Hilton Malta is being benchmarked on environmental issues by other institutions both in Malta and abroad, because of its record over the years during which the hotel engaged itself in environmental activities outside hotel boundaries on public land as part of its corporate social responsibility.
Hilton Malta is planting trees at Mellieha; restoring a historic 400-year-old bastion wall surrounding the hotel; has donated more than Lm1,100 to Heritage Malta; is investing heavily in a sustainable operation minimising air pollution; is separating waste in place and encouraging guest participation; is treating waste water for irrigation instead of it ending in the sea; is using gas burners instead of diesel, thus causing less air pollution and has installed a reverse osmosis plant for the hotel’s needs.
Hilton Malta was last June crowned regional energy champion by Wolfgang M. Neumann, Hilton President for Europe and Africa. The award was in recognition of Hilton Malta’s environmental actions under the Hilton “We care!” programme. Each of the 360 hotel team members was awarded eco-friendly mountain bikes.
Tourism and Culture Minister Francis Zammit Dimech and Rural Affairs and the Environment Minister George Pullicino were present during a beach and seabank cleaning event around the Merkanti area. Malta Hilton Hotel this year also included divers to clear the seabank near the Merkanti.
Dr Zammit Dimech congratulated the Hilton management and employees for their initiatives. “The Maltese people are becoming more aware of the environment. A great number of institutions, agencies, industries and hotels are directly contributing towards a better environment through initiatives that embellish their places of work and our countryside. These initiatives are also contributing towards less air pollution, cleaner seas and sustainable development,” he said.
He also spoke about the “We care!” programme by Hilton that started in January 2006, saying that the results were better than expected so much so that after one year, the programme helped to reduce energy consumption across the board by 6.5 per cent. He said that in Malta’s case there was a 15.1 per cent cut in energy per guest night.
Mr Pullicino praised Hilton Malta for its pro-active attitude towards the environment and reiterated that such activities had an educational value for both the Hilton employees and guests. This was an aspect that the government was also giving great attention to, particularly through programmes such as eko-skola which has already attracted the participation of 54 schools and 25,000 students.