Planet vs. Plastics - City Lodge Hotels’ eco-initiatives make sustainability easy

JOHANNESBURG: World Earth Day 2024 on 22 April is themed “Planet vs. Plastics” and City Lodge Hotels is proud of its achievements in this area, notably in its hotel bathrooms. Since August 2020, our bathroom amenities have been free from single-use plastic, thanks to our partnership with The Bespoke Amenities Company, and this is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to sustainability initiatives across our 59 hotels.Did you know that staying at any City Lodge Hotels property makes you an eco-warrior? Let’s us unpack that bold claim:

• 41 out of our 59 hotels have solar renewable energy systems, with a total generating capacity of 2.6MW or 16.3% of the group's energy requirements, with the remainder of the hotels to follow
• Battery storage has been added to 2 hotels as part of a battery pilot program
• Our water supply resilience strategy has delivered a further 3 new boreholes and filtration plants, bringing the total number of such installations to 7, and a further 14 filtration plants are planned to existing boreholes
• We are committed to the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), focusing on 9 priority goals
• Hydration Stations at all hotels offer free, filtered, magnesium-enriched still and sparkling water, reducing plastic water bottle waste.
• Responsible removal of waste from grease traps at all hotel restaurants by a Black-owned business that is part of our incubator programme together with SATSA, Organic Matters, owned by Siya Sigcau.

In the 2023 financial year, the group achieved

• Reduced average electricity used per occupied room: 19.5 kWh (2022: 22.5 kWh)
• Reduced average water used per occupied room: 0.35kl (2022: 0.39kl)
• Increased energy produced by solar/PV systems: 2.2 million kWh (2022: 2.1m kWh)
• Commitment to cage-free eggs by 2025: 65% currently (2022: 55%)

Lindiwe Sangweni-Siddo, chief operating officer of City Lodge Hotels, says, “By proactively addressing the challenges of climate change, we can reduce our environmental footprint and attract a growing market of eco-conscious consumers. Our sustainability committee leads the action plan, which includes installing more solar panels, ongoing single-use plastic minimisation, environmental awareness training, and various initiatives improving water and energy-saving, waste management and recycling, and green buildings.”

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