Christchurch’s green accommodation recognised

Recipients of the prestigious new environmental rating from Qualmark include Gothic Heights Motel, Copthorne Hotel Christchurch Central and Hadleigh, all located in the inner city, Huntley House in Upper Riccarton, Airport Delta Motel near Christchurch International Airport, and Akaroa Criterion Motel and Wilderness House, both located in Akaroa.

Gothic Heights Motel, Copthorne Hotel Christchurch Central, Hadleigh, Huntley House and Akaroa Criterion Motel have all been awarded Enviro-Silver logos, and Airport Delta Motel and Wilderness House Enviro-Bronze logos.

Christine Prince, Chief Executive of Christchurch & Canterbury Tourism said they are leading by example and helping cement Canterbury as a great destination for ecoconscious visitors who want an experience of a life-time.

“We are delighted so many of our accommodation providers are embracing the Qualmark Enviro-logos opportunity and earning our region accolades for their best practice.”

Geoff Penrose, Chief Executive of Qualmark, said the seven Garden City accommodation providers were an excellent example to other businesses of how environmentally responsible activities can best be fully integrated into day to-day operations.

“This is an impressive achievement for these Christchurch accommodation operators who have taken the lead in environmental sustainability,” said Mr Penrose.

“Achieving these logos is testament to how each of these properties has fully integrated sustainable practices into their daily business and service offering to customers. The achievement of these Enviro-logos is evidence of what can be achieved through a business-wide approach to socially responsible and environmentally friendly practices.

“On behalf of Qualmark, I extend my sincere congratulations to the operators and management teams of each of these properties.”

Mr Penrose said the announcement of the first Enviro-logo recipients marked a significant milestone for the Qualmark Green programme, which was unveiled by the Minister of Tourism in May 2008 as an extension of environmental criteria in Qualmark’s quality accreditation system.

“New Zealand is the first country to have a fully integrated quality and environmental performance tourism assurance system. The industry has responded positively to the initiative, with many more operators aiming to achieve recognition in coming months for their efforts through the Enviro-logos,” he said.

“Feedback from our first Enviro-logo recipients confirms that good business practices can result in actions that are also good for the environment.”

From August this year, all tourism businesses with a Qualmark are having their environmental performance assessed as part of their overall quality assessment. After scoring well in the Responsible Tourism Operations criteria, operators are eligible to apply for an Enviro-logo: Enviro-Gold, Enviro-Silver or Enviro-Bronze. Further Enviro-logos will be awarded as more Qualmark businesses are assessed.