Green giant

In Every bathroom of every Canadian Pacific Hotel bedroom is a notice asking guests if they really need to have clean towels every day. It reminds the reader of how many tonnes of towels are washed every day in hotels all over the world, of the amount of detergent used and how it pollutes the water.

The notice suggests that, if guests don't mind reusing towels, they should hang them up and they will not be replaced.

"Needlessly washing towels is a hideous waste of water, energy and soap," says Ann Checkley-Layton, vice-president, public affairs and communications at Canadian Pacific Hotels. She leans forward to drum her point home. "The notice has had a very positive response. We have cut the numbers of towels washed by 20%."

Checkley-Layton is the driving force behind improving the environmental awareness of the 27-strong chain of four- and five-star hotels in Canada. A confident and creative force, she has had a huge impact on the billion-dollar company, home to 11,116 beds and 10,000 employees, since she joined in 1990.

Earlier this year, her efforts won her the title Green Hotelier of the Year, while her company was named the most environmentally considerate hotel group in the world by the International Hotel and Restaurant Association. Sponsored by American Express Travel Related Services, the prestigious award is judged by the United Nations Environment Programmes Industry Division. This year, it drew in 55 entries from around the world.

Lower disposal costs

Checkley-Layton insists the environmental policies have dramatically reduced costs for the hotels. "Most of the things in the hotel industry are pretty cut and dried. You don't need a degree in mathematics to realise that if you cut waste by 50%, you are going to cut waste disposal costs by 50%," she argues.

Her success owes a lot to the understanding of Canadians, to whom recycling is second nature. A glance around a typical Toronto kitchen will reveal grey boxes for paper, blue boxes for glass, and other colour co-ordinated collecting trays to file away the country's waste.

"Transferring that awareness to the hotel industry is easy. We have recycling boxes in all the rooms. Canadians know exactly what they are for because they do it at home," says Checkley-Layton.

Many guests at Canadian Pacific Hotels are not Canadian -15% are British - but they do co-operate with the green policies.

Checkley-Layton launched the environmental programme at Canadian Pacific with the full backing of her chairman, Robert DeMone, immediately after she joined as director of public relations seven years ago. The first step was to survey every department about existing systems, and then survey individual staff to establish how strongly they felt about environmental issues.

The response to the employee survey was staggering. The majority of staff filled in the questionnaire, and between 80% and 90% pledged their full support for establishing an environmentally conscious policy in the hotels. Meanwhile, the departmental survey revealed, among other things, exactly which chemicals were being used and how much energy was being spent across the full range of functions, from laundry to housekeeping.

"We used the feedback to form 16 key goals in four separate areas: waste management, purchasing policy, product conservation and energy management. Then we produced a manual, with each chapter based on each different department," explains Checkley-Layton.

She claims the staff have embraced the changing culture. "I was conscious when I went to collect my award that one person couldn't do it on their own - it has to be driven by the employees. Our environmental programme works because of our employees' dedication."

Phase one of the environmental programme is complete and phase two is due to start this autumn. It will establish an environmental office with a full-time officer, audit the hotels to establish best practice and push for further education on green issues among staff. The programme manual will be updated, a road show to go to each of the hotels will be launched, and there will be a conference for the elected green committee members from each property.

Checkley-Layton is adamant that going green has saved the company money, although she is unable to say how much.

"It wasn't part of our thought process at the time; we just wanted to introduce environmental policies. But, with hindsight, we see that we should have created a base line in 1990.

"Phase two of the programme will involve tracking costs and energy uses," she says. "The problem with tracking savings is that some years differ because circumstances differ, such as the weather or occupancy. We are going to track through occupancy rates."

She can produce anecdotal evidence. In Toronto, the cost of tipping garbage jumped from $80 to $120 per tonne in just two years. At the same time, waste at the Royal York was cut by more than 50%.

"It is easy to see your savings being banked immediately. Every hotel used to throw away tonnes and tonnes of garbage every day," says Checkley-Layton. "Now, we divert that waste. For instance, with soap, a guest merely washes their hands and we have to replace the soap. We used to send 6,000 bars of soap to the landfill every week from one hotel. Now, we send it to different charities.

"We have also refitted the lighting - fluorescent light lasts seven times longer than incandescent light - and we have introduced water conservation systems. With water, you pay for more than just the water; you have to pay for the energy that pumps the water.

"The savings go on and on. You know you have a triumph on your hands when external costs go up, occupancy goes up and yet your own costs go down."

Management at the Royal York in Toronto is aiming at 90% divergence of all waste away from landfill sites. In one way, it is easier for a hotel the size of the 1,365-bedroom Royal York: by using its size and buying power, it has made sure its suppliers don't use unnecessary packaging.

Canadian Pacific's reputation is bringing added benefits. As a premium hotel chain, much of its business comes from conferencing. One of its options is for a completely environmentally conscious conference.

"Business people are only human and many appreciate the efforts we make. We all compete for business on rates, but it is the added extras that win the business," she says.

And business is good: during 1995 and 1996, occupancy rates remained unchanged at 72.1%.

Checkley-Layton claims her knowledge of the environment has been gleaned as she has gone along. According to her, everyone can do it. She even points to efforts being made in the UK: "Inter-Continental has good practice in place. And some other hotels are doing it."

She concedes that it may be harder in the UK because recycling is not so ingrained in people's minds, but she re-emphasises the point that hotels need more than co-operative guests - they need a dedicated workforce.

"You definitely need complete staff support to make it work," she says. "Take the example of the towels: the notice was not an official part of phase one, but it caught on among the staff and they pushed it through."

Thanks to Checkley-Layton, one of the biggest and most prestigious hotel chains in north America has not washed its hands of environmental concerns. Instead, it has moved forward to accept that it has a responsibility and it is dealing with it actively and directly.

Even the small things, such as cutting back on washing towels, are a major step in the right direction.