Mumbai : They are nine of the world’s most sought after hotels united by two elements; a deeply respected and historically prestigious hotel brand and now, for reaching an internationally recognized milestone in sustainability reporting. EarthCheck will present nine Taj hotels with a Gold Certification for five years of continuous benchmarking and reporting under the EarthCheck international standard.

Within five years, the nine certified Taj hotels have enough resources to electrify 53,490 homes by collectively conserving 174,766,344MJ of energy, fill nearly 60,000 wheelie bins by reducing 7,172,259.2 litres of waste and reduce CO2 emissions of approx. 6,675 cars off the road. Additionally, the water conservation is equivalent to filling 338 Olympic-sized swimming pools. The EarthCheck platform helps each Taj hotel measure performance and determines what further improvements can be made to achieve even higher sustainability standards.

Commenting on the achievement, Mr. Raymond Bickson, MD & CEO, The Taj Group of Hotels said “Taj has a long standing commitment to sustainability programs, and the EarthCheck benchmarking and certification accreditation perfectly complements our Taj EARTH program. This gives us immense satisfaction as Taj’s sustainability achievements significantly contribute to energy and water conservation, waste reduction and several other community development initiatives.”

“While many global hotel brands are now measuring and benchmarking their CSR activities, few are certified by an external party. The fact that the Taj Group is using EarthCheck capabilities and backing their benchmarking with a recognized third party is what gives this hotel group a point of difference in its sustainability efforts. What is also commendable is that the Taj Group has maintained this benchmarking for five years without wavering while some other hotel groups have dipped in and out of the sustainability space. This length of time and the growing number of Taj properties now engaged with EarthCheck shows absolute commitment to quality external benchmarking,” said Mr. Stewart Moore, CEO of EarthCheck and EC3 Global.

“The Taj’s achievements can be attributed to our rich tradition and our people who are highly passionate about sustainability” added Bickson.

The nine properties that have been certified include, Taj Exotica Resort & Spa in the Maldives; Taj Exotica Resort & Spa, Goa; Vivanta by Taj – Ambassador, New Delhi; Rambagh Palace in Jaipur; Taj West End Hotel, Bangalore; Taj Lands End Hotel in Mumbai, Vivanta by Taj – M G Road, Bangalore; Vivanta by Taj – President, Mumbai and Blue Sydney A Taj Hotel located in Sydney’s Woolloomoolloo Wharf.