PORTLAND, ORE.—Highlighting day two (February 22) of the sixth annual Sustainable Meetings Conference at the Doubletree Hotel in Portland was a “Sustainable Meetings Standards” session summarizing the progress of the Green Meetings and Events Voluntary Standards. The lodging industry is anxiously awaiting the completion of the standards—the result of an effort led by the Convention Industry Council’s Accepted Practices Exchange (APEX), the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Green Meeting Industry Council (GMIC), and ASTM International. According to Lawrence Leonard, APEX program director and a session panelist, the industry will have to wait a little more. “The standards are very close [to completion],” he said. The standards have completed the APEX consensus process and are now being balloted through the ASTM International consensus process.
“Standards organizations are very bureaucratic, and there are many philosophical approaches to consider,” added Sue Tinnish, principal, SEAL, Inc. and a session panelist.
As of January 10, 90 percent of the standards had been approved. During the public comment period, 165 negative comments were received. They have been whittled down to 100. Each of them will be responded to and voted on by approximately March 7. Comments were received from all types of meeting stakeholders, including “legacy interests”—suppliers who could be impacted by the standards. “The comments have created a much stronger standard,” Tinnish said.
The voluntary standards are meant to be used as a guide for those planning and hosting meetings in the United States as well as internationally. There will be no policing body to make sure they are followed but those who ignore them risk losing significant business. Over the past few years, private corporations, nonprofits, governmental organizations and others have increasingly been including environment-related requirements in their requests for proposal. There are nine individual topic areas that comprise the standards. Sections include Accommodations, Audio Visual, Communication, Exhibits, Food and Beverage, On-site Office, Destinations, Meeting Venue, and Transportation. Some of the sections could receive final approval and be released before others.
Not a ‘Silver Bullet’
The standards are not a “silver bullet,” Tinnish said, but a “living document” that will change over time.
To help those in the lodging industry understand the standards once they are released, Leonard says guidance material will be made available. Eventually, learning the standards could be made a requirement as part of becoming a Certified Meeting Planner or other credential.
The Green Meetings and Events Voluntary Standards are just one of several groups of standards and systems that meeting planners and site operators will be able to look to for guidance. During the panel discussion, ISO 20121 and the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) were also discussed. ISO 20121 is a sustainable event management system due out for public comment in April. It is expected to be released in 2012. GRI just released sustainability reporting guidelines for event organizers and MPI is making its Sustainable Event Management Tool (SEMT) available for free to meeting planners and other meeting stakeholders.
“You have to choose which standard will be best for your organization,” Tinnish said.
The Green Meetings and Events Voluntary Standards have come a long way since 2004, when the Convention Industry Council appointed a green meeting task force that produced a white paper of best practices for suppliers and planners. Seven years later, the standards are finally close to completion. Be sure to continue to visit Green Lodging News for updates.
Glenn Hasek can be reached at editor@greenlodgingnews.com.
