Green Housekeeping - In hotels

Eco friendly or environment friendly hotels feature innovative and imaginative programs for conserving natural resources reducing waste, minimizing pollution and maximizing sustainability.

Ecotels follow the three R s of environmental conservation i.e. Reduce, Reuse and Recycle.

Ecotels must practice the following environmental responsibility.

Energy efficiency

Water conservation

Solid waste management

Environmental commitment

Employee education and community devlopement.

Energy efficiency…

This requires a formalized framework to reduce the energy consumption of the hotel.

E.g. The hotel should be designed and constructed in such away that it maximizes use of natural energy than any other form of energy.

The guest and the employees should also be involved in some or other way to make the difference.

Water conservation…

It aims at effective conservation of water in all departments, across all levels, and should be evaluated. The extent to which the water is recycled and reutilized should be considered as an important factor. All employees are expected to be well versed in the water conservation operations of the hotel.

Solid waste management …

The hotel should effectively recycle and manage the solid waste wherever generated.

Proper systems for collection, recycling, and dispose these waste in all its departments are a must for ecotel certification. All employees of the hotel must undergo training in the basic techniques of solid waste management.

Environmental commitment…

The hotel must demonstrate the existence of the formalized commitment  towards the preservation and enhancement of the natural environment. It must through all its operations, activities and written statements communicate its commitment to the environment.

Employee education and Community development…

The employee s should be fully involved in full efforts of the hotel to contribute towards the environment is crucial to the fulfillment of its mission. The hotel should have training modules in its place for employees of level to familiarize them with the eco friendly initiatives of the hotel.

What Is Green Cleaning?

It is a holistic approach that:

· Examines the entire process of cleaning

· Identifies areas which can be improved

· Develops a plan and procedures to implement a program that best suits your facilities needs.

Green Cleaning and environmental responsibility encompasses a broad scope of concerns including: 

·         Products

·         Processes

·         Health & Safety of Occupants

·         Health & Safety of Cleaning Professional

·         Green Cleaning is not just about replacing your current product with a milder cleaner.

Why Go Green?

· Promotes a healthier working environment by improving indoor air quality
·  Enhances safety for Housekeeping staff and Guests
· Improves employee retention - Reduces liability, legal costs, and insurance
· Helps organizations meet green purchasing mandates
· Reduces cleaning and product costs
· Add value and marketability to buildings
· Decreases an organizations environmental and health impacts
· Improves brand equity
· Can be easily implemented without major or costly changes

More sustainable cleaning routines

Choose products that are either compacted or are concentrated and hence use less packaging per job. Not only will this reduce the environmental impact of transportation but innovative concentrated formulas mean will allow you to wash at lower temperatures.
Make sure you select the optimal cleaning product for each cleaning task and spend wisely on efficient cleaning products. This will ensure you get the job done using the least amount of products, time and energy.
Analyse and avoid rework. First time cleaning is essential to minimise waste, particularly in energy intensive operations such as machine dishwashing. Getting the job done first time will pay great dividends for your business.
Achieving employee buy-in is important. Effective and continued education of staff on how to clean sustainably is a must. Even the most sustainable cleaning products, if used incorrectly, will not have the required impact.

Benefits of Green Housekeeping Operations

Greening housekeeping practices are tied with numerous additional benefits such as:

· Extended life cycle of materials and property

· Enhancement of overall guest health and safety

· Reduced environmental impact

· Added marketing opportunities due to positive image and reputation

Pictures are taken from Google for representatinal purposes