . This way , it ’ s possible to unlock the benefits of having good sustainability schemes in place .”
106 November 2022