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Going plastic-free at RockResorts

By Joe Ascanio

March 17th, 2010

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Popular lodging company RockResorts has set in motion ambitious plans to eliminate nearly all plastic water bottles on its properties – expecting to save an estimated 640,000 plastic water bottles from the waste stream.

Plastic bottles – specifically of the bottled water variety – have earned some notoriety in the green consumer circles. Having been accused (and often rightly so) of greenwashing their efforts to be environmentally responsible, eco-advocates have encouraged the slashing and in some cases boycott of bottled water altogether.

And now it looks like “Water on the Rocks” – a new environmental program by hotel industry leader(s) RockResorts and Vail Resorts Hospitality, is following suit.

The Rocks program calls for the elimination of nearly all plastic water bottles from guest rooms and offers hotel guests reusable water bottles with refilling stations. With this program in place, RockResorts properties from Vail to St. Lucia and Vail Resorts Hospitality properties in all four Colorado mountain resorts – Vail, Keystone, Breckenridge, and Beaver Creek – are expecting to save an estimated 640,000 plastic water bottles from the waste stream.

According to Julie Klein, director of environmental affairs for Vail Resorts Hospitality, national recycling rates indicate that less than 20 percent of plastic bottles are recycled each year across the country.

“Although RockResorts supports guest room and resort-wide recycling programs, we felt as if we needed to do more,” she said. “We are proud to take a leadership position in launching our ‘Water on the Rocks’ program at all of our hotel properties over a period of time with the goal of eliminating nearly all disposable plastic water bottles.”

As part of the program, two pre-filled glass bottles are placed in each guest room daily and refreshed as needed during daily housekeeping or by request. These bottles are sanitized and replaced each night with filtered water as needed.

Guests on the go will also have the option to purchase stylish, reusable RockResorts logoed water bottles (BPA-free plastic or stainless steel) for $4 at hotel front desks or spas that can be refilled at water refilling locations around each property. In many resort locations, guests will be treated to filtered flavored water (such as cucumber or lemon).

Klein estimates that by eliminating 640,000 plastic bottles from resort operations, the program will save nearly 4,000 barrels of oil that would be required to manufacture and ship the plastic bottles.

Rock Resorts

The new “Water on the Rocks” program was designed by the RockResorts “Tap Force” to eliminate 99 percent of plastic water bottles in both guest rooms and food and beverage operations, and is part of RockResorts Echo, which is the company’s corporate stewardship program and also includes employee volunteerism, charitable giving and other environmental initiatives, such as:

A companywide sustainable cuisine program called Appetite for Life
A green guest rooms program
A voluntary guest donation program that benefits local conservation efforts
The introduction of green weddings and meetings
Plus, other initiatives like energy conservation and one of the country’s largest forest health restoration project with the Forest Service and volunteer groups

“Our guests visit RockResort properties to enjoy the iconic natural settings from the beaches of St. Lucia to the legendary Back Bowls of Vail,” said Paul Toner, senior vice president & chief operating officer of RockResorts and Vail Resorts Hospitality. “Ensuring that our guests feel good while visiting our resorts includes staying properly hydrated. Quality and convenience for our guests is paramount and this program balances our commitment to providing excellent guest service with conserving natural resources and reducing our environmental footprint. We hope that as a company, our efforts will set an example within the industry and become a win-win for all.”

For more information about this program or the other sustainable programs, visit www.rockresorts.com.

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Read more about: greenwashing, recycling, RockResorts, Vail Resorts, water

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About the Author

Joe is a full time web designer, developer and marketing guy working in the online travel technology marketplace. TerraCurve.com is his personal project - an avenue of creativity that combines his beliefs in social responsibility with both professional and personal experience.

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MidoriC

I think this is a really cool and exciting idea - but I approach it with a bit of caution.
Traveling with small children, being an active person and knowing how absentminded I am, I have often relied on plastic water bottles to keep my family and me properly lubricated. While we use bulk water stations at home and work and I have reusable water bottles fairly overflowing from our cabinets, I still find I often need the plastic things when on the go (yes, I did mention how absentminded I am). Rest assured, we collect and recycle each and every plastic bottle!
I can only imagine juggling a baby needing a bottle in the middle of the night and finding that someone had used the last of the glass bottles and I didn't have access to a plastic bottle of water. Needless to say, I'd be less than pleased.

I totally respect their idea and initiative, but I think it needs to be crafted with extreme care and thoughtfulness. We have to be aware that we're balancing a quality of life for humans (I would say that the need and desire for drinking water could be claimed to be a health and comfort issue) for the sake of "the" environment - that's what has created such harsh critics of the green movement.
As an example, I would suggest that guests have access to water stations in guest room hallways and every public area possible. I also hope that the hotel is honest enough to fess up if the plan isn't working and explore how they can make it better - rather than scrapping the program altogether.

I look forward to seeing the program unfold and I hope the outcome can be duplicated with great results!!
Joe Ascanio

Very vaild points, Midori. I think that our basic nature has probably forever changed due to the abundant access to common conveniences like plastic bottles - be they for water or other factors of daily life, not to mention travel. I agree - public water sources (and clean ones at that) should be made available to travelers. It will be interesting to see where these and other programs like it go in the future.