Australian hotels embrace renewable energy
More and more Australian hotels are switching over to renewable energy.
Part of it is about attracting eco-conscious travellers.
But a lot of it is for practical reasons too.
“At remote hotels that generate their power onsite with diesel generators, the advantages of renewables are most obvious,” Thomas Hillig, managing director of THEnergy sustainable consulting told The Guardian.
“Diesel gensets are loud and emit hazardous exhaust gas. In addition, trucks that transport the diesel to the hotel cause additional annoyance. Wind and especially solar energy are clean and less noisy than diesel gensets. After they are constructed, fuel deliveries are not required.”
A number of hotel operators are starting to realise that solar and tidal capacity can be used in beach getaways while wind and geothermal power potential can provide the energy for mountainside hot spring resorts.
It’s also proving to be a cheaper way to provide power.
One example is ecotourism destination Flinders Island. It is in the process of installing a tidal energy system using the waves that batter its coastline. It’s important for a remote location like King Island which would normally rely on expensive diesel fuel to supply its electricity,
Another one is Wolgan Valley Resort up in the Blue Mountains near Sydney. It relies on turbine pumps to provide water for guests from a nearby dam.
Of course, there are some that have taken to attract eco-focused travellers. Examples include Lady Elliot Island Eco Resort in Queensland. It promotes its solar as part of its campaign to save the Great Barrier Reef. And then there are the 1.8MW of solar panels installed at Ayers Rock Resort.
But it’s not just the remote locations that are getting into it. The Accor Group hotels at Sydney Olympic Park use solar thermal power.
And hostel chain YHA Australia has solar hot water systems at Adelaide Central, Byron Bay, Cairns Central, Glebe Point, Pittwater, Grampians Eco Lodge, Melbourne Metro and Alice Springs.
by Leon Gettler, November 15th 2016
