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Hotel Water management
Hotel water consumption is an environmental issue included in the eco-tourism - a market segment that grows with the public awareness to global warming and sustainable development. However, water consumption is also an important economical issue for the hotel management.
Although hotels typically represent less than 5% of a nation’s building stock, the global hotel industry comprising over 300,000 facilities. Due to the high level of resource utilization (energy, water, consumables) in hotel facilities, the environmental footprint of hotels is typically larger than those of other types of buildings of similar size.
Hotel water consumption can varied between 350 and >900 liter per occupied guestroom per day. An average of 200 cubic meter of fresh water is consume for each room per year, and a 500 rooms hotel water charge can be 100,000 – 200,000 dollar a year, according to a tariff of 1-2 $/cubic meter.
Saving about 30% of the water expenses can be achieved by several cost effective means, for reduced OPEX, enhancement of the hotel profitability, elevated public perspective, and it may also be supported by governmental incentives.
Water saving and recycling are aligned with The International Ecotourism Society (TIES) benchmark, LEED regulations and other sustainability guidelines.
The median water consumption per room was reported to be - 545 liter per day (l/d/r) according to a survey of 408 hotels American hotels ("Water Consumption in the Lodging Industry", Stipanuk & Robson, 1990). Water consumption data is displayed in the following tables:
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Hotel size |
Water consumption (median)
(Liter per day per room) |
|
All 408 hotels survey |
545 |
|
Less than 75 rooms |
380 |
|
More than 500 rooms |
785 |
|
Resort/Casino/Conference Centers |
960 |
|
Water usage |
Range |
Median |
|
|
On-Site Laundries |
5% and 30% |
14%. |
About 20 liter per kg laundry,
or 100 liter per room per day. |
|
Kitchens |
0.05% to 25% |
6%. |
45 liter per room per day |
|
Irrigation |
1% and 44% |
14%. |
|
|
Cooling Towers |
1% and 21% |
9%. |
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Main Steps of water conservation are the following:
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Regular monitoring of water consumption, inspect for water leaks.
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Installation of dual flush toilets cisterns, flow-restrictors or aerators in taps and shower heads.
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Installation of photoelectric cells in public washstands and urinals.
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Installation of waterless urinals.
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Reuse of greywater for non-drinking purposes.
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Operating laundry equipment and dishwashers with full loads only.
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Planting of native or drought resistant plants in gardens to minimise watering and implementation of adequate watering schedules.
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Collection of rainwater for gardening, toilet flushing and laundry.
Involving guests and staff in water conservation.
There are numerous examples of the successful implementation of water management programs in hotels worldwide (IHEI 1993; IH&RA et al. 1995; UNEP & IH&RA 1997; Genot et al. 2001; Perera 2001; Perera et al. 2003; Bohdanowicz, Simanic, Martinac 2004; andalmost every issue of Green Hotelier Magazine).
For example:
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A 900 rooms Hilton hotel in Downtown L.A. has at 1990 an average water consumption of 910 (l/d/r). The hotel took several water conservation measures including replacement of showerheads, toilet and urinal flush valves, use of faucets with auto shut-off models with aerators, air-cooled cooling tower, education of staff on water conserving techniques, replacement of the main dishwasher with a more water efficient newer model. It was estimated that these measures saved 60,000 cubic meter of water per year (180 l/d/r), saving $85,000 annually, with a payback of 3.0 years.
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San Diego Hilton Beach & Tennis Resort installed water conserving plumbing fixtures, removed the kitchen garbage disposals, installed a computer controlled irrigation system and reused ice meltage for irrigation. The installation of water-conserving plumbing fixtures alone provided the hotel with over $31,000 annual water and sewer savings.
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400 beds, Four-star hotel (Arabella-Sheraton near Frankfurt) installed a greywater recycling system for toilet flushing (Nolde, 1996). Up to 20 m3/d of water were reclaimed. The pay back time was calculated to be about 9 years according to: water price (4 Euro/m3) and installation, operation and maintenance costs.
Water saving and recycling is important for sustainable development that will benefit the stakeholder with better property operation, reduced OPEX, elevated public perspective, and may also be supported by governmental incentives.
Hotels, as well as other building complexes with high water consumption, are encouraged to adopt better water management for the sake of the environment and their budget. |