Vacations Blog

In Part I, we learnt a bit about LEED certification, along with facts and statistics about LEED certified hotels, and the resultant benefits for the hoteliers. In this part, we’ll consider the hassles and problems associated with constructing and running a green hotel.I also asked Mr. Yuan-Sing Chang, who runs the green development wing of the Gaia Napa Valley, that if LEED certification is all that its made out to be, with potential benefits of millions of dollars in additional income, cost savings, and tax rebates, then why are so few hotels interested in it?

He says that a lot of developers build the hotels and then flip them off when they are complete, and that it does not make sense for them to pursue LEED certification because of the extra costs and time factor. This would make sense from a business angle even if the company that built the hotel is planning on running it.

According to a presentation by the Green Building Finance Consortium (GBFC), the actual costs of LEED certification (not including the certification fees) go up as per the certification level sought. The base level of LEED certification pushes up the initial cost by 0.8%, while initial costs for Silver ratings is 3.5% higher, LEED Gold buildings have a 4.5% premium and Platinum buildings can push up costs by as much as 11.5 percent.

So what it comes down to is the initial extra investment of time and resources necessary to get the certification, as opposed to the many benefits once you get the certification. Hopefully, this balance will tilt in favor of certification as more and more hotels need it, and the costs go down.

One way to streamline the certification process and speed it up is to hire some LEED Accredited Professionals (LEED AP). As of date, there are more than 43,000 accredited professionals. You can search for LEED APs in your area in the Green Building Certification Institute’s directory.

There are also companies like the San Francisco based Simon & Associates, who act as ‘green building consultants’. Their roster of clients who have achieved LEED certification include Berkeley City College, University of California – Merced Campus, and the Gaia Napa Valley, among others.

As of today, LEED is the definitive proof that consumers are looking at to decide whether a hotel is green enough. I’d like to add that a very influential group – The Global Partnership for Sustainable Tourism Criteria - comprising of 27 major travel industry companies and non-profit environment groups, have come together and developed a new expansive standard for sustainable tourism, which was unveiled at the recently concluded 10 day IUCN World Conservation Congress in Barcelona, attended by delegations from 177 countries.

The standard (GSTC for short), takes into account all existing major standards already in use, and was developed after extensive consultation with experts, academics and private industry.

Its still a work in progress, but if you look at some of the players involved – The American Hotel & Lodging Association (AH &LA), American Society of Travel Agents (ASTI), United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), Choice Hotels, Conde Nast Traveler, Expedia, Inc., Hyatt Hotels and Resorts, Travelocity/Sabre, and many more, I can tell you for sure that this is going to be the future of the travel industry.

Photo of the LEED Platinum Certified Proximity hotel courtesy Quaintance-Weaver Restaurants and Hotels.