DENVER, June 16, 2004 - It's not easy to be
an environmental leader when recycling facilities are often on the other
side of a mountain pass and your laundry load exceeds 2.5 million pounds
each year. Because of the endless challenges of operating sustainable facilities
in the world's first national park, employees of concessioner Xanterra
Parks & Resorts in Yellowstone National Park have had to find uncommon
answers to common environmental challenges.
"Catchwords around here are 'recycle,' 'reuse' and 're-think," said
Jim Hanna, environmental affairs director for Xanterra Parks & Resorts
in Yellowstone. "Traditional environmental programs don't always work when
your operations include more than 2,000 guest rooms, 14 restaurants, housing
for 2,600 employees, transportation centers, a huge laundry building and
many other facilities spread throughout a 2.2 million-acre park. In short,
we have to be creative."
The company has been so successful, in fact, that it is on track to
have the first employee houses in the country to be LEED-certified by the
U.S. Green Building Council. The Council provides guidelines for green
buildings and recognizes buildings with different levels of LEED (Leadership
in Energy and Environmental Design) certification, based on a point system.
The buildings are located in Gardiner, Mont., and will be the first buildings
in the state to have LEED certification. They're also the first in Gardiner
outfitted with solar electric panels.
In addition, the company will receive ISO 14001 certification later
this summer. ISO 14001 is an international Environmental Management System
(EMS) standard published in 1996 by the International Organization for
Standardization (ISO). The goal of ISO 14001 is to support and recognize
environmental protection and pollution prevention through the implementation
of continuous improvement initiatives in a rigorous management framework.
While currently widespread in Europe and Japan, the certification is relatively
new in the U.S.
Xanterra's environmental management system - called Ecologix - is rooted
in the company's long-held belief that all business decisions must balance
economic viability with ecological responsibility. At Yellowstone, environmental
initiatives within the EMS include:
-
Recycling cardboard, aluminum and mixed paper from throughout the park
and transporting it to a common collection station in Gardiner, Mont. In
2003, Xanterra recycled 550,000 pounds of material including six tons of
aluminum and steel cans, 63 tons of glass, 128 tons of cardboard and 58
tons of mixed paper. The company also recycled used automotive batteries,
household alkaline batteries, Freon, antifreeze and paint solvents.
-
Publishing a sustainability report to document the company-wide results
of Xanterra's environmental management program. Xanterra is the first national
park hospitality company to publish such a report and also the first company
in the entire tourism industry to create quantifiable environmental performance
metrics specific to hospitality.
-
Saving 3,500 gallons of water daily by installing tunnel washers in the
laundry and using an innovative water recovery system. With an annual laundry
load in excess of 2,558,000 pounds of laundry, the company has implemented
a variety of other water-saving initiatives, including asking guests to
re-use towels and linens in order to minimize water and detergent use.
-
Purchasing cleaner-burning and efficient four-stroke outboard engines for
the rental boats on Yellowstone Lake. Older two-stroke engines burning
an oil/gas mixture have been phased out.
-
Burning used engine oil from the fleet operation as heating oil in the
transportation center. This "energy reclamation" for motor oil eliminates
the need for other disposal methods and reduces the demand for additional
heating fuels and sources.
-
Reusing cardboard boxes and packing materials for mail orders and deliveries
whenever possible.
-
Using bulk dispensers in all fast-food operations instead of individually
packaged condiments.
-
Reusing worn terry cloth as cleaning towels.
-
Setting office printers and copiers to double-sided copies.
-
Donating worn bed fabrics and soap products collected from guest rooms
to charitable organizations.
-
Leasing 45 new four-stroke snowmobiles that are 65 percent more fuel efficient,
reduce hydrocarbon emissions and generate significantly less noise than
two-stroke engines.
-
Using bulk liquid soap dispensers in campground restrooms and shower facilities.
-
Reusing old guest room furniture in offices.
-
Installing recycling receptacles in guest outlets.
-
Reducing energy use by replacing more than 17,000 incandescent light bulbs
with efficient, long-lasting compact fluorescent bulbs.
-
Replacing older vehicles from the transportation department with Toyota
Echoes and hybrid Toyota Priuses.
-
Replacing short-haul maintenance and campground vehicles with zero-emission
electric carts.
-
Eliminating all Styrofoam drinking cups and replacing them with paper cups.
-
Purchasing environmentally sensitive paper products.
-
Encouraging guests to conserve heat and water and to recycle glass and
aluminum.
-
Serving Conservation Beef in Yellowstone restaurants. The beef is produced
from cows raised on natural grasses on the Western range. No growth hormones
or antibiotics are given to the animals. Meat is dry-aged to enhance flavor,
and the program supports wildlife habitat conservation in partnership with
the Nature Conservancy.
-
Offering Niman Ranch pork in Yellowstone restaurants. The pork is produced
from animals raised on sustainable lands and fed hormone-free, natural
feeds. Niman Ranch adheres to a strict code of husbandry principals.
-
Serving wild Alaska salmon instead of farmed salmon in several restaurants.
Xanterra is the first U.S. hospitality company to be granted the "Chain
of Custody" certification from the Marine Stewardship Council. This important
certification guarantees all of Xanterra's wild Alaska salmon menu items
can be traced to their source, assuring consumers that the salmon is from
a fishery that has met the Marine Stewardship Council's stringent environmental
standards.
-
Becoming a member of the Chef's Collaborative, a national network of more
than 1,000 members of the food community who promote sustainable cuisine.
The Chef's Collaborative educates chefs and consumers about local sustainable
products and practices and also works to improve the quality and taste
of sustainable food products.
-
In partnership with Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, Inc., offering organic
shade-grown Fair Trade Certified coffee in many of its restaurants.
-
Offering Silk brand organic soy milk in restaurants.
-
Implementing a Foodservice Energy Awareness Program that teaches all foodservice
employees to participate in energy conservation in a variety of ways.
-
Purchasing only recycled paper for office use and using soy-based inks.
When appropriate, paper materials are laminated so they last longer.
Xanterra Parks & Resorts, Inc. operates lodges, restaurants
and other concessions at national parks and state parks and resorts. Xanterra
is the country's largest national park concessioner. The company operates
concessions in the following locations: Yellowstone National Park, the
North and South Rims of Grand Canyon National Park, Bryce Canyon National
Park, Zion National Park, Crater Lake National Park, Death Valley National
Park, Petrified Forest National Park, Everglades National Park, and Mount
Rushmore National Memorial; and at the Silverado Resort in Napa, Calif.;
Gideon Putnam Resort & Spa in Saratoga Springs, N.Y. and eight Ohio
State Parks.
|