Adoption of Green Practices in Hotel Industry in Sri Lanka An Evaluation Based on the Green SL Rating System

Abstract

Greening is no more a new concept to the industries due to unstoppable pressure that has being placing from government and non-government organizations to implement sustainable approaches throughout the business management procedures. Adopting green practices has become inevitable for hotel industry since customers have become sensitive when making purchasing decisions thereby giving priority for green hotels. The Green Building Council of Sri Lanka (GBCSL) has introduced Green SL rating system including eight categories to evaluate the green aspects that have to be followed by new buildings and existing buildings in order to go green. The objective of this research study was to evaluate the green aspects that are being adopted by the existing hotel buildings in Colombo City. Green aspects of star class hotels were evaluated by studying three hotels located in the city of Colombo. Structured interviews were conducted with green associates and hotel executives to address the challenges of implementing green practices in the hotel industry. Results of the evaluation revealed that adoption of green practices in existing buildings are at a lower level as per the GBCSL rating system. The findings of this research study revealed that city hotels have not been able to meet the criterions of Green SL rating system to a satisfactory level. Green practices have been adopted in hotels to maintain the indoor environmental quality in existing building. Higher cost involved in renovation, sensitivity to seasonality, lack of awareness of going green and lack of interest were identified as key challenges in greening hotels. The findings of this study suggest that successful implementation of green practices in hotel industry is primarily depends on management support, staff awareness and staff engagement.