Over 90% of 20,000 hotels surveyed worldwide have a plan to cut greenhouse gas emissions, according to a joint report from the World Travel and Tourism Council and Greenview, published on Tuesday.
However, other data suggest a gap between plans and action. Only 6.1% of the hotels surveyed use renewable sources for their energy needs, which includes electricity, heating and air conditioning.
Both leading international chains and local hotels took part in the survey. Here are five key takeaways from the report.
1. Rise in hotel emission tracking
The survey, which runs every two years, shows a rise in the number of hotels tracking greenhouse gas emissions.
The figure grew from 43% in 2022 to over 90% this year.
Hotel emissions typically include energy use, vehicles, food, purchased goods, waste and staff travel.
Over 90% of hotels are tracking emissions at least once a month and have plans to reduce them.
2. Limited use of renewable energy
Most greenhouse gas emissions from hotels are generated through fossil-fuel based energy use.
Despite plans to reduce emissions, most hotels do not use renewable energy for their electricity needs and still rely on fossil fuels.
Of the hotels that took part in the report, around 6% use renewable energy sources.
Only 1.6% rely on renewable energy sources for more than 95% of their energy consumption.
This may be due to limited access to renewables in some countries.
However, the report notes that some hotels, especially luxury conference and resort hotels, are increasingly generating their own renewable energy on site.
This is often driven by their ability to buy and install solar panels, wind power and other clean energy sources.
3. Green Vehicle Use
Hotels emit greenhouse gases through their own vehicle fleets, used for guest transfers and other operations.
Around 11% of the hotels which took part offer green vehicles for guest transfers.
These include electric, hybrid and biofuelled vehicles.
Nearly half of the luxury and resort hotels that took part offer guests green vehicles for transfers.
4. Carbon Offsets
Hotels often buy carbon credits to offset their emissions.
Carbon offset projects like reforestation, help absorb carbon from the atmosphere as trees grow.
Private companies sell the units of sucked up emissions as carbon credits. While some carbon credit projects have faced controversy for inaccurate figures, higher quality projects tend to be more expensive.
There are two ways that hotels tend to use carbon credits, according to the report.
To make up for their own emissions or to offer guests the option to buy carbon credits to offset their stay.
Almost 90% of hotels offer guests this option, but only 5% of hotels purchase carbon credits to compensate for their own emissions.
5. Other Emission Saving Figures
Another way hotels address emissions is by rolling out programmes that reduce resource use, such as towel and linen reuse.
The report found that over 90% of hotels have a towel reuse programme in place, only changing towels when a guest asks for it.
This option can save electricity and costs by up to 17%, according to the American Hotel & Lodging Association.
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