Hotel Association of Canada

Green Key Eco-Rating Program - www.greenkeyglobal.com

The Green Key Eco-Rating Program is a graduated rating system designed to recognize hotels, motels, and resorts that are committed to improving their fiscal and environmental performance.

Based on the results of a comprehensive environmental audit, hoteliers are awarded a 1-5 Green Key rating and given guidance on how to "unlock" opportunities to reduce operating costs and environmental impacts through reduced utility consumption, employee training, and supply chain management. Members also benefit from powerful sales, marketing, public relations, and team building opportunities, not to mention positive feedback from guests.

The Green Key Eco-Rating Program is a voluntary program, although hoteliers are encouraged to participate, not only for the health of the planet but also for the ‘health’ of their business. Energy retrofits do lead to significant monetary savings over the long run. The program is open to any lodging property in Canada and the United States.

The Green Key Eco-Rating Program is now available in French

The Green Key Audit

The Green Key Eco-Rating Program is unique in that it is administered entirely on-line. Once a hotelier has registered for the program, they are granted instant access to the member section of the Green Key website which includes the online audit.

The audit consists of 5 sections: Corporate Environmental Management, Housekeeping, Food & Beverage Operations, Conference & Meeting Facilities and Engineering. Each section is comprised of a number of “multiple choice”-style questions related to the following nine areas of sustainable hotel operations:

Energy conservation
Water conservation
Solid waste management
Hazardous waste management
Indoor air quality
Community outreach
Building infrastructure
Land use
Environmental management

Each question has been designated a specific value based on the environmental and social impacts of a particular action and its associated impact on guests, employees, management, and the local community.

The audit also takes limited-service hotels into consideration – in situations where a lodging property does not offer either Food & Beverage Services and/or Conference & Meeting Facilities, the hotelier is given the option to indicate that this is not applicable to their operation. The audit is designed to take this into account when tallying their final score and their final score is not affected.

Within minutes of completing the audit, the Green Key system calculates the property’s rating and sends a congratulatory email. A property-specific report highlighting accomplishments and recommendations, as well as a Green Key plaque, is then forwarded to the property.

Rating Descriptions

1 Green Key	A hotel that has taken steps to reduce environmental impacts by analyzing its operations and identifying opportunities for improvement. An action plan focusing on resource conservation and waste minimization has been established, and is supported by a firm commitment to continual improvement.
2 Green Keys	A hotel that has taken considerable strides to identify environmental impacts and implement policies and programs to minimize its ecological footprint. A firm commitment to continual improvement has resulted in programs and actions that have shown effective results.
3 Green Keys	A hotel that has taken significant steps to protect the environment. Strong environmental programs, best management practices, training programs, and engineering solutions have been implemented which have benefited the environment and the local community.
4 Green Keys	A hotel that has shown national industry leadership and commitment to protecting the environment through wide ranging policies and practices. Hotel has mature programs in place that involve management, employees, guests, and the public, and which have shown substantial and measurable results.
5 Green Keys	A hotel that exemplifies the highest standards of environmental and social responsibility throughout all areas of operations. The hotel employs cutting edge technologies, policies, and programs that set the international standard for sustainable hotel operations.

The Hotel Association of Canada (HAC) and the Quebec Hotel Association (QHA) join their voices to encourage hoteliers to reduce their ecological footprint by using one of the two programs offered in Québec, Clé verte or Réservert. Launched in November 2007, RéserVert is a sustainable development (society, economy and environment) recognition program based on continuous training and personalized support. It does require the active involvement of the entire team in order to maintain and increase the number of actions every year. The RéserVert program helps to increase a hotel’s Green Key rating. For more information on this partnership click here or visit the RéserVert web site at www.reservert.com.