The Ministry of Environment and the Korea Environmental Industry & Technology Institute decided to extend the eco-labeling system, which has been only for products, to service industry and plan to make a public announcement of criteria for certification of hotels which saved energy significantly at the second half year.

Based on the eco-friendly hotel certification system, hotels can be assessed with regard to their eco-friendliness including energy conservation, carbon dioxide reduction, water saving, and eco-friendly room management.

Korea Eco-labeling program is a certification program executed by the Ministry of Environment, in line with Article 20 of the Act on Environmental Technology Development Support. The “eco” of the Eco-Label refers to ecological and economic.

The ministry will evaluate hotels’ environmental load caused during the entire process of providing services including purchasing products, using energy, water, chemicals, and producing wastes. Hotels which meet more than 70percent of criteria can be certified as an eco-friendly hotel.

Eco-friendly hotel certification criteria, which will be notified by the Ministry of Environment in this September, are composed of the following seven items : energy saving, water saving, waste reduction, indoor air quality management, reduction of harmful chemicals consumption, green purchase, and environment management.

At the meeting of hotel industry, which was held at the Korea Environmental Industry & Technology Institute on June 15, representatives from major hotels including the Shilla, Intercontinental Hotels, Seoul Plaza Hotel, and Novotel were in agreement that eco-friendly hotel certification system is needed.

A participant from Seoul Plaza Hotel said the system should be an opportunity to cut down on hotels’ maintenance costs and publicize diverse environmentally-friendly programs both at home and abroad.

Other nations’ eco-labeling system in service sectors