This morning my radio alarm clock woke me up to the following statement, "The Coast Inn of the North has gone Green." That caught my attention, however the next statement put me back to sleep. "It has done so by launching carbon offsets."
In a recent article posted by Coast Hotels they state, "Even the most environmentally-conscious travellers admit that their green tendencies tend to diminish when they're on vacation, leading them to leave the lights on or take longer showers, which is one of the reasons we launched this carbon offset program."
This offset is a feel-good program and does really deal with any of the issues that they mention above. It all boils down to money. It is cheaper for businesses to use "carbon offsets" than to actually clean up their act or even make the effort.
Here is just a few examples on how the Inn of the North could go "green." First of all, let's take a look at those showers and the length of time they are being used. Showers should be timed, or customers should purchase credits for shower lengths. This would save on water and the energy to heat it. Electricity should be controlled by card keys, the same key that opens the door, many hotels in Europe use this system. Shampoos and soaps should be in reusable dispensers to avoid the little shampoo containers and partially-used soap bars that end up in landfills.
This is just a couple of simple examples on how to go "green." There you go Coast Hotels, I won't even charge for the consulting fee.
Laurie Saindon
Prince George
