BACKGROUND ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

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1 INTRODUCING ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT IN THE HOTEL INDUSTRY: A CASE STUDY OF JAMAICA By: Bill Meade and Antonio del Mónaco, Hagler Bailly Services March 2000 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The U.S. Agency for International Development supported much of the initial effort in Jamaica under the Environmental Audits for Sustainable Tourism (EAST) project. The authors acknowledge the critical importance of the USAID support, and (on behalf of the participating hotel and their hotel association) thank USAID for helping realize the potential. Hagler Bailly (USA) provided technical assistance under EAST and continues to offer sustainable tourism services in Jamaica and elsewhere. ABSTRACT The hotel industry in Jamaica, like so many other tropical destinations markets itself on the 3-Ss sea, sun and sand. Hotels ring the north coast of the island in four main resort areas (i.e., Negril, Montego Bay, Ocho Rios and Port Antonio). Located in sensitive coastal ecosystems, most of Jamaica s hotels face the challenge of reducing the environmental impact of their operations while meeting the increasing demand of a growing tourism industry. This paper presents a case study of the introduction of environmental management practices and system in the hotel industry in Jamaica over the past 3 years to provide an answer to the environmental sustainable tourism challenge. It describes the programmatic approach, the results at both the property and industry level, and the lessons learned in replicating the approach to other tropical tourism destinations in the Caribbean and Latin America. Key Words: EMS, sustainable tourism, green hotels, environmental audits, GREEN GLOBE, Jamaica, USAID. BACKGROUND Sustainable Tourism is not a new concept. The definition of Sustainable Tourism was based on sustainable development concepts presented at the Rio Earth Summit in Following the 1992 Summit, the World Travel and Tourism Council (WWTC), together with the World Tourism Organization (WTO) and the Earth Council published Agenda 21 for the Travel and Tourism Industry Towards Environmentally Sustainable Development (WTTC, WTO, Earth Council, 1994). One widely accepted definition for Sustainable Tourism was provided by the WTO in this publication: Sustainable tourism development meets the needs of present tourists and host regions while protecting and enhancing opportunity for the future. It is envisaged as leading to management of all resources in such a way that economic, social, and aesthetic needs can be fulfilled while maintaining cultural integrity, essential ecological processes, biological diversity and life support systems. Defining sustainable tourism was a necessary step to simultaneously achieve environmental protection and economic development objectives as countries like Jamaica became more dependent on tourism, especially with development concentrated along fragile coastal ecosystems. However, setting specific indicators to measure progress towards obtaining these objectives was essential. Increased public environmental awareness, including traveler awareness, particularly in North America and Western Europe, contributed to the development of a host of voluntary industry initiatives and the definition of indicators of environmental

2 performance at the national, regional and international levels (UNEP, 1998). The use of resources (e.g. water, energy, materials, chemicals, etc.) and pollution generation produce the main environmental impacts of the hotel industry. Therefore indicators of sustainability for the hotel industry should include indexes of the consumption of these resources. In addition, resource use constitute a significant portion of hotel operating costs, thus this type of indicators allow hotels to closely monitor expenses associated with the inefficient use of resources, and take corrective measures when necessary. DESCRIPTION OF THE JAMAICAN HOTEL INDUSTRY According to the Jamaican Office of the Prime Ministry for Tourism, in 1998 there were a total of 158 licensed hotels totaling approximately 13,500 rooms. The majority of the hotels are located on the north coast of Jamaica in four areas: Port Antonio, Ocho Rios, Montego Bay, and Negril. Montego Bay has an international airport, while all other areas are served by both intra-island air services. In addition a major highway that will link the four north coast destinations is under construction. Montego Bay and Ocho Rios are also accessible via cruise ship terminals. Small hotels, as is the case throughout the Caribbean, dominate the hotel industry in Jamaica, over three-quarters of all the hotels have less than 100 rooms. Specifically, 84% and 100% of the hotels located in Negril and Port Antonio respectively are smaller than 100 rooms. International chains like Hilton and Wyndham manage some of the larger hotels, yet most are part of Jamaican owned and managed groups like Sandals, Super Clubs and Issa Hotels and Resorts. ENVIRONMENTAL STEWARDSHIP AND THE JAMAICAN HOTEL INDUSTRY Environmental initiatives were underway in Jamaica prior to 1997 many of which continue today. Environmental nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) located in all of the major tourism areas and the Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association (JHTA) pursued many of these initiatives. The JHTA had published a book on environmentally conscious hotel practices. In addition, there was a role model of one hotel that had received numerous Caribbean and international awards for its environmental stewardship. In this context the USAID/Jamaica Strategic Objective was to improve quality of key natural resources in selected areas that were both environmentally and economically significant. For this, USAID designed the Environmental Audits for Sustainable Tourism (EAST) to improve the environmental practices of tourist establishments in coastal resort areas. EAST PROJECT DESCRIPTION In 1997, the Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association, Government of Jamaica, Jamaica Manufacturers Association, and a number of tourism-related public and private-sector industry organizations committed to undertake the EAST project. With funding from USAID, Hagler Bailly implemented a program of environmental audits within a corporate environmental management system aimed at the tourism and hospitality industry in Negril, with a smaller component focused on manufacturing industries in Kingston. The project was to be a model for environmental action and voluntary audits for the private sector, combining promotion and outreach, training, audits, and investment. The activities of the EAST project have included: 1) promotion and awareness campaigns; 2) training and technical

3 assistance; 3) regulatory assistance; and 4) limited financial assistance. In addition, each of the participating hotels was given equipment as part of the demonstration program. Although there were slight variations among the hotels, the following was provided in most cases: - Compact Fluorescent lighting - Photosensors for outdoor lights - Pool pump timers - Low flow showerheads - Faucet aerators - Trigger valves for garden hoses - Water submeters - Closed-vessel composter (1 only) During the period of its implementation, the EAST project has progressed through the phases of demonstration, institutionalization, and now commercialization of environmental management. What was once an isolated pilot program in Negril, has now become a growing market for environmental products and services in Jamaica and elsewhere in the Caribbean. SETTING The awareness was already quite high in Negril (the target area for the EAST project) due primarily to the influx of questionnaires and surveys sent by European tour operators such as Tui and British Airways Holidays. These inquiries were from European markets interested in listing those properties and destinations supporting environmental best policies and management practices. In response, the JHTA Negril Chapter and the largest environmental non-governmental organization in the area Negril Environmental Protection Trust had recently prepared an environmental code of conduct for hotels in the area. Hagler Bailly started with a survey of Negril hoteliers to ask why they chose to become environmentally friendly (Hagler Bailly, 1999 (b)). Results showed a genuine concern about the impact that hotel operations have on the physical environment and an appreciation for how this can be translated into cost savings. Interestingly, the government s enforcement of environmental laws and standards ranked lowest. This told us that hoteliers were interested in measurable results and that they would respond better to incentives than to government intervention. A second question asked what they perceived as the main barriers to achieving an environmentally friendly status, i.e., becoming a green hotel. The responses pointed to the up-front cost of learning how to make the transition, and then to the financing to implement it. FROM ENVIRONMENTAL PROGRAMS TO EMS A number of Jamaican hotels had already earned a reputation for operating in an environmentally responsible manner. That is to say that the hotel is currently composting much of its organic solid wastes, or that guestrooms have towel reuse cards. We call these environmental programs. Environmental programs are typically designed to address a specific environmental problem or issue such as recycling or composting solid waste; or are focused on a specific department such as a linen reuse program in housekeeping and laundry. In some instances, particularly for smaller hotels, environmental programs may involve multiple properties, such as sharing the cost of a bottle crusher for glass recycling. An Environmental Management System (EMS) can be viewed as the integration of multiple environmental programs under a comprehensive organizational system. Hagler Bailly takes the following approach to developing a hotel EMS: First, an assessment is done to determine what improvements can be made, how much they cost, pay back periods, and

4 what types of changes in consumption or waste generation can be expected. The assessment also establishes a baseline against which to measure change. Next, the hotel sets objectives such as reducing the use of potable water for non-potable applications (i.e., irrigation, laundry) or using water more efficiently. Each objective is supported by a set of specific targets, such as introducing towel and linen reuse programs, or installing low-flow showerheads in guest rooms and staff locker rooms by a specific date. Then the hotel identifies in an action plan the individuals or departments responsible for achieving the targets. It is important to remember that significant improvements are made through changes in staff procedures, which normally have little, or no implementation cost. Finally, the hotel must measure and document the impact or results, in terms of changes from the baseline. This provides the necessary feedback to determine whether the EMS is working. An EMS is designed to achieve environmental care in all aspects of operations. The International Standards Organization (ISO) series is an international standard for EMS. Green Globe 21 (U.K.), an affiliate of the World Travel and Tourism Council has developed an EMS standard specifically for the travel and tourism industry - GREEN GLOBE 21 that combines the EMS attributes of ISO with the sustainable tourism principles of Agenda 21. ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT ASSESSMENT Hagler Bailly performed environmental assessments or audits as part of the first step of the EAST Project EMS implementation. Hagler Bailly designed an audit protocol that would apply to the full range of hotel properties, from 15 rooms to over 200 rooms. The audits covered the following areas: energy use, water use, wastewater generation and disposal, solid waste generation and disposal, use of chemicals, and management and staff practices that may produce environmental impacts. A team of three members (composed by energy and environmental engineers) performs the audit during a four to five day period depending on the property size. Members are assigned to each of the following areas: energy, water and hotel operations. During this time the team members meet with the staff to learn more about the hotel operations. In addition, they visit all the hotel facilities, examine equipment and note all staff procedures that may have an impact on resource consumption and waste. The auditing team also examines hotel occupancy, utility bills, consumption reports, and measures energy and water consumption of accessories and other equipment. Finally this information is used to develop the property s resource use indexes and to determine the baseline. This baseline will serve to compare the hotel s environmental performance to the industry average and to develop the recommendations for improvement. ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT ASSESSMENT FINDINGS Summarized below are some of the general findings of the EAST audits (Hagler Bailly, 1999 (a)): Inefficient use of water Leaking toilets accounted for 40% of the daily water use in one 35-room hotel. The cost of the leaks was US$600 per month. In another property, a defective drain valve on a washing machine increased laundry water use by more than 1 million gallons per year equivalent to US$6,000 of wasted water.

5 Inefficient use of energy Loose louvers and doors, and poor insulation force air conditioners to work continuously in order to keep guest rooms cool. This mode of operation increases energy consumption and shortens the air conditioner s service life. Excessive and unnecessary use of chemicals Instead of manually cleaning the kitchen grease trap, a property used 420 gallons/year of sulfuric acid (or Drano) to do the job. This cost of this dangerous habit exceeded US$6,000 per year. Excessive solid waste generation A 25-room property spent US$1,700 per year to purchase large plastic trash bags. Many properties place all yard waste in plastic bags and pay to send this material to the dump. Organic wastes from kitchen and landscaping accounts for up to 50% of a property s solid waste and can be easily composted. Staff not participating in environmental programs In 90% of cases, housekeepers automatically replace all used guest towels in properties that have towel reuse programs. Poor (or no) monitoring Approximately 70% of audited properties had no effective utilities monitoring program. Water and electricity bills are simply received and paid. A 20,000-gallon per day leak went undetected for more than a week because the property didn t check the water meter daily. Hagler Bailly found considerable variation in water use among the 14 properties audited under EAST. To establish a common base for comparison, we calculated each hotel's consumption index in terms of imperial gallons per guest night. The results are shown in Figure 1. The most efficient of the hotels used just one-third the water per guest night of the least efficient Imperial Gallons / Guest Night We also did a similar comparison among audited properties for electricity consumption. The results are shown in Figure 2. Again, the most efficient hotel used only one-quarter of the electricity per guest night of that of the least efficient hotel. kwh / Guest Night Figure 1. Water use in properties audited by EAST 116 FOCUSING ON THE BOTTOM LINE Most of the recommendations made in the EAST Assessment reports have the following characteristics. They have low implementation costs, rapid payback periods, and they are relatively simple and easy to implement. The EAST auditors also found that the greatest environmental and financial benefits can be achieved by improving: frequency of monitoring, particularly of utility bills; management supervision and oversight to Most efficient Average efficient Least efficient Hotel Efficiency Figure 2. Electricity use in properties audited by EAST Most efficient Average efficient Least efficient Hotel Efficiency

6 ensure that programs are operating effectively; staff practices, training, and incentives to implement programs; and preventive and routine maintenance, particularly of energy- and water-using equipment. The breakdown of EAST audit recommendations for a typical hotel is shown in Figure 3. Over three-quarters of the recommendations cost less than US$10/guest room, 10% of the recommendations cost between US$10 50 per guest room and only 5% cost more than US$50 per guestroom. Figure 3. Breakdown of recommendations by implementation cost for an average Jamaican hotel not determined 5% >50 US$ room 5% US$/room 10% <10 US$/room 80% Payback period is defined as the length of time required before the savings from a measure equal the cost to implement the measure. The breakdown of recommendations by payback period for an average Jamaican hotel is shown in Figure 4. Figure 4. Breakdown of recommendations by payback period for an average Jamaican hotel >12 months 13% 2-12 months 33% not determined 5% 0-2 months 49% Another way to break down the EAST audit recommendations is by area of activity (or department) in the hotel. Our auditors identified that the largest, by far, can be found in the maintenance and engineering department. We should note that more often than not, the problems lie in insufficient resources resulting in shortages of staff, parts, and supplies, and unwillingness to pay repair bills to fix a problem properly. Guest rooms (or housekeeping department) and restaurant and bar (or food and beverage department) accounted for 15 and 16 percent of the recommended actions, respectively. This is mainly due to the high degree of energy and water used in these areas. ACTIONS TAKEN BY THE DEMONSTRATION HOTELS Like most demonstration projects, the results are mixed. Half the demonstration small hotels failed to provide data or information on the recommendations implemented or had done little or nothing since the time of the initial assessment mostly due to changes in ownership or management structure. In a follow-up survey, one year later, the results for seven (7) properties that provided data are summarized below: All 7 properties have established programs to regularly read their utility meters and monitor their consumption of water and electricity. Overall, the 7 properties have implemented 292 of the 465 (63%) total EAST audit recommendations, and 4 of the 7 properties have adopted more than 70% of their recommendations. 6 of the 7 properties have created Green Teams who are responsible for implementing and supervising their conservation measures and environmental efforts. It is interesting to note that the monitoring data demonstrates the

7 important role played by the Green Team in the overall success of a property s environmental efforts. In fact, the data shows that the only hotel with no Green Team is also the one that has implemented the fewest audit recommendations (38%), and has experienced the sharpest rise in water use and a steady increase in energy consumption since the time of their audit. 3 of the 7 properties have established comprehensive environmental management systems and have been awarded the GREEN GLOBE certification. ILLUSTRATIVE RESULTS OF INTRODUCING AN EMS AT ONE PROPERTY The water and energy use indices of a hotel are affected by occupancy rates as well as by its conservation efforts and investments in efficient technologies. As a general rule, water and energy indices rise during low occupancy months and drop during high occupancy months. Given the influence of occupancy and conservation efforts on efficiency, the monitoring data collected from the properties should be analyzed in greater detail to ensure that efficiency gains result from improved environmental practices rather than better occupancy rates. This higher scrutiny is particularly important, for example, in the case of a hotel that reduced its water and electricity use indices by more than 25% while simultaneously increasing its occupancy by 16%. This type of analysis is useful even in the tropics where outdoor temperatures varies less than 15 degrees F in coastal areas, because local climate changes also influences the resource use: irrigation water use increases during dry seasons, use of electricity for air-conditioning increases during humid summer months. Figures 5 and 6 show monthly water and electricity use indices for one of the demonstration hotels that went through the entire process from audits, training, equipment installation, and Green Globe certification. The figures show the variation of consumption index at different occupancy levels before and after its involvement with the EAST project. Since the water and electricity use indices are consistently lower after the EAST audit, regardless of the actual occupancy levels, it proves that the property s water and electricity savings are due to improved management practices rather than higher occupancy rates. The area between the before EAST and after EAST trend lines represents the actual water and electricity savings achieved through the property s conservation efforts at any given occupancy level. Electricity use index (kwh per GN) - Water use index (IG per GN) Figure 5. Electricity use index versus occupancy for a hotel before and after EAST Electricity savings resulting from conservation measures Occupancy (GN/month) - Note: 1000 GN/month is ~equivalent to 100% occupancy After EAST Before EAST Figure 6. Water use index versus occupancy for a hotel before and after EAST Water savings resulting from conservation measures ,000 Occupancy (GN/month) - Note: 1,000 GN/month is ~equivalent to 100% occupancy Before EAST After EAST

8 SHARING THE BENEFITS OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT The JHTA and its members have begun to embrace environmental management on a national scale. JHTA has established a standing environment committee and now issues environmental achievement awards at their annual general meeting. JHTA has also established an international exchange program with Canadian Pacific Hotels, a recognized leader among international chains. Two of the EAST demonstration hotels were also awarded the Green Hotel of the Year Award (for small and large property) from the Caribbean Hotel Association and American Express. The hotels have become a frequent stop for regional hotel conferences and international study tours. Based on the exposure of the EAST hotels and their results in reducing operating costs, Jamaican hotels are getting on the bandwagon. Over 50 hotels have sent mangers and supervisors to training courses. An estimated hotels are in some stage of implementing an EMS. The three largest Jamaican-owned hotel chains are all implementing audits and EMS, and are pursuing GREEN GLOBE Certification. Other initiatives underway that will further improve the environmental performance of Jamaican hotels include: 1) a certification program for hotel environmental officers; 2) an EMS club among participating hotels; 3) a Green Tourism webpage to share information among businesses and between businesses and consumers; and 4) an environmental performance database that rates hotels on their adoption of applicable best environmental management practices. LESSONS LEARNED Jamaica, as a case study, presents some interesting lessons learned for other countries interested in introducing environmental management in the hotel industry. 1. Create incentives for voluntary action. EAST had difficulty to identify 15 volunteer properties because there was no clear incentive to participate. Introducing the Green Globe Certification created an incentive for continuos improvement. Annual recertification becomes an incentive to keep the EMS operating. Awards and other recognition programs encourage continuous improvement and unleash the creative instincts (and collective knowledge) of hotel staff. 2. Demonstrate the benefits locally. There was little or no information on the environmental performance of Jamaican hotels prior to EAST. Using specific examples of audit findings and EMS results from nearby hotels was much more powerful than references to experiences in other countries or even destinations within a country. 3. Create environmental champions in industry. The most effective spokespersons for improving environmental management are hoteliers that have gone through the process. Their testimonials are accorded great significance since they understand the attitudes and decision-making criteria of their peers in the industry. Environmental champions are needed at virtually all levels from owners to line staff to overcome barriers to change. 4. Publicize the results. The hotel industry in Jamaica, as in other places, is very conscious about public relations. Coverage of the EAST project, including documentary videos and national and international press coverage, has greatly raised awareness within the industry. 5. Institutionalize the programs. Perhaps the most important lesson is to introduce

9 environmental management as part of an industry-wide initiative. On-site technical assistance needs to be supported by awareness and training activities. Housing the program in a hotel association like JHTA provided an excellent way to expand membership services and help redefine the industry s reputation at home and abroad. REFERENCES Green Globe (1999). Green Globe Standard for the Travel and Tourism Industry (Green Globe 21), London, U.K. Hagler Bailly (1999) (a). Performance Monitoring Report on EAST Project Demonstration Hotels. Arlington, Virginia. Hagler Bailly (1999) (b). Assessment of Voluntary Environmental Rating and Certification Programs. Arlington, Virginia. United Nations Environment Programme (1998), Eco Labels in the Travel Industry. Paris, France. World Tourism Organization (1994). Sustainable Tourism Development: A Guide for Local Planners. Madrid, Spain. World Tourism Organization (1996). What Tourism Managers Need to Know. A Practical Guide to the Development and Use of Indicators of Sustainable Tourism. Madrid, Spain. World Travel and Tourism Council, World Tourism Organization and Earth Council (1994). Agenda 21 for the Travel and Tourism Industry Towards Environmentally Sustainable Development. London, U.K