Hotel Nikko employees get into the spirit with a recycled arts competition tilt

Recently six Hotel Nikko employees were awarded prizes for their creative contributions to the Christmas recycled art competition held by the housekeeping department.

Using only reused or recycled materials, housekeeping staff from each floor designed a variety of festive decorations including lanterns, wreaths, and trees. Hotel Nikko zorries and body puffs were integral materials in many of the competition entries.

In a very close competition, first place was won by Abet Martinez and Shila Thapa (5th floor), Ami Lazaga and Emily Aguilar (6th floor) took second, and third place was awarded to Lina Amoncio and Aida Guarizo (9th floor). This is the first year that the competition, brainchild of housekeeping manager Erlinda Gonzalez, was held. The art can be viewed in the hotel cafeteria after January Jan. 1, and if you miss it, stayed tuned for the next display at the Eco-Arts Festival, to be held in the summer of 2005.

The recycled art competition is only one of a number of environmentally friendly (and cost cost-effective) programs that Hotel Nikko has implemented. Ray Dela Cruz, former Waste Diversion Coordinator coordinator of the Department of Public Works’ (DPW) Division of Solid Waste Management, now organizes the hotel’s recycling program. He has placed recycling bins in every guest room, and keeps careful tabs to ensure not only that guest items are recycled, but that cardboard from all departments are segregated and recycled. The food and beverage department also does their share of trash reduction by recycling cardboard boxes, and collecting wet waste such as food scraps. Camacho Equipment Rental, the hotel’s waste hauler, also runs a piggery, and the wet waste is fed to their animals.

Hotel Nikko is also a leader when it comes to energy conservation. The designers of the hotel, recognizing the amount of money that could be saved with relatively simple techniques, installed automatic sensors in every room when the hotel was built 17 years ago. When the balcony doors are open, the air conditioning automatically shuts down. In addition, most lights in the hotel use compact fluorescent bulbs. All faucets are installed with special fixtures to reduce the water flow while still maintaining the pressure.

Dela Cruz is quick to point out that these measures are not only good for the environment, but good for the hotel’s bottom line as well. Since waste haulers are not required to pay tipping fees for recycled material, their costs can be substantially reduced by increasing the percentage of recyclables, and by decreasing the overall volume of trash. This cost savings can then be passed back to the consumers. Energy and water conservation also saves substantial amounts of money for the hotel.

You, too, can use the same techniques as Hotel Nikko to cut down on your own bills. Installing compact fluorescent bulbs can help you conserve energy, as it uses only a fourth of the energy that a regular light bulb would use. By composting your wet waste (or feeding it to your pet pig) you can also save on tipping fees. Recycling your aluminum cans, glass containers, cardboard, paper and scrap metal also lessens your tipping fees. These are gifts you can give yourself AND the environment not just for the holidays, but everyday. (Qamar Schuyler)