Is the hospitality industry doing enough to reduce carbon emissions?

Perhaps most significantly, it appears that the recession has made little impact on the hospitality sector's drive to reduce emissions. Cutting carbon is still a priority for the industry, even in times of financial uncertainty, with 48% of organisations surveyed claiming that the economic downturn has made no difference on their drive to reduce emissions, and 18% claiming that it had, in fact, partially accelerated carbon reduction plans. However, there was some scepticism to the government's push towards a low carbon economy and the subsequent hope that this will create more jobs, with 69% of respondents claiming that such a move would have no specific impact on employment levels within the sector. Interestingly, 7% believed that the move would actually signal a decrease in employment, whilst only 3% thought that a low carbon economy would increase jobs. Despite the publicity surrounding carbon emissions, it seems that an attitude of apathy still prevails within many workplaces throughout the hospitality industry: 51% of respondents claimed that empowering or motivating internal staff to take action was the biggest challenge faced, with funding and resources following in second place, coming from 29% of respondents. As a result, many of the organisations surveyed appear to be taking definite steps to combat this, with 85% claiming that they encouraged staff to become more carbon aware. The industry also appears to be encouraging those outside it to reduce carbon emissions, with 75% of organisations seeking to influence suppliers (an increasingly important area) to become more carbon aware. Organisations were also keen to target customers in their climate change strategies, with 62% seeking to influence customers to become more carbon aware, again showing an understanding within the sector that environmental responsibility extends further than just the company itself. A particularly innovative scheme came from the Greenclose hotel group, who offer a 10% reduction on room rates if customers travel to the hotel by train. Renewable fuel sources are also a crucial tool in cutting carbon, including biodiesel – a fuel typically produced from vegetable oils or alcohol. Unsurprisingly, waste cooking oil was produced by 82% of respondents, with nine organisations stating that their excess oil is taken away to be turned into biodiesel or alternatively recycled. When respondents were asked what they believed their company should be doing to reduce carbon emissions over and above its current activities, responses varied heavily, with no single unifying theme. Ideas included replacing boilers, reducing water use, reducing food waste and increasing training of current employees. John Neame, director of the Low Carbon Innovation Network said: "Carbon reduction is now a major issue for most organisations and our members are united in the view that sharing best practice makes an important contribution in the quest to reduce emissions. The network enables those in the hospitality sector to learn from their counterparts and from the collective experience from across both the public and private sectors." Weblink: www.carbon-innovation.com