What a load of rubbish...

...scary thought.

Why reduce waste?

It is increasingly difficult and expensive to dispose of waste

A hotel guest generates about 1kg (2lb) of waste per night, more than half of it in paper, plastic and cardboard. In addition to negative environmental impact, as landfill capacity diminishes, so the cost of waste disposal becomes more expensive. In the UK, for example, landfilling costs are now £48 per tonne (1.1 tons) compared to £18 a tonne in 2005.

It creates huge environmental problems

Landfilling not only takes up valuable land space but causes air, water and soil pollution, discharging carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane into the atmosphere and chemicals and pesticides into the earth and groundwater. In addition, waste often has to travel long distances to the landfill site, consuming fuel and contributing to greenhouse gas emissions.


To meet tougher government legislation

National and local governments are introducing more stringent requirements with regards to waste disposal to landfill and recycling, and the hotel industry must respond to these high green standards.

It is an inefficient resource use

Often it is more resource-efficient to make new products by recycling rather than starting from scratch. For example, recycling used aluminium tins into new tins requires 95% less energy than processing bauxite ore into aluminium. Many discarded materials, such as furniture and food, also have value.

It makes good business sense

* When supplies are used more efficiently, it saves money on raw materials.
* Income can be generated by selling old equipment and reusing or recycling valuable waste materials.
* Waste disposal costs fall as the amount of waste you produce decreases.

Pat Maher, a former hotel executive now serving as an environmental consultant to the American Hotel and Lodging Association, says that good waste management and recycling is an effective public relations tool, because it shows a dedication to corporate responsibility with environmental policy. “Doing in-room recycling is important because the guest sees that,” he says. Also, by removing paper, plastic and other recyclables from their waste, hotels can trim their disposal bill by as much as 50% — a significant savings in cities where waste removal is expensive. “In New York City, it’s not unusual to have a $100,000-a-year waste bill,” says Maher, “and if you can cut that by $50,000, that’s a big deal to the operator of a hotel.”

Green hotelier - Issue 51, Waste Management