BioUrja is an unique waste management

system being implemented at the Taj

Palace, New Delhi. Check it out…

SCI CONFERENCE WASTE NO MORE...

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SOME FRESH AIR PLEASE...

www.greenotels.com

Bangalore played host to the first GreenOtels convention on

sustainability for the hospitality industry. The day-long event saw

a meeting of many great minds and knowledge exchange

through panel discussions & Q/As. Read inside for more.....

FIRST GREENOTELS CONVENTION

10C B Ramkumar delivers the keynote at the

first GreenOtels Convention.

“EMBRACING SUSTAINABILITY SHOULD BE A STRATEGIC DECISION”

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Experts, scientists, innovators,

policymakers & educators come

together to do transformative

work in solar cooking...

PLATFORM PROCESS PRIORITY

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Vol. 1 ISSUE 1 January 2017

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Minakshi Agarwal

writer and publisher on

sustainability, Paul Hawkins once

shared that business (that created the

problem in the first place) is the only institution

left on the planet that is big enough, resourceful

enough, and well enough managed to make the

change – that’s so true!

We are at a critical juncture in human history,

which could lead to widely contrasting futures.

It is our contention that the future is not set

in stone, but is malleable, the result of an

interplay among megatrends, game - changers

and, above all, human endeavour. Our effort

is to encourage decision makers-whether in

government or outside - to think and plan for

the long term so that negative futures do not

occur and positive ones have a better chance

of unfolding.

As hospitality majors our organizations too face

immense global challenges - including

in operational areas like energy and water

shortages, rising inequality, social disruptions

etc. The need of the hour is to put in place an

ambitious corporate sustainability action plan.

GreenOtels is H&FS’ new direction under the banner of Root Cause Mediaa to engage the hospitality industry towards… a greener consciousness by tracking trends, by providing platforms for ideation and dialogues with thought-leaders, by providing solutions through

consultation and training tools and by certifying and recognizing best practices.

Our Greenotels logo

stands in support of

green measures

in the hospitality

industry. The

Greenotels mark

consists of a tree

motif in the centre

flanked by two large

leaves on either side suggesting protection

of environment through green practices. In the

negative space or white space within is the

namaste gesture, a mark of Indian

hospitality and also a request to adhere to

green practices.

Some of you will have attended the GreenOtels

launch conference - some of you will get to see

our debut GreenOtels Newsletter - but do know

that this initiative can gain only that much

currency as much as you decide to engage with

it. It is up to you to share news, views,

perspectives and even gossip or something that

pisses you off re green measures or the lack of

them. So do talk, debate, conduct a dialogue,

write in your opinion, get involved in the making

of a sustainable future, be hands on – just don’t

for god’s sake sit on the side bars doing nothing

– for the planet is not in jeopardy – we are!

This Newsletter and the GreenOtel Meets do

not seek to predict the future—which would

be an impossible feat—but instead provide a

framework for thinking about possible futures

and their implications. They are intended to

stimulate thinking. They are merely a gentle

nudge for us to take action.

Write in to minakshi@greenotels.com

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The BioUrja waste management system has been implemented at The Taj Palace, Delhi in the current year and should be fully functional by January end. It is a completely pre-fabricated, modular system to convert the wet waste to biogas. It is designed for urban establishments with odour, scum and foam management systems built in. BioUrja has 1.5 to 2 times the gas production of standard systems and is monitored online 24x7 for continuous operation. It has an innovative health management and preventive maintenance method for better performance and sustainability. It ensures a seamless transition from an existing LG or PNG based cooking system. Rothin Banerjee, Director, Engineering, The Taj Palace, New Delhi is very excited to implement this phenomenon for not only does it do away with the conventional OWC (Organic Waste Converter) needing excessive manpower and resources but this process is also maintenance free and will also be able to produce 60-70 SCM of Bio Gas, which amounts to Rs 2,450 per day of savings and manure.

Write in to manisha@greenotels.com if you too have something to shareP

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IT’S WASTE NO MORE

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In India we have yet to find a way beyond plastic but France has become the first country to ban all plastic cups and plates to save the environment. It has passed a law to ensure all plastic cups, cutlery and plates are made of biologically-sourced material and can be composted. It will come into effect in 2020 and is part of the Energy Transition for Green Growth.

PLASTIC BAN

Our aim has been to make GreenOtels as collaborative as possible, believing that a

diversity of perspectives enriches the work. We have reached out to experts, to

professionals and promoters in hospitality as well ascompanies engaged in sustainable

development to help make the big shift to a sustainable future.

KNOWLEDGE ASSOCIATESAshish Rakheja, AEON Consultants

CB Ramkumar, Our Native VillageJose Dominic, CGH EarthNiranjan Khatri, iSambhav

PK MohanKumar, Ozone GroupParam Kanampilly, Concept Hospitality

Sanjay Sethi, Chalet HotelsSuresh Kumar, Fortune Park Hotels

ADVISORY PANELAmitabh Tyagi, The Taj Hotels

Arun Bahadur, The Oberoi HotelsHC Vinayaka, ITC Hotels

Sanjeev Saxena, DLF Home DevelopersShirish Wagh, MRICS, RMZ Corp

Sunil Relia, JLL Building OperationsVikram Choubal, Marriott International

CORE COMMITTEEBANGALORE

Ajay Nayak, ITC Gardenia Bhaskar Masineni, The Leela Palace

Mahendra Pargaonkar, The Ritz Carlton Murali Panicker, Taj Bangalore

CHENNAI N Ramamoorthy, ITC Grand Chola Hotel

Shankareswaran Jayaraj, RFM HYDERABAD

K. Jayakumar, The Trident DELHI

Anil Kumar, The Imperial Neeraj Kaushik, The ClaridgesRahul Prabhakar, ITC Maurya

Rothin Banerjee, Taj PalaceSuman Majumder, Hyatt Regency

JAIPURAnup Dogra, Marriott

Siddhesh Khatu, ITC RajputanaVinay Paliwal, Jai Mahal Palace

MUMBAICarlyle Pereira, Taj Group of Hotels

Prashant Pawar, Oberoi Hotels & Resorts Prashant Vaidya, Hotel Sofitel P

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FEAR OF FAILURE KILLS INNOVATIVE SPIRIT, SAYS KHATRI AT FIRST GREENOTELS MEETWhen we talk of sustainability, the social aspect generally does not get the attention that it deserves, according to Niranjan Khatri, environmental specialist, founder and consultant iSambhav. During the course of his talk at the first-ever GreenOtels sustainability conference held at Bangalore’s ITC Gardenia, a rather free-wheeling conversation that he struck with his audience, Khatri spoke sustainability from various angles. Always enlightening and sharing kernels of wisdom, he took the position that we do not give importance to failure, hence Indians are averse to taking risks. As a result, we have managed to kill innovation and become “idea molesters.” Hence, we have to cultivate the art of being able to look for what we have been trained not to see. Khatri spoke about his organisation, iSambhav, where they are investing in new knowledge, new stakeholders. Typically, there has been a lot of resistance to new ideas and products. Talking about some of the initiatives undertaken, he mentioned the Bank of Nutrition, whereby 4 plants – Guava, Neem, Moringa and P

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Lemon are distributed in batches to villagers as a good low cost method to help battle malnutrition. Looking at the dwindling natural resources, Khatri’s idea about getting into resource frugal design was a very valid point, starting with becoming water frugal. It was no surprise that water harvesting and managing water constituted a major part his talk.

After all, water scarcity is one of the biggest issues we are facing today. Although rainfall is a lifesaver for countless regions in India, only 20 per cent of the total rain water finds its way into underground aquifers. The discharge rate is more than recharge rate, like an overdraft. The total water availability has come down per capita from 6 lakh litres in 1947 to 1.5 lakh litres currently. Today, almost 80 per cent of India’s surface water is polluted as per an assessment by WaterAid, an international organisation working for water sanitation and hygiene. The study also shows that domestic and industrial sewage disposal into our water bodies has doubled over the last few decades.

Water Management needs to be a top priority action item as opposed to being a critical concern only during the worst droughts. Khatri stressed on the need to become water positive, re look at our processes and change our service design. He also stressed on the importance of having a Bureau of Water Efficiency. The road ahead depends on our ability to go to the root of the problem by adopting innovative means and going for disruptive design.

WHAT WORKS –The Policy for Re-powering of the Wind Power Projects which came into effect in August 2016. Wind energy accounts for the major share of India’s renewable energy and it follows the National Offshore Wind Energy Policy which came into effect last October and the National Policy on Bio Fuels.

WHY IT MATTERS – It matters because of its impact on all industries especially the hospitality industry. The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy has its sights set on a five time increase in renewable power capacity to 175 GW by 2022.

For more information please login to the website of the Ministry of New & Renewable Energy, Government of India at - http://mnre.gov.in

WIND POWER POLICY

Throwing their weight behind the movement of sustainable development, the United Nations General Assembly has approved the adoption of 2017 as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development. It recognizes “the importance of international tourism in fostering better understanding among people everywhere, in leading to a greater awareness of the rich heritage of various civilizations thereby contributing to the strengthening of peace in the world”.

The decision comes at a particularly important moment as the international community embraces the new Agenda 2030 and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), approved by the UN General Assembly last September. Tourism is included as targets under three of the SDGs - SDG 8: Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all; SDG 12: Sustainable Consumption and Production and SDG 14: Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development.P

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“ The clear and present danger of climate change means we cannot burn our way to prosperity. We already rely too heavily on fossil fuels. We need to find a new, sustainable path to the future we want. we need a clean industrial revolution”.

- Ban Ki-moon, former UN Gen Secy

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2017 IS THE INTERNATIONAL YEAR OF SUSTAINABLE TOURISM FOR DEVELOPMENT

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Table to optimize the energy consumption and improve on efficiency and effective water use by overcoming the challenges on water quality variations with the use of 3D TRASAR Technology. This technology is able to analyze and monitor water parameters online, map system stress and take corrective action by itself, thus ensuring a smooth performance with the desired results.

Sunil Relia, VP, Technical, JLL, initiated this process wherein the chiller condenser approach was arrested and maintained at a below average value of 1.5 deg C. For every decrease by 1 degree C, energy consumption reduces by 3 % & vice versa. So by maintaining the approach lower by 2 deg C in comparison with previous conditions, the energy consumption was reduced by 6%. And the company went on to save Rs 12, 846,180 in the last six months! Check out the table below for details

-Write in to manisha@greenotels.com if you too have some stories of profits and savings incurred while implementing a green process.

In India, some 10 lakh tons of PET is produced annually and only one-third of this manages to get recycled. The rest of it finds its way into landfills and water bodies causing huge damage to the environment. In a very recent laudable initiative, the HRAWI has tied up with an NGO, the Arts Alive Foundation for recycling PET for hotels & restaurants in the entire western region. The daily consumption of PET bottles at individual hotels will be collected by a team from the foundation. They will also pay hotels Rs 8 per kilogram of PET waste. What a great idea Sir jee!!!

HRAWI GETS INTO PET BOTTLE RECYCLING

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The challenge was to optimize energy consumption for HVAC operations in the Capital building, located in Mumbai’s Bandra-Kurla Complex. A green building with a Gold LEED certification, it houses offices of companies like Deutsche Bank, pFizer Pharma, Bain & Company, Karmvir Group, FinMechanics India etc have their offices here.

JLL, the facility manager for the building, were

Sunil Relia

ENERGISING THE BOTTOM LINE

Accor Hotels commitment to sustainable development and the success of PLANET 21, a programme setting out a variety of sustainability objectives was recognised. In the next phase of PLANET 21, the group is committed to make all its new construction and building projects low-carbon by 2020, the introduction of 1,000 urban vegetable gardens across its hotels and to plant 10 million trees by 2021. In Mumbai, Prashant Vaidya, Chief Engineer at Sofitel, BKC, shares how they adapted measures to reduce water usage under PLANET 21 at the property, like the Sewage Treatment Plant optimization, which has resulted in producing 160 KL of recycled water every day, which is then used for gardening and flushing. Water Aerators have been installed in public areas and guest rooms for regulated water flow based on recommendation from internal energy audit, which has resulted in a 40% reduction of water consumption.

ACCOR NAMED ECO GROUP OF THE YEAR AT 2016 AA HOSPITALITY AWARDS'

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“This is the most dangerous time for our planet. We face awesome environmental challenges: climate change, food production, overpopulation, the decimation of other species, epidemic disease, acidification of the oceans. We now have the technology to destroy the planet on which we live, but have not yet developed the ability to escape it. Perhaps in a few hundred years, we will have established human colonies amid the stars, but right now we only have one planet, and we need to work together to protect it.”

- Stephen Hawking

THE LAST STRAWGlenn Hasek, a blogger tellsus about a 11-year-old boy who struggled to eliminate the use of plastic straws in restaurants. One of his goals was to make the giving of straws an “upon request” deal rather than an automatic reflex. We all know the majority of straws end up in the landfill somewhere in the neighborhood of 500 million a day. According to Sarah Kollar, Project and Outreach Specialist for Ocean Conservancy in Washington, D.C., “Straws are one of the top ten items collected during cleanups thanks to the volunteers who collect data during the annual International Coastal Cleanup.” P

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BIG COMMITMENT BY DENMARKIn the early 1970s imported oil supplied 92% of Denmark’s energy but today it’s electric grid is over 40% renewably powered. Denmark is aiming to reach 100% renewable electricity by 2035 and 100% renewable energy in all sectors by 2050.

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The Lemon Tree Hotel Group is to be applauded for emerging as the joint winner of the 2016 World Responsible Tourism Awards for its inclusive employment initiatives targeting people with disabilities. They caught the eyes of the judges in the ‘Best Accommodation for Responsible Employment’ category and were feted for creating a socially inclusive work environment, employing people with disabilities and those from socially and economically disadvantaged backgrounds. The runner up in the category was the Bushmans Kloof Wilderness Reserve & Wellness Retreat, South Africa. The other winners include, Gold, Sam Veasna Center, Cambodia, Silver, Misool Eco Resort, Indonesia, Burj Al Arab Aquarium, Dubai and East African Safari & Touring Co., Tanzania for best contribution to wildlife conservation.

LEMON TREE WINS WORLD RESPONSIBLE TOURISM AWARD

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www.greenotels.com

Green Pledge

Participants at the first ever sustainability conference held by GreenOtels in Bengaluru, made some green pledges for the Year 2017. Amongst the many, there were serious ones like Mohan Kumar’s pledge – “I will spare 24 hours every month on sharing my hospitality operations knowledge and successful green initiatives to mid-market, economy hotels & resorts. Let’s just do it.” While J Shankareswaran, Energy Auditor & Consultant, RFM, said: “I will use less hot water for bathing; use natural lighting during day time

and use shared rides as far as possible.” Praveen Kumar from ITC Windsor promised to “optimize use of water in our building. Currently, we consume 0.9kl/day/room and I would like to bring it down to 0.75 kl/day/room.”

Sachidanand Patil from the Taj Group pledged – “to reduce the construction debris by exploring different raw materials to be used in the industry, while Rothin Banerjee from The Taj, New Delhi struck a philosophical note with - “Let’s save drops of water by evolving our inner self.” Sunil Relia chose to respond in a jocular fashion when he pledged to – “bathe only once a week in 2017 and also save water by having my drink neat.”

HOTELIERS PROMISE TO GO GREEN

ITP’ LAUNCHES FIRST HOTEL WATERMEASUREMENT TOOLITP (International Tourism Partnership) has launched the Hotel Water Measurement Initiative (HWMI). Eighteen global hotel groups including Accor, Carlson Rezidor, Diamond Resorts, Fairmont Raffles Hotels International, Hilton Worldwide, the Hongkong & Shanghai Hotels, Hyatt Hotels & Resorts, InterContinental Hotels Group, Las Vegas Sands Corporation, Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group, Marriott International, MGM Hotels & Resorts, NH Hotel Group, Soneva, Starwood Hotels & Resorts, Taj Hotels, Resorts & Palaces, Whitbread, and Wyndham Worldwide Resorts have worked together to create the industry's first co-ordinated water measurement tool. ITP member companies have collaborated to develop the methodology, working with KPMG as technical consultants and with feedback from a stakeholder steering group of global experts, including the Stockholm International Water Institute (SIWI), Water Footprint Network, CDP and CEO Water Mandate. Hoteliers who wish to begin measuring their water consumption in the standardised manner can do so now. To implement it in your property write in tominakshi@greenotels.comP

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MGreenOtels Meet on sustainability in hotels.GreenOtels JaipurDate – February 4thVenue – Jaimahal PalaceAbout – After successfully launching the GreenOtels Convention in Bengaluru, 2017 will see GreenOtels city meets across India.

ROLE OF SUSTAINABLITY INTRAVEL & TOURISMREPORTMandala Research and Sustainable Travel International recently released the results of their 2016 Role of Sustainability in Travel & Tourism report whose findings are based on a survey of 2,292 leisure travelers. According to the report, 60 percent of U.S. travelers (105.3 million) have taken a sustainable trip in the last three years. They spend more (on average $600 per trip), stay longer (seven days compared to four) and bring higher benefits to local communities, including job creation, giving-back and volunteering. More than half (53 percent) of sustainable travelers report that sustainable practices at the destination were a driver of destination choice, either being the “key factor in their decision” to visit the destination (28 percent) or helping them choose between destinations (25 percent), (compared to only eight percent of all other travelers.) More than two-fifths of sustainable travelers say they have purchased from travel companies because they believe they offer fair wages to their employees and invest in employees; Over half of sustainable travelers purchased something from a travel company because they offered experiences that reflect the unique character of the destination (57 percent) and educated customers about those unique features (54 percent). P

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The first GreenOtels convention on sustainability was held in Bengaluru on December 19, 2016, at the ITC Gardenia Hotel and saw over 120 professionals from the industry including owners, consultants, chief engineers and general managers in attendance. Dr. N. Manjula, IAS, Director, Karnataka Tourism, the chief guest at the event, was serious about advancing the green agenda, and in her address, she assured the industry of all possible help and support.

Setting the tone of the convention, Minakshi Agarwal, Founder and CEO, Greenotels, said –“The biggest challenge in becoming a green hotel I see is our mindset. So, in a country, where we put seat belts not to protect ourselves but not to pay that FINE then... perhaps Green Hotels can also happen either when it becomes mandatory through legislation OR when it starts

making business sense.”The keynote address was delivered by Dr CB Ramkumar, Director, Global Sustainable Tourism Council, while environmental specialist Niranjan Khatri, founder & principal consultant iSambhav, also addressed the meet and made a strong point for disruptive change. The day-long conference also saw two panel discussions. The first discussion on driving business growth through sustainability comprised of prominent industry leaders as speakers.

The panel was unanimously of the view that all sizes and segments of India's city business hotels must embrace green protocol as a philosophy right from the blue print stage and contribute to environmental sustainability drive in metro, cities and towns.

The panel called upon the entire hospitality industry including leisure hotels to benchmark both development and operations to world class standards through education, training and sharing insights in a structured manner.The second of the panel discussions saw hotel engineers talk about technology trends in the area of sustainability and their actual application at their various properties.

FIRST GREENOTELS CONVENTION IN BANGALORE

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HEARD AT THE CONFERENCE –“Hoteliers will only go for sustainability if it is economically viable, or if there is some kind of fine. After all, not all industry players have deep pockets like an ITC, for instance. ”

- Chander Baljee, Chairman & MD, Royal Orchid Hotels

“It costs nothing to do the right thing. Sustainability is ultimately about having a certain mind set.”

-Alwyn Noronha, Executive VP, Projects, ITC, Hotels Division

"Hotels are built on egos but run by cash flows.”

- Suresh Singaravelu, Exec Director, Retail, Hospitality & Business Expansion, Prestige

Our Indian mentality is such that we will only go for sustainability if there are regulations and rules. It is hardly ever voluntary.

- PK Mohan Kumar, Principal Advisor, Ozone Hospitality

“The core values at Orange County have always centered around the three R’s of Reduce, Reuse and Recycle. But to these three, we have added a fourth – Regenerate. When we first purchased the plot for the Kabini Resort, there were 7 species of butterflies, today there are over 40; there were 8 species of birds and now there are 70. . Today the plot looks like a forest. This is what we mean by Regenerate.

- Cherian Ramapuram, Director, Orange

County Resorts & Hotels

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AGNISUMUKH, RADIANT GAS BURNERS FOR WHOLESOME FOODPreserving nutrition in food, clean pan and pot, safety, conservation of water & power are big challenges in commercial kitchens whereas carbon soot, extreme heat, fuel wastage is creating nightmares in kitchen. The innocuous looking commercial blue flame gas burners are the ones creating this global menace and this is what the innovation completely addresses.

Agnisumukh an award-winning startup entity from Bangalore, manufactures commercial kitchen

equipment driven by energy efficient radiant heat gas burner which is flame-less, smokeless and noiseless. The burners produce uniform heat just like charcoal emitting far-infra red rays. It works across gas fuels and provides a wholesome cooking experience. Food cooked in this form of energy is very healthy as it provides uniform heat across the cook pot and also preserves maximum nutrition in food. It saves over 30% LPG, no emission of carbon soot, over 50 % water and detergent saving, faster cooking, no daily cleaning of the burner, no accumulation of carbon soot in exhaust, lower ambient heat in the kitchen and increased productivity. It also has the potential to reduce more than 10 MT of GHG in India alone, by its application in cooking. This would result in fewer greenhouse gas emissions and reduce impacts on forests, habitats, and bio diversity. The company has a pan-India agreement with ITC Hotels for supply of the energy efficient devices. P

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“We are such spendthrifts with our lives, the trick of living is to slip on and off the planet with the least fuss you can muster. I’m not running for sainthood. I just happen to think that in life we need to be a little like the farmer, who puts back into the soil what he takes out”.

- Paul Newman

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C B Ramkumar, Director, Global Sustainable Tourism Council delivered the keynote address at the first GreenOtels engineering convention held at The ITC Gardenia, Bangalore, on December 19. He managed to put in very clear terms, the relevance of climate change and sustainability to tourism. Besides being fashionable, he said, going green was essential to combat climate change, which in turn has an effect on tourism. Tourism also contributes to climate change and hence as a stakeholder in tourism, it makes sense for all of us to understand climate change and its far reaching aspects.

With the help of some very graphic audio visuals he was able to underscore the scary aspect of climate change, wrought slowly through the years due to mankind's over-dependence on fossil fuels – coal plants, diesel gen sets, beginning from the post World War II. The increase in

carbon dioxide has directly impacted global heat and the result has seen 2016 as one of the hottest years ever measured. In 2015, Iraq had a record heat index of 74 degree Centigrade. And it's not just about land masses, but even water bodies which get heated up. Warm ocean bodies create storms and even typhoons like the great Hurricane Sandy. Today we are seeing storms like never before. Cloud bursts like the one which struck Uttarakhand is also due to increase in temperature.

With the pattern of rainfall changing, there have been more landslides occurring than ever before. So the burning question remains- how are we going to adapt to this whole new planet? A planet where we have so many countries which are soon going to be extinct because of rising levels of seas and oceans, like the island of Maldives. Since people react to stress, it is not uncommon to see civic unrest rampant in so many regions of the globe. Looking beyond diesel gen sets and fossil fuels, the options before us include wind and solar power. At the Paris summit for climate change in 2015, the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi committed that by 2030 at least 40% of the country's electricity will be generated from non-fossil sources. China, for example, has decided to ban all coal consumption by 2020.

Ram devoted the second half of his presentation to Our Native Village, his eco-friendly resort near Bangalore. It is an endeavor to recreate an intimacy with Nature, especially for the people living in cities or for those who yearn to relive the blissful simplicity of their childhood days. The resort maintains a 100% eco-friendly approach based on the five basic pillars of environmental conservation - earthly architecture, nutritious food, energy and water conservation and proper waste management.

UNDERSTANDING CLIMATE CHANGEWITH RAMKUMAR

What we are doing to the forests of the world is but a mirror reflection of what we are doing to ourselves and to one another.

–Mahatma Gandhi

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HOTEL ENGINEERS SHARE THEIR PET PEEVES AND OTHER CHALLENGES AT WORKSHOP The workshop held during the course of the GreenOtels convention threw up some interesting insights. The hotel engineers, formed small groups and arrived at a common list of their pet peeves, challenges, as well as some best practices, discovered through trial and error at times, on their journey towards sustainability.

Understandably, the government stood to receive the maximum flak. The workshop was conducted by Smarter Dharma, the knowledge partners for the convention. For convenience, the issues plaguing our hospitality engineers have been divided into categories like policy, energy, water and waste management. Needless to say, the engineers had a lot to say on each of the above.

On Policy – • All policies talk of zero discharge. But there is really nothing called zero discharge, so why give it?• What does a hotel do with excess water that it has treated? The excess STP water cannot be recharged. So will the Government take the excess water or treat it?• On the issue of compost biomass, no hotel really has the luxury of space, so what do hotels do with this?

On Energy – • Hotels pay for power charges but face power cuts. When they install generators to take care of same, they are questioned by the government. Also the govt departments do not usually respond to phone calls. They always hold the threat of power cuts over the hotels. There are no solutions that they are able to supply.• We, as in Indians, lack proper know how on how to generate, transmit and use energy.• Power stability is a big issue. Not okay to have poles with hanging loose wires.

• Every six months, government makes changes in existing policy and by the time one gets familiar with it, there is something new. No proper information given and very difficult to track all these changes on government web sites.• Lack of infrastructure is compounded by lack of communication within departments. Mostly, no one has a clue about the existing policies.• Where implementation is concerned, most engineers have a fear of failure which stops them from implementing policies. We need to be the change we want to see.

On Waste Management – • Engineers not taken seriously and management needs to be more sensitive.• It’s not possible for one small team to have all the know how so interdepartmental communication important. • Green teams required• Certification and legislation may push waste management.• Not just important to manage waste during crisis but even otherwise.

On Water – • STP and ETP parameters are specified but no standard for in house flush etc• An internal audit for water quality needed• Dual Flush systems• Eco friendly chemicals• Will have to think seriously about source of water beginning March• Bore wells need of hour• If customer wants to insist on mineral water, let him pay for it.• No matter how erratic the supply of water, one still has to pay. Why?• Balancing of water important

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THE LARGESTSOLAR POWERPLANET IN THEWORLD IS NOW INOUR BACKYARD

The solar power plant in Kamuthi, Tamil Nadu became the world’s largest such plant last month. With a capacity to produce 648 MW of electricity, the plant comprises 2.5 million individual solar modules.

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THE POWER OF ONE

Leonardo di Caprio’s Before The Flood –A documentary on climate change, the film needs to be seen not just for Di Caprio but for the sense of urgency with which he tackles the issue. One could almost mistake it for a typical Hollywood disaster movie but for the fact that it is as real as it gets. Taking his role as UN Messenger of Peace with special focus on climate change in 2014 seriously, Di Caprio spares no effort in drilling home the reality of cause and effect and how our causes today may be able to stave off disaster. So watch it not just for Di Caprio but for your own sake. Because climate change is no more something to be discussed over cups of tea and coffee or in the rarefied environs of some air conditioned auditorium in conferences and seminars. It is here and now. We are living it. But we just may be able to avert the catastrophe. And this film could be that starting point for you. The film has been distributed by National Geographic and was released on October 30. P

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"If God wanted us to use fossil fuels, he wouldn't have buried them so deep"

-Vandana Shiva

6TH SCI WORLD CONFERENCE 2017

Hundreds of experts, scientists, executives, innovators, key policymakers, educators, and enthusiasts from over 23 countries came together to do transformative work in solar cooking at the 6th Solar Cookers International World Conference (SCI) held at Muni Seva Ashram, in Goraj, Vadodara, Gujarat, from January 16 to 18. Julie Greene, the executive director of SCI opened the conference with an observation that human beings are using natural resources at a faster rate than at any time in human history. Food, fresh water, minerals, and energy are consumed at an unsustainable pace and that the amount of solar energy that reaches the earth in only one hour could power all human activity for one year! She went on to add that “Our ability to capture solar energy effectively today will determine the quality of human life twenty years from now.” The highlight of the conference was the key note address by Vandana Shiva, world-renowned environmental leader and thinker, who not only drew vividly the role of fossil fuels that lead to ecological and economic disaster but adeptly connected the dots between feeding the planet and the solar power. Soil Not Oil lays out principles for feeding the planet that are socially just and environmentally sound. She urges us to move beyond oil, beyond our addiction to a certain model of human progress and human well-being. The conference also saw more than 40 presenters from 19 countries sharing their innovative discoveries in solar cooking work; new designs; solar cooker Performance Evaluation Process; solar entrepreneurship; advocacy; coalition building and much more. P

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15Vol. 1 ISSUE 1 January 2017 |

SOME FRESHAIR PLEASE !As we go to print, Paris and

London are both choking under

heavy levels of smog. In fact

London has breached its

annual air pollution limits in just

five days in to 2017. The

French tabloids are blaming

"German air while the British

tabloids are blaming "French

air" - which demonstrates,

above all, how air pollution has

no borders. According to official

news reports air pollution has

killed more than 400 people in

Tehran in the past one month.

Tehran is far from alone. This

year has seen some of the

worst smog episodes in nearly

20 years across a great swath

of Asia, despite cities trying to

reduce traffic and factory

emissions.

New research last week

confirmed India to be more

polluted than China for the first

time. According to data from the

Global Burden of Disease

project at the University of

Washington, there were 3,283

premature deaths a day in India

in 2015 as a result of

particulate matter and ozone

pollution, compared to 3,233 in

China. This compares with a

just over one thousand a day in

Europe and the US combined.

India has half of the world’s 20

most polluted cities, according

to the World Health

Organisation (WHO) and, says

Greenpeace, it is a critical

problem in15 out of 17 of

India’s major cities.

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