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Environmental work<br>earns Amfac awards

GC VILLAGE — Getting rid of those old diesel fuel boilers, upgrading buses to run cleaner while idling and developing a "green team" are among the environmental initiatives introduced by Amfac Parks and Resorts in recent months.

Amfac employee Jeff Kwiatkowski looks over one of the new propane-powered boilers at the El Tovar Hotel.

Those efforts at Grand Canyon National Park and elsewhere around the country by Amfac earned the concessioner two prestigious awards in recent weeks. Amfac received the Department of the Interior’s Environmental Achievement Award and the Travel Industry Association’s Odyssey Award in the environment category.

"These two highly significant awards are a measurable reflection of the hard work and dedication of Amfac Parks and Resorts’ employees, especially those who serve on our ‘green teams’ at each location," said Andrew N. Todd, president and CEO of Amfac.

At Grand Canyon, there were two major environmental projects — the installation of propane boilers and changes to the buses.

"We had some of the old-style diesel fuel boilers that burned dirty, heavy diesel oil," said Bill Johnston, Grand Canyon National Park Lodges general manager. "At Yavapai and on the rim at Bright Angel and El Tovar, we replaced those with propane. It eliminated some underground tanks and potential hazardous spills here in the park and allowed us to use a fuel that’s much more energy efficient and clearer."

For the boilers at Bright Angel Lodge and El Tovar Hotel, a propane line runs from the Maswik Lodge across the railroad tracks to the rim. The installation of the clean-burning propane boilers was one of the projects singled out by Department of Interior judges for its award.

Another Grand Canyon project brought up by the judges was the hydrous alcohol injectors installed on tour buses.

"Basically, at low speeds, it injects an alcohol blend with the gasoline to reduce the amount of gas going to the engine and it lowers the visible ... and actual emissions when they’re idling or just starting up," Johnston said. "They still run on diesel fuel, they’re not natural gas or anything, just the system you attach and it kicks in at low RPMs (revolutions per minute)."

One of the more recent additions to Grand Canyon has been Amfac’s green team. Johnston said the program is still in its infancy stage. The team serves as both an advocate and watchdog for Amfac’s environmental programs.

Lisa McNeilly was recently hired to serve as Amfac’s director of environmental health and safety.

"She’s a very talented, well-educated and experienced person in the environmental field now on board," McNeilly said. "She’ll be the one to coordinate all these activities."

Amfac was the only concessioner and one of only 13 winners in three categories to receive the Interior Department’s achievement award. Several hundred entities submitted their programs for award consideration. Amfac was selected for its efforts to minimize environmental impact while operation concessions at national parks with special recognition paid to Mount Rushmore National Memorial along with Yellowstone, Zion and Grand Canyon national parks.

Among the initiatives singled out:

o Establishing a corporate-wide policy on purchasing seafood only from sustainable fisheries.

o Reducing emissions at the Grand Canyon’s South Rim by installing clean-burning propane boilers to heat buildings and hydrous alcohol injectors on tour buses.

o Replacing all rental snowmobiles in Yellowstone with cleaner four-stroke engines.

o Using environmentally preferable cleaning products.

o Developing energy-conservation projects.

o Instituting aggressive recycling, waste reduction and composting programs.

The Travel Industry Association’s Odyssey Award cited Amfac’s "comprehensive environmental management program." Components of Amfac’s program brought up the Odyssey Award judges:

o Hiring on-site environmental managers.

o Producing a company-wide environmental newsletter.

o Using recycled paper and soy-based inks at an in-house print shop.

o Developing a company-wide policy in support of sustainable fishing practices.

o Developing a strategic environmental management system that asissts properties in meeting environmental goals.


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