Fairmont Hotels & Resorts cut its greenhouse gas emissions by 8.4 percent by the end of 2010, compared to 2006 levels, the company has announced.
The reduction takes Fairmont almost halfway towards meeting its 20 percent by 2013 reduction target, at just over halfway into the effort. That goal is a Fairmont commitment under the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) Climate Savers program.
To help reach this point, Fairmont created an internal framework to track, monitor and report on key energy and carbon data, appointing regional champions to oversee audit and data controls, and introduced an Engineer of the Year award to recognize and reward outstanding environmental performance. The company also adopted a formalized sustainable design and construction policy and relocated its corporate offices to a LEED NC Gold-certified building.
At The Fairmont Dubai, the hotel has optimized its temperature control and building humidity settings, resulting in a 17.1 percent reduction in greenhouse gases over the past four years, while Quebec's Fairmont Le Manoir Richelieu converted two boilers from oil to electric, helping the hotel cut emissions by more than 75 percent, despite having higher occupancy levels.
Over the same time period, the Fairmont San Francisco added occupancy-sensing guestroom thermostats and adjusted its daily HVAC scheduling in meeting rooms to decrease its GHG emissions by 12.1 percent.
In London, the restoration of The Savoy (pictured) included the addition of several new environmental technologies including a new combined heat and power (CHP) plant that reduces the hotel's reliance on the national grid by approximately 50 percent. New energy efficient boilers, smart meters, and a waste management system that recycles up to 90 percent of the property's waste and converts it into an energy source have also been introduced.
Fairmont is one of 12 international hotel companies, including Hilton, Hyatt and Marriott, that are trying to create a single methodology for calculating carbon footprints and emissions.
