MONTEGO BAY, JAMAICA?Concern for the environment is evident at Half Moon Golf, Tennis & Beach Club, from the use of electric golf carts to the way the laundry is handled. ?With everything we do, we want to be environmentally friendly,? said Racquel Brown, environmental officer for Half Moon. ?In the case of our laundries, that means using solar water heaters, phosphate-free chemicals, automated dispensers for the soap, and oxygen bleach rather than chlorine bleach.? There are three laundry rooms for the 419-unit resort. The main laundry handles sheets and towels from 218 rooms as well as linen from the main dining room and public areas including beach towels. Another facility serves the resort?s Royal Villas which range from five to seven bedrooms and have their own pools and various attendants. There is also a small laundry used primarily for small items like face towels and cleaning cloths. In addition, each villa is equipped with a laundry area that contains a washing machine and dryer for guests? personal items. ?Our guests usually stay for a week and many use the equipment in their villa every day or every other day,? Brown said. The Half Moon?s laundry operations run on two shifts, beginning at 6 a.m. and ending at 9 p.m. The main laundry room has a staff of 12, the Royal Villa laundry has three. ?We use concentrated soap in a dispenser so none of the staff has to handle it,? Brown said. Laundry soap for the washing machines in each villa is likewise in an automated dispenser. Water from the laundry operation is recycled, Brown noted. ?The laundry water goes to the sewage plant where it is treated and then reused for irrigation,? she said. To lengthen the life of guestroom towels, Half Moon has a reuse program where guests can leave towels on the rack as a signal that they don?t need fresh ones yet. ?About 50% of our guests participate in the program so our towels do last longer,? Brown said. ?We also do the sheets top to bottom to lengthen their life.? Many of the practices in use at the Half Moon Golf, Tennis & Beach Club will likely soon be put into play at the Jumby Bay Resort in Antigua. Management of Half Moon purchased the 50-unit Jumby Bay in October of last year. ?We?re now assessing their laundry to make it environmentally friendly,? Brown said. It appears that Half Moon is on the right environmental track. Brown noted that in recent years the resort has been recognized with the Green Hotel Award, sponsored by the Caribbean Hotel Association and American Express, and two Tourism for Tomorrow Awards, given by British Airways.
