Hersha Hospitality Trust recently made its 2016 Sustainability Report (its third annual) available to the public. Results in the report relate back to 2010 when Hersha launched its EarthView program. According to Hersha, it has accumulated $6.8 million in energy savings since launching Earthview. Energy consumption per occupied room has been reduced by 19 percent. Some of those savings, according to Hersha Hospitality Trust CEO Jay H. Shah, are due to the implementation of guestroom energy management systems. Ninety-seven percent of Hersha hotels have been retrofitted with LED lighting. In 2016, approximately 10 percent of Hersha’s hotels had electric vehicle charging stations available to guests, and the company plans to increase the number of charging stations across its portfolio in the coming years. Water consumption per occupied room has been reduced by 9 percent since 2010. One of the ways Hersha has reduced water consumption is by upgrading our laundry program to utilize detergent that requires less hot water and reduces cycle times. This process decreased the use of natural gas and water associated with laundry cycles by more than 10 percent since its launch. Ninety-eight percent of Hersha’s 55 hotels have comprehensive recycling programs in place. Hersha has experienced a 45 percent reduction in waste sent to landfill since 2010.
A total of 4,700 hours have been volunteered in local communities and $1 million has been donated in support of local communities. Eighty thousand pounds of soap has been donated to Clean the World, creating 427,000 new bars sent to developing nations since 2011. In the last two years Hersha has achieved 13 Energy Star certifications and three LEED certifications across its portfolio. For the fourth time in five years, EarthView was awarded the prestigious Leader in the Light award among Lodging & Resort companies for superior portfolio-wide energy use practices and sustainability initiatives. Hersha also participated in the Global Real Estate Sustainability Benchmark (GRESB) for the fifth consecutive year, ranking in the top 3 percent of all GRESB participants globally and first among lodging peers. Ninety-three percent of Hersha Hotels have earned TripAdvisor GreenLeader status.
Hersha associates are introduced to EarthView during their initial hire orientation and larger hotels have “EcoLeader” teams that regularly meet to discuss results and opportunities.
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