The key contributors included 150 lakh water bottles, 15
lakh straws, 8 lakh stirrers, 8 lakh toothbrushes, 7 lakh earbuds and 3 lakh
shoe shine.
To mitigate this consumption, it now procures more than 75%
paper, stationery and wood from Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified
suppliers, preferring local vendors.
It is not alone. Another stalwart, IHCL, has replaced
plastic straws from all its hotels and has installed bottling water plants at
15 properties, thereby eliminating 0.2 million kilograms of plastic. It aims to
further reduce and eventually stop the use of single-use plastic in product
packaging. Additionally, IHCL has launched the country’s first ever ‘Zero
Single-Use Plastic Hotel’, Taj Exotica Resort & Spa, Andamans.
There is a reason why these leading lights of the
hospitality industry are literally up in arms against single-use plastics.
India is the third largest generator of greenhouse gas emissions, according to
The Wire’s recent report and household waste generates about 1.9% of the total
emissions. Plastic products produced 17.8 million metric ton (MMT) of total
waste in 2018, and is expected to cross 20MMT in 2021. Of this, 58% goes to the
landfill or is termed as waste. The government targets to collect and recycle
60% of this by 2030.
However, recycling alone cannot work wonders in waste management.
What is required is substitute for these plastic products, which can work
parallel to recycling.
Come 2022, and the government plans to impose a permanent
ban on the 1st phase of single-use plastic products. This will force most hotel
companies to rethink their approach towards these products, be it straws,
bottles or packaging. Brands like ITC Hotels and IHCL already have a headstart
on them.
THE BIG SHIFT
Since it is evident that plastic pollution is an
environmental crisis of mammoth proportions, hotel companies need to mitigate
its impact by replacing single-use plastic products of high use with
sustainable options on priority. Many are taking several steps to reduce the
consumption of single-use plastic, a move that is much needed. They can start
small, by shifting to zero-waste solutions by eliminating plastic toothbrush
and plastic toothpaste tubes.
Explaining why Vaibhav Gupta, Founder, Earthum said, “These
tubes can only be recycled when there is a proper infrastructure from disposal
to break down and then recycling at the right place. Once they enter the
landfills the other dump covers them and it is a hassle to segregate.”
Given the growing awareness of environmentalism, several
plastic-free alternatives are now easily available. Bamboo toothbrushes are a
great plastic-free alternative that won’t harm the environment and can be
disposed off guilt free. Using a natural resource made from the earth that is
durable, water resistant, antimicrobial, and biodegradable is a great advantage
as it won’t be sitting around for 1000 years wasting away and won’t pollute
after being disposed of.
with toothpaste tablets. These do not contain any chemical ingredients and
require less water consumption during the pre-brushing process. Considering the
stringent hygiene consciousness that most hotels follow, brands like Earthum
provide recyclable paper pouch with two tablets.
A guest can use this to brush in the day and night. This
minimalises the wastage of the toothpaste left in a tube after a guest uses it
a couple of times. Moreover, it prevents these plastic tubes from clogging up
the landfill.
Earthum’s Co-Founder, Tanishq Gupta pointed out that the
process of brushing using toothpaste tabs remains almost the same as normal
brushing. “You just end up saving little water with every brushing. On the
other hand, even if hotels use toothpaste tubes made from recycled plastic, it
can only be recycled up to three times and will eventually end up in the
landfill,” he stated.
So, a small move of replacing toothpaste tubes
with tabs can enable the hospitality industry to take a huge cooperative step
forward towards sustainability. What’s more, they are cost-effective and
efficient. Surely, this is another great incentive to put your money where your
mouth is, literally! Courtesy: www.hotelierindia.com
