Excessive one time plastic use
May 20, 2019, 4:20 am
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Dec 2013
Location: Shoreham By Sea
Programs: BAEC Gold
Posts: 1,313
Excessive one time plastic use
Just stayed in Hampton at Wichita Airport, Kansas.
Breakfast only had plastic throw away cutlery. Laziness, wasteful and totally out of touch. Is this the norm stateside?
Breakfast only had plastic throw away cutlery. Laziness, wasteful and totally out of touch. Is this the norm stateside?
May 20, 2019, 4:32 am
#2
Join Date: Nov 2017
Posts: 3,359
-James
May 20, 2019, 5:25 am
#3
Join Date: Jul 2013
Location: Gulf Coast
Programs: Hilton Honors Lifetime Diamond; National Car Rental Executive Elite
Posts: 2,318
Calm down. Good grief.
A commercial dishwasher costs $20k to $30k. Not to mention the detergent and water consumption. Oh yeah, that detergent gets discharged back to the water utility to remove from the effluent. Ongoing preventive and reactive maintenance are a significant expense, in addition to hiring someone to bus tables and wash dishes.
Single use plastic-ware is the norm in lower-end properties like Hamptons. Hamptons are gracious enough to not even wrap the plastic-ware, think of all the refuse they’re saving!
I stayed at a brand-independent Hilton property who’s sole focus during construction and operation was “minimizing impact”. Gravel parking lot, low flow shower heads, minimal exterior lighting, etc. Even here, room service came with plastic-ware.
A commercial dishwasher costs $20k to $30k. Not to mention the detergent and water consumption. Oh yeah, that detergent gets discharged back to the water utility to remove from the effluent. Ongoing preventive and reactive maintenance are a significant expense, in addition to hiring someone to bus tables and wash dishes.
Single use plastic-ware is the norm in lower-end properties like Hamptons. Hamptons are gracious enough to not even wrap the plastic-ware, think of all the refuse they’re saving!
I stayed at a brand-independent Hilton property who’s sole focus during construction and operation was “minimizing impact”. Gravel parking lot, low flow shower heads, minimal exterior lighting, etc. Even here, room service came with plastic-ware.
May 20, 2019, 6:37 am
#5
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2019
Posts: 17,964
Calm down. Good grief.
A commercial dishwasher costs $20k to $30k. Not to mention the detergent and water consumption. Oh yeah, that detergent gets discharged back to the water utility to remove from the effluent. Ongoing preventive and reactive maintenance are a significant expense, in addition to hiring someone to bus tables and wash dishes.
Single use plastic-ware is the norm in lower-end properties like Hamptons. Hamptons are gracious enough to not even wrap the plastic-ware, think of all the refuse they’re saving!
I stayed at a brand-independent Hilton property who’s sole focus during construction and operation was “minimizing impact”. Gravel parking lot, low flow shower heads, minimal exterior lighting, etc. Even here, room service came with plastic-ware.
A commercial dishwasher costs $20k to $30k. Not to mention the detergent and water consumption. Oh yeah, that detergent gets discharged back to the water utility to remove from the effluent. Ongoing preventive and reactive maintenance are a significant expense, in addition to hiring someone to bus tables and wash dishes.
Single use plastic-ware is the norm in lower-end properties like Hamptons. Hamptons are gracious enough to not even wrap the plastic-ware, think of all the refuse they’re saving!
I stayed at a brand-independent Hilton property who’s sole focus during construction and operation was “minimizing impact”. Gravel parking lot, low flow shower heads, minimal exterior lighting, etc. Even here, room service came with plastic-ware.
The mountain of garbage generated by Hampton's laziness is a relic of the past. Consumers are more aware these days. I can't see them continuing this wasteful path much longer.
May 20, 2019, 6:40 am
#6
Join Date: Feb 2013
Location: DCA
Posts: 7,769
Hampton has always been single-use in most properties in the States, unfortunately. As noted, this is almost certainly due to economic factors as it prevents Hampton properties from needing a full commercial kitchen (including dishwashing capabilities) as part of the build-out. If the properties were willing to contract to do commercial composting then this would open up some good compromise solutions (bio-plastic, bamboo, etc.).
May 20, 2019, 7:40 am
#7
Join Date: Aug 2011
Programs: Hilton Honors Diamond, IHG Spire, Marriott Titanium, Wyndham Diamond, Caesar's Diamond
Posts: 536
Hampton has always been single-use in most properties in the States, unfortunately. As noted, this is almost certainly due to economic factors as it prevents Hampton properties from needing a full commercial kitchen (including dishwashing capabilities) as part of the build-out. If the properties were willing to contract to do commercial composting then this would open up some good compromise solutions (bio-plastic, bamboo, etc.).
May 20, 2019, 7:57 am
#8
Join Date: Nov 2017
Posts: 3,359
The question of sustainability is an interesting one. I suspect most people on this forum's preconceptions of what is sustainable is fundamentally wrong. For instance, the use (and ideally reuse) of plastic bags is more environmentally friendly than using paper bags or even reusable totes. For instance, an organic cotton bag would need to be used 20,000 times before it is better for the environment than plastic bags [Source]. In addition, the use and consumption of plastic products is arguably better for the environment than the alternative: using those petrochemicals to fire up our cars and natural gas powered furnaces and electric plants!
To answer OPs question, yes the use of recyclable service items is a thin in the Americas be it with airlines or hotels. I recall coming back to Canada during XMAS and ordering a sandwich from Starbucks. When I requested a knife and a fork to cut my sandwich they gave me plastic ones. Needless to say, I went through 2 or 3 of them to enjoy the sandwich. Again, I just absolutely hate using the temporary cutlery be it on airplanes, in lounges or at hotels. Every time I cut a waffle I cut through the darn plate.
I suspect most, if not all hotels have some sort of dishwasher. At the very least, they'll need to clean service items from the room such as mugs and glasses. Even if the rooms don't have service items, the bar and on-site restaurant most likely will! Also, not all dishwashers cost tens of thousands of dollars to install, service and use. A quick gander at the Home Depot shows a qwality dishwasher can be had for < $400.
Safe Travels,
James
Safe Travels,
James
To answer OPs question, yes the use of recyclable service items is a thin in the Americas be it with airlines or hotels. I recall coming back to Canada during XMAS and ordering a sandwich from Starbucks. When I requested a knife and a fork to cut my sandwich they gave me plastic ones. Needless to say, I went through 2 or 3 of them to enjoy the sandwich. Again, I just absolutely hate using the temporary cutlery be it on airplanes, in lounges or at hotels. Every time I cut a waffle I cut through the darn plate.
I suspect most, if not all hotels have some sort of dishwasher. At the very least, they'll need to clean service items from the room such as mugs and glasses. Even if the rooms don't have service items, the bar and on-site restaurant most likely will! Also, not all dishwashers cost tens of thousands of dollars to install, service and use. A quick gander at the Home Depot shows a qwality dishwasher can be had for < $400.
Safe Travels,
James
Safe Travels,
James
May 20, 2019, 8:02 am
#9
Join Date: Apr 2016
Location: BNA (Nashville)
Programs: HH Diamond
Posts: 6,224
In Germany, Hamptons use real plates, read glasses, real coffee mugs, and real utensils.
I suspect it comes down to the economics of waste disposal vs staff and equipment to clean. And laws. And societal norms.
May 20, 2019, 10:25 am
#10
Join Date: Oct 2011
Location: Everywhere and Nowhere
Programs: Global Mercenary
Posts: 193
I laugh when I read westerners debating the pros and cons of cutlery vs the environment. The rest of the world uses their hands or wooden chopsticks which have negligible environmental effects.
Use your brain and create a sandwich from the options provided. You can always fit your breakfast between two slices of toast!!
Use your brain and create a sandwich from the options provided. You can always fit your breakfast between two slices of toast!!
May 20, 2019, 11:50 am
#11
Join Date: Feb 2013
Location: DCA
Posts: 7,769
The question of sustainability is an interesting one. I suspect most people on this forum's preconceptions of what is sustainable is fundamentally wrong. For instance, the use (and ideally reuse) of plastic bags is more environmentally friendly than using paper bags or even reusable totes. For instance, an organic cotton bag would need to be used 20,000 times before it is better for the environment than plastic bags
1) Neglects other metrics of significance, such as economic loss due to littering, and impacts on wildlife populations (really the key driver of the plastic issue)
2) Likely assumes current-state economies of scale in production (cloth bags being more of a niche item than plastic; were they scaled up, the normalized impact would likely be lower)
3) Highly dependent upon generation mix of electricity used to produce
4) May or may not consider end-of-life impacts and salvage value/reuse
Amongst others.
The point just being that discussion of impact is not open-and-shut and there is no singular agreed-upon metric. Calculating life-cycle impact is something that the academic and policy communities have been debating for decades. Whether or not someone's perception of something is "fundamentally wrong" cannot be easily discerned, as there is no hard-and-fast basis upon which to make that determination.
The valid point you absolutely have is that a holistic point of view is necessary. If an item is not used and disposed of in the designed manner (or optimal manner) then there absolutely can be unintended outcomes which negate any engineered benefits.
May 24, 2019, 3:37 am
#12
In memoriam
Join Date: May 2005
Location: DAL
Programs: SWA A list preferred and CP, Hilton Lifetime Diamond, Hertz President's club
Posts: 9,803
Am I the only one who finds a debate over the environmental impact of plastic ware hysterical on a website routed in airplane mileage runs? For most on this site that fork is minuscule in the preventable impact waste #pickyourbattles
May 24, 2019, 6:12 am
#13
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2019
Posts: 17,964
Am I the only one who finds a debate over the environmental impact of plastic ware hysterical on a website routed in airplane mileage runs? For most on this site that fork is minuscule in the preventable impact waste #pickyourbattles
Outside of carbon offsets we are a long way from a solution for planes but a solution to the Hampton inn trash mountain is readily available and already in use across the globe.
May 24, 2019, 7:38 am
#14
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: MHK
Programs: AA Exec Plat - some level of status in IHG, Marriot & HIlton
Posts: 1,514
The question of sustainability is an interesting one. I suspect most people on this forum's preconceptions of what is sustainable is fundamentally wrong. For instance, the use (and ideally reuse) of plastic bags is more environmentally friendly than using paper bags or even reusable totes. For instance, an organic cotton bag would need to be used 20,000 times before it is better for the environment than plastic bags [[url=https://www.npr.org/sections/money/2019/04/09/711181385/are-plastic-bag-bans-garbage?t=1558359917290]Source]. In addition, the use and consumption of plastic products is arguably better for the environment than the alternative: using those petrochemicals to fire up our cars and natural gas powered furnaces and electric plants!
To answer OPs question, yes the use of recyclable service items is a thin in the Americas be it with airlines or hotels. I recall coming back to Canada during XMAS and ordering a sandwich from Starbucks. When I requested a knife and a fork to cut my sandwich they gave me plastic ones. Needless to say, I went through 2 or 3 of them to enjoy the sandwich. Again, I just absolutely hate using the temporary cutlery be it on airplanes, in lounges or at hotels. Every time I cut a waffle I cut through the darn plate.
I suspect most, if not all hotels have some sort of dishwasher. At the very least, they'll need to clean service items from the room such as mugs and glasses. Even if the rooms don't have service items, the bar and on-site restaurant most likely will! Also, not all dishwashers cost tens of thousands of dollars to install, service and use. A quick gander at the Home Depot shows a qwality dishwasher can be had for < $400.
Safe Travels,
James
Safe Travels,
James
To answer OPs question, yes the use of recyclable service items is a thin in the Americas be it with airlines or hotels. I recall coming back to Canada during XMAS and ordering a sandwich from Starbucks. When I requested a knife and a fork to cut my sandwich they gave me plastic ones. Needless to say, I went through 2 or 3 of them to enjoy the sandwich. Again, I just absolutely hate using the temporary cutlery be it on airplanes, in lounges or at hotels. Every time I cut a waffle I cut through the darn plate.
I suspect most, if not all hotels have some sort of dishwasher. At the very least, they'll need to clean service items from the room such as mugs and glasses. Even if the rooms don't have service items, the bar and on-site restaurant most likely will! Also, not all dishwashers cost tens of thousands of dollars to install, service and use. A quick gander at the Home Depot shows a qwality dishwasher can be had for < $400.
Safe Travels,
James
Safe Travels,
James
May 24, 2019, 9:09 am
#15
Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: Colorado
Programs: UA Gold (.85 MM), HH Diamond, SPG Platinum (LT Gold), Hertz PC, National EE
Posts: 5,648
If the OP or anyone else feels strongly, simply stay at hotels that line up with your beliefs, rather than demand some hotels conform to your feelings. Problem solved.
