IHG Hotels & Resorts has launched its Low Carbon Pioneers programme for low operational carbon hotels.
According to the company, the group of hotels is the first community of its kind in the industry and aims to encourage wider adoption of carbon reduction practices across IHG’s estate. The group will also reportedly assist IHG in testing and sharing findings on sustainability measures.
The first Low Carbon Pioneer hotels span different IHG brands and locations, including:
· Holiday Inn Express Madrid Airport, Spain
· Iberostar Waves Cristina, Spain
· Kimpton BEM Budapest, Hungary
According to IHG Hotels & Resorts, each hotel will feature solutions such as high-efficiency heat pumps for heating and hot water generation and fully electric kitchens.
Every property will also have an operational sustainability certification recognised by the Global Sustainable Tourism Council, such as Green Key, or a sustainable building certification, such as LEED, BREEAM or EDGE, it said.
Meanwhile, to track and measure their energy data, Low Carbon Pioneer hotels will use IHG’s Green Engage environmental platform.
IHG shared that is also developing a “low-carbon ready” group of hotels in preparation for when it becomes possible to fully back all energy with renewables in countries or districts where this is not currently available.
The hotel industry is resource-intensive, with a big environmental footprint, accounting for around 1 per cent of global carbon emissions and without action, this is only set to increase.
Indeed, according to research from the World Sustainable Hospitality Alliance, the industry needs to reduce its carbon emissions by 66 per cent per room by 2030, and by 90 per cent per room by 2050 to ensure that industry growth does not equate to higher emissions.
The Alliance warned that the industry would need to go “even further” to limit warming to 1.5 degrees.
Commenting on the launch of the programme, Elie Maalouf, CEO of IHG Hotels & Resorts, said: “This is an important next step in IHG’s sustainability journey but it remains one of many we must continue to take. Accelerating change at scale for both IHG and the wider industry also requires broader support from governments ranging from greater access to renewable energy and incentives for owners, to a reduction in the cost of technology that speeds up the industry’s transition to a greener, more resilient future.
“IHG is committed to working with industry bodies and governments to help achieve this, alongside encouraging more owners to adopt carbon reduction practices and become Low Carbon Pioneers.”