PROJECTS
The garden further mitigates heat island effects associated with concrete surfaces.
experienced some difficulty with supplier
buy-in. “At times it was difficult to source
sustainable options or systems,”
Harms says.
About the hotel
In operation since 2013, the Hotel Verde is a
four-star hotel located 400m from Cape
Town International Airport. The hotel offers
sustainability, luxury and convenience as
one. It is home to 145 rooms and seven
conference venues – sustainability is at
its heartbeat.
The hotel also drives the concept of
being sustainable through daily operational
practices and decisions including through
its waste management, procurement,
energy efficiency and staff training. All
accommodation and conferencing at Hotel
Verde is 100% carbon neutral. It is about
70% more energy efficient than a standard
Cape Town hotel of the same size with the
renewable energy generation meeting
about 11% of the total electricity demand.
Since opening it has won several green
awards and achieved many certifications. In
2015 it became the first hotel in the world
to have been certified with a double
Platinum (the highest possible level)
Leadership in Energy and Environmental
Design (LEED) certification from the United
States Green Building Council (USGBC).
Diverse yet indigenous species can be found on the roof garden.
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RESIDENTIAL // COMMERCIAL // INDUSTRIAL
In addition, the hotel achieved a 6-star
green star rating from the Green Building
Council of South Africa (GBCSA) for Existing
Building Performance – the highest
accolade of this rating tool representing
world leadership. In March 2014 it won the
company Trendsetter Award at the
European trade fair for the ‘Hotel,
Restaurant, Catering, Baking and
Confectionery’ industries, INTERNORGA
Trade Show. This annual award goes to a
company that demonstrates with great
intuition, innovation, courage and passion
– how business practices and sustainable
management can work together for
optimal results.