[photopress:raffles_beijing.jpg,full,alignright]Hotels use a lot of energy. In Beijing they used one fifth of the total power consumed by the service sector. Now Beijing’s hotels have been told to adopt new energy-conservation measures to make them more eco-friendly.
Hotel should maintain temperatures of no cooler than 26 C in summer and no warmer than 20 C in the winter. And all hotels with more than three stars that have been in business for two years or more should clean out their air-conditioning systems before May.
The cleaning idea is sensible and enforceable. The temperature control may be more difficult. Yet Beijing Vice-Mayor Ding Xiangyang said at a conference the moves are mandatory. Before they were suggestions. Now they are orders.
He said, ‘Enforcement officials will be sent around to make sure these measures have been implemented.’
Hotels have also been told to clean their air-conditioning and ventilation systems before the end of the year. Du Jiang, head of the Beijing tourism administration said, ‘This is to ensure the health of visitors and spectators during the 2008 Summer Olympics.’
Beijing’s consumption of power is increasing every year. Though hotels on average consumed less energy last year than in the year before, experts believe there is still room for further savings.
All hotels with BOCOG contracts were urged to meet State standards for ‘green hotels’ before the end of this year.
The standards require hotels to use water-saving equipment, install power-saving light bulbs and wash their linens less frequently. By the end of last year, only 192 hotels, including some non-rated hotels, had been approved as eco-friendly. As a percentage that is pretty poor. Beijing has about 700 starred hotels and is expected to have 800 by the time the 2008 Olympic Games is held.
Our illustration is of the splendid Raffles Hotel in Beijing. We are quite sure it does not waste electricity. It would not be in the tradition of the man after which it is named: Sir Stamford Raffles. Mark you, in his day electricity had not been invented.
Source: China Daily
You must log in to post a comment.