Why Building Green is Good for Hospitality Business

Given the improved bottom line, why aren't more hospitality businesses building and renovating with environmental issues in the plan? Could it be business decisions are based on assumptions rather than facts?

One trap people fall into when thinking about building green is limiting that concept to their limited experiences and/or biases about environmental issues. Building green isn't just about reducing energy and water consumption, it's also about material selection, air quality, building orientation, and landscaping.

Bill Reed, one of the LEED's rating system developers, observed that the key to successful projects with successful economics is the willingness to focus on the environmental issues, ask many questions, and explore many ways to reach better ecological integration. The "3 E's" -- Everyone, Everything, Early -- are important too. Engage all those effected by the project, consider every aspect of the project in an integrated way, start early in the development process. This approach is true about business strategy, product design, industrial processes, food and system and transportation infrastructure, it is also true about buildings.

As Neal Pierce of the Washington Post commented, "It seems obvious: the reason only a tiny percentage of new American buildings and retrofits aren't green isn't cost. It's lack of ingenuity or knowledge of new construction techniques."

There have been numerous buildings across the United States which have adopted green approaches in their construction. The reasons schools and colleges, the U.S. Navy, manufacturing plants, and public buildings do so are numerous and diverse.

We created a list of environmental goals from studies conducted by Greg Kats (Capital E) of new construction and renovations, and added to that list environmental actions done by those involved in other environmentally-focused buildings. This partial list of environmental goals may resonate with hospitality venue owners and operators as great reasons to build or renovate a green property.

Energy Conservation Ideas
1. use alternative energy sources for onsite power generation: passive solar, active solar, photo-voltaic, wind, geothermal, hydro, bio-gas generation
2. balance heating demands with a shared "thermal loop" among complementary uses
3. utilize daylight as much as possible throughout the building
4. orient building to utilize low-angle light for daylighting
5. create a reflective roof system to reduce both the building's internal heat loads and its contribution to the urban heat-island effect
6. energy use reduction with passive cooling and solar heating systems, good insulation, and extensive daylighting to minimize energy use
7. create living roof to reduce storm water runoff, convert carbon dioxide into oxygen and serve as a natural insulation
8. use trellises for flowering vines and other plants to shade and help cool the buildings
9. design the building to utilize the land formations to reduce energy consumption

Water Conservation
1. use 70 percent less water
2. treat all wastewater on site
3. reduce potable water consumption by 62 percent
4. reduce annual water and sewer fees by 89 percent
5. water use reduction through water-free urinals, dual-flush toilets, and native landscaping
6. reuse rainwater collected from the roof
7. plant native plants to reduce irrigation water use

Air Quality
1.reduce the carbon balance 93 percent
2. provide maximize natural ventilation
3. minimize use of low-VOC materials, like adhesives, sealants, paints, and carpeting to improve indoor environmental quality
4. use operable windows for improved indoor environmental quality
5. prohibit use of composite wood or agri-fiber products containing added urea formaldehyde

Natural Resources Stewardship/Recycling/Waste Reduction
1. use locally manufactured building materials
2. utilize materials that have high recycled content, a renewable-resource, a sustainable harvest, longevity, low maintenance requirements, low toxicity, and ability to be recycled or reused at the end of a useful life
3. use Forest Stewardship Council lumber
4. recycle more than 97 percent of construction debris
5. use salvaged materials in construction

Landscaping
1. restore habitat along the streetscape
2. use pervious limestone in the parking lot to reduce storm-water runoff
3. landscape with indigenous plants to reduce water consumption
4. increase tree cover from 14.5 percent in 2004 to 30 percent in 2050
5. protect mature trees during construction and renovation
6. use vegetation throughout the grounds to the rid soil of contaminants
7. use shallow green ditches seeded with indigenous plants to clean storm-water runoff
8. attract songbirds other wildlife with appropriate habitat
9. reduce impact on building site and control storm-water runoff with stepped, grass-covered roof

Creating a green hospitality venue not only doesn't have to cost more, but also it protects resources, improves the employee and guest experience, and saves money in daily operations. Building green makes sense -- is ECOnomically Sound -- any way you look at it.