ANALYSIS OF ECOFRIENDLY PRACTICES FOR ENVIRONMENT

SUSTAINABILITY IN HOTELS OF MUMBAI

MR. AJAY S.BUDKE

Associate Professor
( MTM, BA, D.HMCT)
Email address: [email protected]
Mobile No: 9930371660

MS. RIDDHI GIRIGOSAVI

Student
(T.Y B.SC - H.S)

Bharati Vidyapeeth College of Hotel & Tourism Management Studies

CBD Belapur, Navi Mumbai
 ANALYSIS OF ECOFRIENDLY PRACTICES FOR ENVIRONMENTAL
SUSTAINABILITY IN HOTELS OF MUMBAI

ABSTRACT
Hotels and hospitality industry is one of the biggest industry which has various entities under it
and it is economically placed on top, it has attained a prestigious position because of its fast
growth. This has made various environmentalists to pick up concern about the impact of hotels
on environment and sustainability. As a result, many countries have started formulating various
policies and laws to protect environment. Over the years there has been a positive change from
Hotel industry. In recent years, Hotels have started adopting ecofriendly practices and
implementing innovative technologies to reduce the negative impact on environment. So more
and more hotels are joining in this campaign and becoming green hotels. Considering hotel as a
industry every department is responsible for some or the other way of waste which ultimately
impacts on the carbon emissions percent. Ultimately we should remember our long term goal is
zero waste.
This study brings out various aspects of reducing waste by hotels, various technologies and
methods followed by hotels in Mumbai to be categorized as green hotels or ecotel hotel. Also,
this study attempts to bring out the facts in reality there are very few hotels which follows the
green practices of environmental sustainability.
To carry out above study primary and secondary data was analyzed with qualitative analysis.
Respondent from various hotels in Mumbai region.

Key words: Ecofriendly hotel, ecotel, sustainability, green hotels.

INTRODUCTION
Green practices are the growing need of the time, internationally. It has been made into practice
and regulations have been implemented to follow the tiny steps in order to deteriorate the
exploitation caused in almost every economic sector. As the hospitality industry flourishes with
its glamour and popularity the need to counter these green habits also becomes significant. The
conditions for this industry have been well and growing prosperously hence, making the
sustainable practices as a significant order. It will not only help the environment but also be the
brand enhancement. It involves a large sector of people, ranging from various backgrounds to
different mindsets including both the consumers and the employees which will be helping in
spreading the awareness as well as popularity of the hotel in an equal pace. The new lifestyle
demands, to maintain a balance between the census and the trending market. The recent chapters
of controversies are climate change and everyone will be conscious about the world around them
be it anybody at any part of the world. Here comes the research, a case study, to comprehend and
scrutinize the minute details and to make a room for analyzing all the implementations, agendas
and rules executed by different hospitality industry mainly in Mumbai, India. Mumbai being the
commercial capital and the busiest cities of India does see most of the progressions in various
fields. As a result, it attracts around 6 million people (tourists) around the world each year and
does take into account its original residents and their contribution towards the welfare of the city.
In such a bustling metropolis, the hospitality readily in abundance, opts to contribute to anything
that shapes its morals and sciences as per its consumer’s demands. Acting on such advances it
becomes beneficial to control and implement such ideas which are supporting the climate and
forming a base for the updating brands for company growth as well.
These records and study will let us know how the psychology and a gamut of other sciences
related to humans and the environment affects the establishments for future feats and more
importantly affects the climatic conditions of Mumbai. These are based on the responses given
by the various hospitality heads, few of whom are having the foundation as eco-friendly methods
for the operational work. Few other hotels are business class, luxury and economical categories
in Mumbai. The data given has been scrutinized and analyzed in a way, comfortable enough to
understand. Herein, the inclusion of their daily recorded practices and new technologies have
been noted. Dependency on the non-renewable, renewable and recycled sources of energy have
been taken into consideration. The aspects of human behavior especially, Indian nature towards
the acceptance of new practices and its reach of success is also studied. This revolves around the
hotels of Mumbai and how they cater their guests in a way which will be profitable and
sustainable. The margins where they require improvements and the niches they have to work
upon are stated. The rules can be made, the methods can be approved also the people can be
ready but there are various other factors which can affect the implementation of such revolutions.
The basic methods are the ones which begin at the hotel rooms wherein the management
contrives the idea and goes on till the marketing of the same using human psychology. The
tactics which are used to demonstrate the significance of the particular practice chosen as a green
practice are rehearsed and then made into action. For example, prominently, many hotel rooms
have a card which states the request of laundering of the used linen that can be called off by the
guest by stating the amount of resources wasted behind laundering a single linen set. Limiting
this to be a request, the guest gets a chance to choose, either to act ecofriendly or not. Which
seems polite enough and makes the guest realize the facts and stimulates him/her to act
according to the considerations.
There are four and more ecotels in Mumbai, like, the Rodas, Orchid, The lemon Tree, Meluha
the Fern etc. which serve the guests with adequate needs and takes the climate change into
consideration. Apart from these, there are many which follow few practices in order to compete
with the environmental problems in their own way.

REVIEW OF LITERATURE
The earlier study stated that there are hotels and other service sector which have the parameters
established for the environment safety practices. However few lie back due to ignorance and lack
of awareness. We found that there was minimal support for such practices and were put down
considering the budget and expenditure costs. Few hotels are working on replacing plastic straws
with compostable or metal straw or serve sans straws. In toiletries for example, the use of in-
shower bottles that are mounted or maybe free standing is been made into practice. Reducing and
repairing the leaks and inefficiencies etc. has been done. There are hotels which have installed
the certified low-flow aerators in faucets and showerheads in the guest rooms. Smart energy
management systems have come up in the hotels of Mumbai. Although it will be a gradual
process for the small scale hotels and coming up restaurants to thrive green practices. It is by
2050 we need to reduce the carbon foot print as said by the hospitality expert, Dr.Willy Legrand.
Until now, cutting down the food waste, minimizing water usage, eliminating plastic and finding
a different alternative is what we are working on. Conserving energy, creating a paperless hotel
is what the team is looking forward to. Abode Boutique hotel of Mumbai is one such first
boutique hotel in the city which follows the standards and adds to the removal of carbon
footprint. Since the government is also actively taking part in the green practices, there are
several methods which are followed. Few are based on the reduce, reuse, recycle strategy.
There are categories of practices followed which don’t have a good track on its proceedings,
mostly these pose as the drawbacks, lack of focus on the awareness programmes is also
considered. The proper ecotels of Mumbai, do inculcate the methods meticulously as they are
termed as ecotels. They have standards which the guests too appreciates and prefers. It is a need
for the business hotels to shape their infrastructure in the way of sustainable aspects as Mumbai
sees a major clientele from business background which can be dealt with throughout the year it
becomes easier to spread such awareness issues, especially when the guests are self-aware about
the climate changes. New technologies get a chance to bring up the skills which will be very
much useful for various industries.

GREEN PRACTICES
The hotels follow the green practices in order to mitigate the negative impact. According to their
policies, there are various segregations made.
The waste management, conquers the areas where the wastage of any food material is taking
place, it further gets bifurcated and then decomposed under proper regulations. The hotels
generate a good amount of food to cater to the guest needs and hence it also comes up with the
same amount of wastage.
The following table consists of the types of practices which are followed by the hotels
prominently.
CATEGORY TYPE OF WASTE MANAGEMENT

1) Waste  Left over raw food Vermicomposting, manure preparation

management  Food particles which are not pits, sending the waste to treatment
used in the cooking plants, and other liquid waste to sewage
 The meat that remains treatment plants. The horticulture
 Cooked food department of the hotel can actually
 Stale food benefit by using the organic method.
 Leftovers from the plates
 After the crumbing (if food The used oil can be reused in a very
particles are too big) systematic way, where the oil is given to
 Garbage disposal techniques the “Muenzer Bharat Ltd.” which is a
 Used oil waste management service located in
Andheri, Mumbai. They harness this
Used Cooking Oil to convert it into
biodiesel, neither letting it re-enter the
food chain nor polluting the
environment.

Most hotels, like Taj, use “winnow”

machines which track, record, analyze
and save the food cost and wastage.

2) Energy saving  Usage of LED and other For an example, an LED exit sign uses
energy saving equipment, about two watts or less, compared to up
 Water and light sensors to to 40 watts of any other incandescent
automatically turn it off after
the usage. Requesting guests to properly operate
 Energy efficient vending the air conditionings. To avoid
machines simultaneous changing of the
 Natural light efficiency temperatures. As it may disrupt the
 Air conditioning practices functioning which can result to excess
 Storage systems heating of the environment around.

Defrosting fridges used for storage

regularly and ensure any repairs.

Installation of solar panels on a large

scale and using the energy produced
through that for major hotel operations.

More focus is on spreading the natural

light. Hence, smart architecture and
profound knowledge of light reflections
can render the perfect and the easiest
method of energy conservation. The
hotel can use the natural day light
instead of unnecessary lighting the
pathways, lobby areas and halls.
Dim the artificial lights by 30% where
natural light exists it can be thus worked
out.
3) Water  The waste water from Establishing the basic water
management guestrooms management plan. Meter the total usage,
 Water that is used for research the availability of government
manufacturing process. funding in water conservation
 Filtering and providing the technology.
fresh water to staff and
guests for all the activities Minimizing water usage, form laundry,
 The pool water maintenance swimming pools, landscaping as
 Laundry service reducing the minimal water amounts can
 Landscaping yield the amount of water saved.
 Treating the graywater
Adjustable flow restrictors on taps, this
helps reducing tap water use by 40%

Shower heads, taps have sensors to

avoid loss of excess water.

Rainwater harvesting is one of the best

approaches to counter the water issue.

Many hotels have the sewage treatment

plants so that the discharge of harful
effluents can be managed.

The water is recycled, filtered and used

in many hotels of Mumbai, it hardly
affects the water quality and can be
efficiently consumed.

The hotels also request the guests by

politely asking them to call off the
laundering of their linen if it is feasible
for another use just to avoid the huge
amount of water used up for the
laundering of a single linen set.
 To ensure that they are contributing towards the betterment of environmental conditions, many
hotels have come up with their own strategies and plans, few of them are listed below:
 The ITC hotels have their own ‘welcomeEnviron’ policy in order to support the
revolution.
 The Orchid is very first ecotel of Mumbai. It proudly tells its efficient solid waste
management systems, energy conservation practices, they also have a vermin-composting
for the food waste management, CFCs and LEDs are installed, solar panels which work
efficiently.
 The Fern Hotels also have a positive approach, they use Ayurvedic soaps and toiletries,
baskets and other amenities which are eco-friendly.
 The Taj group has initiated the EARTH project which installs the idea of the climate
protection.
 Marriott international are about to introduce green hotel prototype that is pre-certified
LEED that is leadership in energy and environmental design), a US designed certification
system. It is initially created for the Marriott courtyard brand which will save energy and
water consumption by 20% to 30%

THE GUEST REVIEWS REGARDING GREEN PRACTICES

The guest satisfaction is among the strongest forces for a hotel to develop its brand name and
growth. Also, setting up a style and unique selling point of its own, the hotel tries to convince
guests in order to act environment friendly. It depends on the conduct of services that are
provided for the guest uniformly without any biased actions. It also depends on the way the
green practices are executed and made comprehendible to the guests. The guest satisfaction
scores have certainly affected the index of hotel feedbacks in a controversial way. Most of the
guests preferring Mumbai hotels consider obeying the green practices as a sign of popularity and
awareness. The guests prefer using and following such practices which can support the
environment in a sustainable manner. Although, all reviews did not yield positively as the guest
found inconveniences which upon scrutinizing can be cut off.
As per the comments that we analyzed from the TripAdvisor, major responses were positive with
regards to the green hotels.
Some practices such as temperature control, water pressure and degradable utensils are actually
not positively perceived. Different practices, impact customer satisfaction differently.

OBJECTIVES
1. To determine the environment friendly practices in hotels and establish the contribution that
hotels are making towards mitigation of the negative environmental effects.
2. To ensure zero wastage designs that are formulated to systematically avoid and eliminate the
volumes and toxicity of waste. Also to conserve the resources and to harness them in a
sustainable way.
3. To highlight the popularity of such practices and to enhance them to greater levels to improve
brand name as well as a contribution towards the environmental sustainability.
METHODOLOGY
This research is a comprehension rendered from the actual industry. This data and points are
collected from various sources which can be categorized into primary and secondary sources.
The listed results are formulated in a way which makes it comfortable to understand the intensity
and depth of the subject.
However, the data has been provided by the questionnaire which was specially prepared in order
to estimate the required testimonials regarding the needed facts. The questionnaire was sent
across to the various hospitality heads of thirteen, 13 hotels of Mumbai. This formed as our
primary data which was later structured.
The secondary data was produced from the literary outputs such as, magazines, newspapers,
websites and books.

DATA INTERPRETATION
This research is aided with the further responses given by the hotels.

As per the 13 responses, 38.5 % disagree by responding with NO

23.1% are unsure if they totally comply with the green practices.
38.5% confirm the green practices being followed.
By this we come to know that there is still a lot of requirement for this industry to come up with
the establishment green practices.
The above pie chart lets us know that
84.6% of the hotels use energy saving systems
Whereas, 15.4% are the ones still yet to come up with the green practices.
It gives a rough estimate, on how the hotels have an approach towards the energy saving
systems, it involves a variety of practices. It only needs to be implemented properly.

The above information provided, gives a record of how the rainwater harvesting is being utilized.
79.6% do not use, the reasons might be the rain patterns of Mumbai, the inconvenience faced due
to lack of information and proper knowledge of its execution.
Also, because the setup might turn into a liability during the off season
It is important to track the details of the energy management practices, hence,
as per the responses, 46.2% have NO.
53.8% are acknowledging the fact that they have few measures to track the waste management
The above information, provides a view of the hotels’ approaches to test the implementations
and how far they consider the practices seriously.

The above pie chart gives us the information on how the hotel deals with the basic small
practices such as, take away and packaging.
46.2% follow the practice
23.1% follow this at a very minimal point or not so genuinely.
In some hotels, the take away are not given mostly in a coffee shop. (Taj Lands End, Bandra)
It is a gradually evolving training.
The ultimate applied question was asked to which,
46.2% of hotels had dilemmatic response towards the guest satisfactions. It majorly might be
because of the lack of alternative ideas.
30.8% do not show a positive response.
23.1% are the ones who believe in working and executing, as a productive way to reach a
positive outcome. There will be a definite gradual change.

LIMITATIONS
The study has few limitations which have hindered its less important outcomes to surface;
nevertheless, it has substantially been efficient to form a study. The only drawback is, most of
the hotels of Mumbai are focused on the type of clientele they receive, which is glamour
industry, business class and leisure tourists etc. since, the type of standards they have been
providing since the earlier times is not so environment focused, accepting such a change might
be difficult. Another reason will be, there are a handful of ecotels which are completely based on
eco-practices, which is why the statistics might not be in the favor of positive trait.
Also, the ecotels have their own specific generalized standards which differ from practices
followed by the other hotels. Frequently, the idea of “eco-Friendly” in other hotels, becomes a
vague platform to portray each ones’ perception regarding the “green methods”. Although
different, it will be legally authorized and made into action. The factor that affects the study are
mostly based on the responses given by their own proper knowledge respectively which may be
a subject to variation.
The ecotels have a standardized procedure to deal with the waste management for example they
may use vermicomposting where as the other hotel uses just proper segregations and the ultimate
disposal. These might be the limitations as such levied on this subject.
CONCLUSION
After such an intricate study, we head for a conclusion, that the the total green practices, eco-
friendly practices or environmental sustainability methods followed in the Hotels of Mumbai are
below average. The reasons are thriving and the force to come up and compete the carbon
emission needs to become stronger.
As we saw in the first two Pie Chart presentations, the first one has a 23.1 % of hotels which are
unsure if they follow the green practices rightfully. Whereas, in the second presentation, where
we ask about the energy saving system, we can see that 84.6% of them agree with its installment.
Hence, it is also the lack of proper acknowledgement of the issue of Environment Sustainability
and the reach of its significance and awareness is not yet expanded as it has to be by now. If we
look at its popularity, the ecotels are preferred by any literate traveler, travelling for any purpose,
they have a common understanding to prefer what benefits the environment as well. But this is a
choice they have and not a compulsion which makes the difference. If every hotel is having
optimum eco-friendly methods then the guest would not deny following the trend and preferring
and recommending the same every time.
The current ecotels of Mumbai are having smooth sailings and they do comply by their guest
requirements in an ecofriendly manner. There is scope for such practices being into action
everywhere. It can also reach the small scale restaurants too which will be beneficial. It will be
gradual, the trend will be set and enacted eventually by everyone as it is a metropolitan city.

SUGGESTIONS
Few of the suggestions are:
 Awareness with the proper counseling every weekdays conducted by the training
department to every employee.
 Strict measures and stricter actions against the violator.
 Advertisement and brand enhancement.
 Making the standards easy and understandable so that the guests can also be easily
convinced to perform it.
 Acknowledging every successful step taken towards the environmental sustainability for
example, making the task award/appraisal based for the staff.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

This study was compiled by referring the following sources of information.

tripadvisor.com
www.greenhotelier.org https://www.hospitalitynet.org
https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org https://business.directenergy.com
https://soultravelblog.com https://www.muenzer.in
https://executivetraveller.in
https://www.greenhotelier.org