Environmentally-Friendly Hotel: Yes We Can!

If you have come this far, it means we share a certain number of values on protecting the environment and consuming responsibly. Let’s be honest, talking ecology in the hotel industry does not raise much interest, it even sounds boring. Still, consuming in a nature-friendly manner can be so simple…

Thank you for taking time to read our conception of a responsible economy to better understand our actions.

No need to flood you with figures and percentages to tell you that the hotel industry is renowned for wasting resources. Because maintaining service quality and high hotel standards is the priority, ecology and consumption saving principles often end up second.

From making breakfast to cleaning the rooms, a hotel consumes a significant amount of resources.  Everything is concerned: water, energy (electricity, gas, fuel) and food. To try and reduce this waste, many hotels engage into so-called “environmental” programs by buying labels to cover up their actions. But in fact, ecological actions under those labels are minimum and the rest is all about “green” campaigning… How to buy yourself a clear ecological conscience and cash in the benefits !

At the 21 Foch, there is no «green washing» (1), no subscribing to costly “eco-labels”, no empty blah blah on sustainable development but rather practical actions and the will to do things discretely yet efficiently

To reduce our impact on the environment, we have put in place simple plain sense actions with a long-term perspective around the following aspects :

Energy and electricity consumption
The building was entirely restored in 2013-2014. Doing so, we especially took care of thermal insulation and sound proofing namely by installing high-performance double glazing on all windows and bay windows and by doing significant insulation work in all walls and partitions.
Thanks to its old age, the building benefits from a high level of thermal inertia enabling lower energy consumption more especially between seasons when the need for heating/cooling is next to nothing. Heat is produced by reversible heat pumps yielding very significant electricity consumption savings. We try and keep the hotel at a reasonable temperature. Temperature is set individually in each room.

Lighting in the corridors is activated by motion sensors while lamps and decorative lighting devices are controlled by a programmable timer.

Of course, all rooms are equipped with energy savers that automatically cut off lighting when the room is empty.
95% of our lamps use low-consumption LED or compact fluorescent technology yet still provide uncompromising visual comfort.

As the hotel keepers we are, we welcome you in person and not via a TV screen that will uselessly stay on for hours before you enter your room!

Our frontage sign is lit only when the night falls and only till midnight.

Consuming less electricity also means producing less and therefore polluting less.

In the bathroom
In the bathroom, the more complimentary products there are, the better the hotel service is right? Wrong!
Reality is much less appealing: most times, these comfort products end up in the bin without even being used. They become unnecessary waste and you pay for them in the end. The total cost of so-called complimentary products can be significant and it is necessarily included in the hotel rates. By choosing to provide you with only what is truly required, not only do you pay the right price for your room but you also support anti waste principles.

This being said, reception can provide you with anything you may need (toothbrush kit, shaving kit, extra shampoo and shower gel, washable and reusable slippers, etc.).

As well, glasses in the rooms and bathrooms are made of glass so they can be machine washed and reused.

Everybody knows the principle of putting towels on the floor only if you want them to be changed. Let’s be honest, this is a cost for hotels. Multiplied by the number of rooms over the course of a year, it adds up to a significant amount for so little-used towels. Once again, the end customer (you) bear this cost. Room rates necessarily include it. From an ecological point of view, reusing towels means less water and less transport (CO2).

More than just bins
We recycle everywhere. Though you may not notice it but waste from room bins and all other hotel bins is sorted out and recycled. All recoverable and recyclable waste is kept separately.
By doing so, the weekly amount of organic and ultimate waste (2) does not exceed an average 4kg per person against 20kg of recyclable waste (newspapers, paper, glass, plastic, clothing and electric devices).
Recovering existing materials to prevent consuming primary resources works! Recycling should be an obvious, automatic and above all a responsible act !

On the office automation side of things, we favor digital documents. We think twice before printing anything out and do so only when necessary. Managing reservations with a digital tablet supports our “zero paper” policy.
When a paper invoice is not required, it can be e-mailed to you upon simple request and in a single click.
A piece of paper is systematically reused on the back side as scrap paper.
Computers, as well as any other unused material, are turned off at night.

Daily cleaning
The deal is simple, cleaning products labeled as “organic” are not always as efficient and green as they claim. We have decided to go back to more traditional yet more environmentally-friendly products.
Generally speaking, we use few products. We have no more than three different cleaning products and we use white vinegar a lot for bathroom tiles. Disinfectants are of course necessary but we make sure we keep their use to the minimum required. We stay away from dust-repellant cleaners. Oiled hardwood floors are cleaned with water and we use linen oil based soap once a week for wood care.
Cleaning rags are washed at high temperature so they can be reused.
We do not believe in “disposable” consumables but we are very keen on elbow grease !

Breakfast
In our establishment, you will never see a buffet which is the ultimate source of waste in the hotel industry.
However, we serve quality products straight to your table. Isn’t it much better to just sit down and be served?
We stay away from individually packaged products and prefer bulk packaged ones. Our croissants and Danish pastries are delivered fresh every morning by a local baker. Fruit salads are made from scratch on the premises with a preference for seasonal products. Do not expect any strawberries at Christmas! Saying this may sound funny but the point is that we do not support unnatural farming !

Servings are measured and adjusted so that everything served is consumed. Consequently, our waste bin is very lean!
As for dishes, nothing is wasted, not even napkins. Waste recycling also takes place in the kitchen.

And now it’s your turn…
We encourage you to support our actions when you stay at the 21 Foch but also when you return home…

Below is a top 10 list of simple to apply tips that will help you reduce your impact on the deterioration of our beautiful planet… and give you a clear conscience at the same time !

1. In the bathroom, towels hung on racks and towel-warmers are those you want to reuse. Those that need to be replaced are left on the floor.
2. Think of turning the water off when you brush your teeth. Use the glasses placed at your disposal in the bathroom.
3. A reasonable shower should not last more than 5 minutes.
4. Do not take home or open complimentary bathroom products if you do not plan to use them.
5. Systematically close windows when you heat or cool the room. Think of turning off the towel warmer after use or when you leave the room.
6. Keep your room at a reasonable temperature.
7. Remember to turn off the television and desk/bed lamps when you leave the room.
8. Do not leave battery chargers plugged once the device is charged or when you leave the room.
9. Do not leave your room card in the energy saver when you are out.
10. Prefer public transportation. There is a bus stop just across the street from the hotel. There is a street train station 50 meters from the hotel; this line namely serves the high speed train station and the hospital.
    And remember we are located in the city centre and there is no better way than walking to get around and enjoy the town.

 

1. (1) Green washing consists, for an enterprise, of directing its marketing actions and communication towards an ecological positioning. It is often the case for multinational corporations which activities are excessively polluting and harmful for the environment. To improve their brand image, these businesses spend on communication to “wash up” their reputation. This is why we speak about green washing. Source Ademe.
    
2. (2) Organic waste : Another name for fermentable waste. It consists of waste from plant or animal origin that can be degraded by micro organisms who feed on them. It includes: vegetal waste, putrescible kitchen waste or similar waste collected in school or company canteens as well as paper and cardboard, soiled in certain conditions. This waste is used to make compost.
   Ultimate waste : Unrecoverable waste, either by recycling or through energy production. From a legal standpoint, it is the only type of waste that can be buried in an ultimate waste storage facility. Source actu-environnement.com