Green fries
On a diet that has more to do with green than lean? Then it’s okay to order the french fries at Fairmont Scottsdale. The grease used to cook them is now being converted into biodiesel fuel.
As part of its Green Partnership program, which the Canadian-based Fairmont initiated in 1990, the Scottsdale resort has partnered with a new local manufacturer, AZ BioDiesel, to convert the resort’s kitchen grease into an alternative fuel that will help save the environment.
What’s the motivation behind the process change? The hotel formerly contracted with a company that sent its used kitchen grease to California–to be used in cattle feed. In order to get there, it had to be trucked out of state. The local partnership with AZ BioDiesel, which manufactures and then sells the fuel in Phoenix, allows the hotel to reduce its carbon footprint–and not just transportation-wise.
According to the manufacturer’s Web site, the benefits are many:
Waste is minimized–The used cooking oil won’t wind up at the landfill or in sewer systems; instead, it will be used to power vehicles with the cleaner alternative biodiesel fuel that reduces significantly the harmful emissions of carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, particulates, sulfates and other toxic emissions. The company is currently contracted with a local school, which buys the fuel for its school buses.
Water quality is improved–With less fat, grease and oil accumulating in public sewer pipes, Arizona lakes, streams and other bodies of water will be less contaminated.
Energy is saved–Biodiesel fuel is a renewable energy source that can be produced from animal fat, vegetable oil or used cooking oil, right here in the Valley–not imported. Additionally, the U.S. Department of Energy has tested the life cycle of this type of alternative fuel and found for every unit of fossil fuel used to produce biodiesel, 3.2 units of energy were gained. By contrast, petroleum diesel’s life cycle yields less than one unit.
This alternative fuel product is also safer to use, handle and store.
By collecting more than 700 gallons of used cooking oil each month, AZ BioDiesel will be able to create from that nearly 600 gallons of alternative fuel. That’s enough, they say, to power seven diesel vehicles for one year. And that’s just the summer output. A Fairmont spokesperson says that number
could double during high season, which begins in October.
Are you ready to “green” your fries now? You can order them–and help save the environment–at any of the restaurants on the property, including at LV Bistro (pictured), and from room-service. Each kitchen participates in the collection process.
To learn about other “green” initiatives going on inside the Valley’s restaurants, visit AZ Green Dining.
(Photo used with permission by Fairmont Scottsdale.)
6 Comments
Jackie –
Great article for the enviromentally-conscious! The title caught my attention — and you didn’t talk about french fries made from green vegetable products! I will remember this story when I choose to dine at the Fairmont the next time.
Bonnie
Thanks for theat 700 gallons of waste/600 gallons of fuel info — and also for an indication of how far a diesel vehicle (not an 18-wheeler, obviously) can travel on it. Diesel fuel reclaimed from restaurant waste is just a miniscule part of our total fuel usage, but every gallon helps — and your point about the water supply is also well taken.
Claire @ http://travel-babel.blogspot.com
Claire,
So true. It’s miniscule. But it’s making a positive effect. The spokesperson said the diesel vehicles referenced are school buses. A Phoenix charter school, she said, was contracting with AZ BioDiesel to buy the alternative fuel. I didn’t verify that, but it might make an interesting story for another day, another blog.
Bonnie,
I think these days we all need to be environmentally conscious. As Claire suggests, every little bit helps. It is a good thing to recognize positive steps.
Jackie
[...] Jackie Dishner from The Phoenix Traveler joins the Green Travel Carnival for the first time with Green fries, which looks at how Fairmont Scottsdale has partnered with AZ Biodiesel to convert their kitcne [...]
[...] Jackie Dishner from The Phoenix Traveler joins the Green Travel Carnival for the first time with Green fries, which looks at how Fairmont Scottsdale has partnered with AZ Biodiesel to convert their kitcne [...]
[...] Jackie Dishner from The Phoenix Traveler joins the Green Travel Carnival for the first time with Green fries, which looks at how Fairmont Scottsdale has partnered with AZ Biodiesel to convert their kitcne [...]