Green Key and DIVELLO partnership to save water and energy

This partnership will help Green Key establishments optimizing, improving energy efficiency and extend the life of existing sanitary and heating installations.

In hotels, large amounts of energy and water are consumed unnecessarily. Sanitary and heating installations are often replaced, although with simple steps you can optimize and extend the lifespan of the existing installations.

Divello offers products to optimize existing sanitary and heating installations in properties (shower, tap, WC and radiator). Divello quickly became a leading product company in Scandinavia within their business area thanks to their independence, high-quality products and close cooperation with market-leading partners in production, distribution and installation. Individual tap sites have reduced their showers and tap water and energy consumption by up to 60% thanks to Divello products.

We are very proud to enter a partnership with Green Key. A strong brand, a global presence and the enthusiastic team at Green Key in combination with Divello high-quality products secures a water and energy efficient future. This partnership ensures a win, win, win situation for the Green Key establishments, their guests and especially the environment. Niclas Ryhage, Managing Director – DIVELLO AB (Stockholm 10/12-2019).

The agreement between Divello and Green Key will provide Green Key establishments with the tools to reduce their water and energy consumption and in this way contribute to spreading more sustainable practices in the hospitality industry.

Denmark Farm sets the standard for environmental tourism in Wales

Denmark Farm Conservation Centre has made a great start to 2016 by being the first organisation in Ceredigion to gain an internationally recognised environmental accreditation and finishing 2nd in the International Green Key Best Practice Competition.

Left to right: Emily Wells from Keep Wales Tidy (Green Key), Mara Morris from Denmark Farm. 

Denmark Farm Conservation Centre is run by the Shared Earth Trust, a registered charity established in 1987 in direct response to the national decline in wildlife habitat and biodiversity of farmland. As well as offering eco-friendly self-catering lodges and campsite, Denmark Farm run a programme of events and workshops developed to engage people with wildlife, sustainable living and natural crafts, ensuring that the environment is at the heart of everything they do.

The Eco Lodge is located in 40 acres of nature reserve with trails around the site leading to wildlife watching hides, ponds, lakes, and meadows, woodland all designed to engage and educate. Rainwater is harvest for use in the toilets and the Sedum roof of the lodge creates a natural habitat for wildlife and insects. The lodges are all heated by a biomass boiler and much of the furniture is made locally.

Denmark Farm Facilities and Events Manager, Mara Morris, says:

"As a conservation charity (The Shared Earth Trust) we were attracted to gain a Green Key Award for our Self-Catering Eco Lodge because Green Key Wales is managed by the environmental charity Keep Wales Tidy. Our ongoing work on the Environmental Action Plan has helped us to consider aspects of sustainability we had never touched upon before and further develop our green offering. Many thanks to Keep Wales Tidy and Green Key Wales for running this excellent and much needed programme".

Ceredigion is known as an area of natural beauty and enjoys a rich tourism industry throughout the year. Ann Eleri Jones of Ceredigion Tourism says:

“Denmark Farm is leading the way for other tourism businesses in Ceredigion.  We hope that other Ceredigion businesses will follow their lead and gain Green Key accreditation to help put Ceredigion on the international map for sustainable tourism.”

Despite the fact that they only got Green Key accredited at the beginning of the year, they already won 2nd place in the Green Key Best Practice competition in February with their WET (Wetland Ecosystem Treatment) System. A system for treating waste water using natural processes.

A WET System has specially designed and constructed ponds and earth banks, densely planted with wetland trees and marginal plants.  As wastewater flows through, it is both purified by microbiological action and transpired by growing plants.  In the process, a beautiful, species-rich wildlife habitat is created, including a willow resource that can be used for basketry, hurdles, garden features or fuel, depending on the coppice cycle.

Additionally, a WET System requires minimal imports of resources – the site’s soil (rather than quarried gravel) filters the wastewater, fossil fuels are only consumed during construction and there is no ongoing electricity use.  In fact, the whole process increases in efficiency over time, as new soil builds up and root systems extend – both of which also increase carbon dioxide storage as biomass, whereas conventional treatment systems need regular maintenance and energy inputs.

‘This ecosystem approach fits our philosophy of working with, rather than against nature. And the beauty of it is that we have fewer costs and many benefits. So why aren’t these systems more common?  One hurdle may be lack of familiarity, which is where we come in.  Our WET System is the first in Ceredigion and one of only a few in Wales – so far!  As a demonstration site, we can show statutory bodies, trainees and visitors the potential for farms and other industries that have liquid organic waste. With biodiversity benefiting too, the future looks bright for wetland wildlife,’ states James Kendall from Denmark Farm. 

A detailed description of the system will soon be available under resources as part of the Best Practice publication. 

Green Key awarded Sheraton Tel Aviv in the forefront of water and energy savings

The Green Key awarded Sheraton Tel Aviv has been working in the last few years with the latest technologies available of environmental and sustainable development that are environment friendly and cost effective.

The Phoebus system is a groundbreaking technology company that combines new innovation of high-tech technology with old cooling technology. This technology is called Hydra Balance, and is a hybrid water system managed by smart cloud software.

The system is composed of Hydra Balance units, Hydra Monitoring & Control Module, and Hydra Monitoring & Control Cloud Software. The Hydra Balance unit is a designated water source heat pump, which pumps the thermal energy from the cold water A/C loop, and uses it to heat the water in a hot sanitary water loop. The Hydra Balance reduces energy costs not only by producing heat energy, but also by reducing the Air Conditioning electricity consumption. The system’s performance since the installation 15 months ago has shown a saving of 61% in energy and a reduction of 90% in diesel fuel consumption. 

Another example is the SmarTap mixing valve. SmarTap E-Valve technology (patented digital shower system) enables online controlling and monitoring of shower water and inline pressure, that can save water usageand energy, while maintaining a luxurious shower experience.

Last but not least is the water treatment plant, where the hotel is able to control and monitor everything that goes into the sewage system with the help of bacteria and a strainer the separates the substance that goes to the sewage. 

Moroccan mountain eco-lodge installing a water purification system

The Eco-lodge “Atlas Kasbah”, having had the Green Key eco-label since 2008, has worked on the cleaning of its wastewater.

The Atlas Kasbah Eco-lodge, located in the Atlas mountains in Morocco, has installed a system for the cleaning of its wastewater. The pre-treatment of the greywater aims to eliminate airborne particles and optimize the quality of the discharge before cleaning. The cleaning system thereafter relies on gravity and a thin layer of compact clay are sealing the water flow.  In addition to conventional material, the hotel tests the use of a layer of natural sand containing titanium oxide and a layer of anthracite coal, thus constituting the originality of the process in this pilot project.

During the three years of its existence, the system has showed a satisfactory performance in terms of filtering and therefore water quality output. The physico-chemical tests indicate that the filtered water is suitable for water irrigation of trees.