Eco-Hotel Certification Given to Two Hotels, First Achievements in Japan

The Nishitetsu Grand Hotel and the Solaria Nishitetsu Hotel in Fukuoka City, Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan, received Japan's first Eco-hotel certifications from TÜV Rheinland, a third party certification agency in Germany, on July 27, 2009, at the Fukuoka International Convention Center in Fukuoka City.

The purpose of the Eco-hotel certification is to provide global, third-party recognition for environmental conservation efforts within the tourism industry. Based on the long-time experience from the ISO certification business, TÜV Rheinland evaluates hotels based on a variety of categories, including elements of ISO 14001 (standards on environmental management) and ISO/DIS 26000 (guidance on social responsibility including organizational governance, labor practices and community involvement and development) combined with a strong focus on aspects related to energy conservation (electricity, gas, etc.), water-saving and waste management.

The two hotels in Fukuoka have been working on environmental issues since 1997, and started to compost food waste in 2005. They were praised for their efforts in reducing environmental impact by using compost-cultivated organic rice at restaurants, and also for their safety and security management in disaster prevention and hygiene control.

Since the Eco-hotel certification is effective in promoting cost reduction, enhancing competitiveness and enhancing assets by raising credibility, it is spreading around the world and now expected to grow throughout Japan.

TÜV Rheinland Japan official website
http://www.tuv.com/jp/en/

Posted: 2009/11/24 06:00:15 AM