2734 Serenade Drive
Las Vegas, NV 89100
Memorandum
In response to a request made to my department, I have prepared an extensive list of options, alternatives, procedures and new ecologically sound methods to improve the performance of our hotel at Las Vegas. Many of similar hotels have assimilated the green concept, and implementation of these measures will help us maintain a competitive edge. The concept is broad and since the rolling all of them will require proper environmental assessment program. In this regard, I have highlighted only the important concepts that have a higher return on investment.
I will start my introducing the genesis of the concept and its importance. The environment has and plays a very important role in the provision of natural resources as world relies heavily on these resources. The new wave of globalization and increased population pressure has pushed the natural resources down thus degrading the environment. In the recent past, environmental degradation has manifested itself through unnatural weather conditions such as hurricanes, flooding and desertification. These weather disasters have been occasioned by massive destruction of property and life. In most of the areas where has been hit by these weather conditions, hundreds of people die and lose their properties. Others are rendered homeless, and business is destroyed3.
Nevertheless, the most affected business when bad weather condition struck is the tourism industry. Tourism industry is a fragile business which relies significantly on the environment. People cannot move to see tourist destination sites if it is flooded, becomes extinct due to prolonged desert conditions or destroyed by violent environmental conditions. In this light, tourism should always be on the forefront to integrate environmental sustainability practices so as to ensure the environment where they depend on remains stable and reliable3.
Some of these practices include the investing in alternative technologies, better resource uses such as reuse, recycle and reduce and putting engineering intervention measures. The facets of sustainability need to be incorporated together and work harmoniously to achieve better and desirable results. It is worth noting that with one measure would not achieve any result.
Being the chief engineer of the hotel, environmental sustainability touches the core area of the business as every facet of the industry relies on the environment. A classic example is water and tourist destination sites. Without water, housekeeping would be practically paralyzed. Similarly, if the water used is not managed well, then this would disturb the tourist destination sites such as lakes and other wetland habitats2. It is with this regard that the alternatives are outlined, and recommendations given for both a promising business and environment.The major focus is on the hotel based in Las Vegas. Las Vegas hotel is in a densely populated urban center with modern building sprawling all over. The resources are strained by the large populace and the utility facilities. One of the issues of concern is water. Water is a daily and basic need in the hotel. Alternative methods are a necessary ingredient if the business will succeed within the scarce resource environment. There are varied alternative measures that can be used to conserve water2.
Recycling of water such that the grey water is used in toilets can reduce the water usage. In the same thought, if the rain water is harnessed from the rooftops it would reduce the billing. This would cost the company the network installation pipes and save significantly on water costs. Wastewater that is generated by the hotel requires treatment and hence adding costs to the business. New methods of waste water treatment which uses biological method can be used to ensure no treatment chemicals or ponds are required. This would save the environment, and same time reduces the costs.
Another utility that has continued to consume company resources is power. The engineering structure of the hotel should allow utilization of natural light during daytime. The company can also harness the power from the sun using solar panels. This would reduce the cost incurred by electricity. Poor lighting conditions can be unfriendly to the workers and has an impact of reducing the work rate. When the system has good lighting conditions, the productivity of the employees boosted hence adding to business profitability. Needless to say, the business will avoid using fossils generated power that impact positively on the ecosystem and reduce the expenditures.
Alternative technology in terms of the machines being used can save the company resources and improve the health of the worker. Modern machines have been modified to operate at a higher efficiency which reduces the resource use. The carbon in the fuel is burnt completely and hence reduces undesirable environmental pollutions. The business would benefit three-fold with most by reducing health risks, environmental pollution and increased efficiency 4.
There should be health and occupational safety in the hotel by ensuring the maintenance and repair of machines. When the machines are not in good conditions, they tend to delay the work and cause harm to the operators. Lack of maintenance also results in environmental hazards being emitted that may impact negatively on the health of the workers besides polluting the environment. The cost of medications to the workers can be reduced if the machines are repaired and maintained.
The health and safety should also encompass the clearly labeled signs within the workplace to minimize the risk of contamination, accidents and in case of emergencies. When everything is clearly labeled, the likelihood of accidents is minimized hence saving on the resources. There should be use of safety gears in all the workplaces to minimize injuries.The tour providers require maintenance and repair of the machines so that there is no much emission and simultaneously the clients are assured of the safety and comfort. The whole system should try as much as possible to use the green energy as it is cheap and does not have negative environmental concerns. Dependence on fossils fuel has incurred heavy cost on the business as well as the environment (Holte et al. 2010)4.
The engineering interventions on structure of the building should be made to give the customer maximum rest. There should be noise absorbers as the hotel is set in a majorly urban area with high noise levels. The congestion in that city may not allow natural and healthy flow of air. The design should look forward to complimenting these two factors which would ensure the hotel becomes a place of choice. The business will benefit from increased sales of services. The hotel rooms should be designed in a way that they allow the client maximum lest by reducing noise levels and allow free air circulations4.
Outsourcing saves on business resources and time. Through outsourcing, a business can be able to offer products and service they cannot produce for themselves due to lack of resources such as machines and trained personnel. All these have been catered for when the business outsource. A case in hand is if there is production of seasonal products that the business offers. Such machines would tie the company resource while not being used to the optimal levels. They would also add to environmental concerns due to the waste generations.
Legal and statutory requirement is mandatory on a number of aspects such as environmental, health and safety of the workplace. These regulations ensure that the organizations adhere to the set guidelines. Through adhering to such protocols, the business becomes conscious of its workers and the environment at large. This helps the business to become competitive as most of the potential clients are conscious of the environment.Some of the equipments are not environmental friendly as well they may be lead to the company incurring heavy costs in terms of power, generation of waste and maintenance. In this regard, equipment selection and installation should be done on the basis of cost reduction in terms of water, power and waste generations. Energy saving bulbs can be a prime alternative in lighting the hotel in Las Vegas3.
In the recent past, the management has tried much to integrate ecosystem in the tourism industry. A new concept known as ecotourism regards the environment with the at most integrity and aims to do business while conserving the environment. Some of the actions taken by the ecotourism have seen sound sustainability integrated with the system. A particular emphasis is laid by maintaining ecology within business operation zones. For instances, hotels have maintained eco-habitat within the area of operations. The landscaping is maintained by ensuring species' diversity through well-maintained lawns and introduction of a variety of species as means of adding aesthetic value among others.
The tour providers have continued to practice healthy practices such as proper waste disposal in the parks, use of low carbon emission cars and noise reduction such that the animals are not disturbed. Within the parks, the lighting poles and other utilities installed are designed to camouflage the natural environment hence reduce stress to the animals.
Industrial ecology has been another concept that has been widely used to ensure the by-products and waste generated are used just as a waste in the ecosystem is utilized through a series of metabolic actions. In this manner, there is no generation of waste as the each by-product is used as a raw material for another process. Ultimately, there is a significant reduction of waste and this save the business resources while reducing the negative environmental concerns associated with the waste generations2.
I recommend the following alternatives to be used in the business.
The business should adopt green technology. This can be achieved by engineering interventions such as erecting buildings that can be able to the harness power from wind and sun. Using of low carbon fuel and energy saving appliances. The cost incurred in terms of power would reduce and also save the environment from adverse environmental concerns.
There should be integration of legal and regulatory measures in the running of the business. Legal and regulatory measures require that the business conduct an audit of its machines hence prompting repair and maintenance. This reduces the likelihood of damage and other expenditure that can be the result if the problem is not noted in good time. The legal requirement ensures the business has best waste disposal measures. It ensures the business is operating sustainably. For instance, law requires business not to dump waste in untreated manner and a healthy ecosystem. Companies are then forced do devise their mechanism of dealing with waste. It is through regulation measures that the concept such as industrial ecology was coined and is widely applied in many businesses1.
It is with immense optimism that the ideas that I have outlined will be considered by the board of directors. These ideas have the ability of improving the business as well as encouraging sound environmental practices. Application of these services will reduce the resources use and save the already endangered environment. Therefore, the management should look forward to changing the system to more modern and friendly to habitat.
References
6Bookchin, M. The Ecology of Freedom: the emergence and dissolution of hierarchy. Oakland: AK Press, 2005.
2Cato, Scott. Green Economics. London: Earthscan, 2009.
4Daly, H. Uneconomic growth and the built environment: Reshaping the Built Environment: Ecology, Ethics, and Economic. Washington DC: Island Press, 2000.
4Holte, Laura L., Glenn N. Doty, David L. McCree, Judy M. Doty, and F. David Doty. "Sustainable Transportation Fuels From Off-peak Wind Energy, CO2 and Water." International Conference on Energy Sustainability, 2010: 23-44.
1Is Sustainability Still Possible? Jan 4, 2013. http://blogs.worldwatch.org/sustainabilitypossible/ (accessed Octomber 1, 2014).
5Ratner, B.D. ""Sustainability as a Dialogue of Values: Challenges to the Sociology of Development." Sociological Inquiry, 2004: 50-69.
