The Federated Hospitality Association of South Africa (FEDHASA) Cape region has joined calls for its members and businesses alike to become innovative when considering water usage cutbacks.
FEDHASA Cape Chairperson, Jeff Rosenberg says while the association’s member establishments have heard the call and are doing what they can to become water smart, especially in recent months, now is the time for them to “think out of the box” and come up with fresh ideas to help combat a “monumental problem” and in-turn encourage smaller establishments to follow suit.
This week the City of Cape Town announced that dams are 33.6% full, and in sharp contrast to the same period last year when the average dam levels were sitting in excess of 61%.
According to Rosenberg, ticking the water-saving boxes is a unified effort that takes commitment and hard work from both hotel staff and guests alike.
Here are some establishments who are using initiatives to save water:
Hotel Verde Cape Town Airport
Hotel Verde Cape Town Airport has specifically been designed with keeping environmental sustainable features in mind and since its inception in 2013; the hotel has been delivering on its promise to save water by introducing a grey water recycling system, increased educational signage throughout the hotel informing guests of the water crisis and
the enforcement of the use of the half-flush buttons on all toilets. The hotel’s water-saving efforts have paid off and it achieved the double Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Platinum Certification specifically for using only 35% of water required by a hotel of the same size, saving 65% in total
Smart campaigns:
#WaterwiseTourismCT
In an evolving digital world, where social media platforms reign, the hotel launched its #WaterwiseTourismCT campaign, calling on all industry role players to join the Twitter discussion, which focussed specifically on how the water crisis has impacted tourism in the province, the industry’s contribution to saving water and to create opportunities from the provincial disaster.
Tsogo Sun Hotels, Cape Town
Tsogo Sun Hotels, Cape Town are committed to making a significant contribution to conserve water and to join the rest of Cape Town in ensuring that the dams don't run dry, especially with the summer season fast approaching. To date, Tsogo Sun reduced its water usage at its Cape Town hotels by nearly 300 000 litres a day in the last six months.
They have removing bath plugs from bathrooms to discourage guests from taking a bath, encouraged shorter showers, installed water restrictors on shower heads and there are water saving signage displayed in all public areas.
Spier Farm Management and Resort:
Ten years ago Spier began its water conservation journey, realising then that water is a scarce natural resource and developed its goals around waste water recycling and consumption. Besides reusing recycled water in the hotel’s gardens and grounds, the team at Spier are regularly putting their heads together to ensure they live up to the hotel’s sustainability mandate established a decade ago, especially in the wake of the Western Cape drought. Ideas in the pipeline include the installation of a new pool water harvesting system, and until it’s up and running the hotel’s seven swimming pools will remain closed, as well as the investment in water from air machines to generate potable water and reduce the drinkable water from purifying machines.