Sustainability Policy

At Aiteall B&B, we recognise that our business and customer’s activities can have a negative or positive impact on the planet and all species that reside in it. We are committed to, and enjoy finding ways in which we can reduce the negative impact of our daily operations, both here at our business and when we are off site as well.

Our commitment 

We constantly strive to ensure that we are practicing resource efficiency to reduce our impact on our natural environment and landscape including reducing our consumption of energy and water and reducing our waste production while not affecting our guest’s experience. 

• We have established our baseline of carbon emissions from 2023 at 0.928kg of CO2 produced per person, per day from our direct operations

• We aim to reduce this figure by 8% in 2024

• Our energy consumption we aim to reduce by 5% in 2024

• Our landfill waste we aim to reduce by 5% in 2024

• Our food waste we aim to reduce from 0.053kg per person per day in 2023 by 15% in 2024

• Increase our local suppliers from the current 56% to 58% in 2024

• Plant a further 50 + native trees on site of the B&B and surrounding land in 2024

• Improve our composting segregation with new segregated stations

• Improve our messaging to guests and our family and friends to help reduce waste production and water and energy consumption

Activities to date

• In 2024 we achieved a Gold Level Award of FSG (Fifty Shades Greener) Hospitality Awards

• Apart from achieving all our energy, waste and water goals, we have now incorporated sustainability into our purchasing and marketing practices as well as ensuring social sustainability is a priority at home and in our wider community

• In 2022 and 2023, we implemented an environmental management system in which we continue to  monitor our energy and water consumption and our waste production through undertaking green manager training from environmental educational company - Fifty Shades Greener (www.fiftyshadesgreener.ie).

• This allows us to calculate our carbon emissions on a monthly basis through the use of the FSG Data portal

• This training has given us the ability to measure our Scopes 1 and 2 emissions

• We have also undertaken ‘green purchasing’ training which has given us insight into our purchasing chain and how to try and begin measuring the emissions of this area and reducing them where we can

• We have also undertaken training for Social Sustainability and Green Marketing, both of which have benefited Aiteall B&B, as even though we are a small business - it is important for us to measure and understand our impact on our community, our family and our guests as well as ensuring that we are not green-washing our efforts

• In January 2022, we  installed SOLAR Panels with an aim of significantly reducing our energy consumption and our carbon emissions through the generation and exporting of our own electricity

• Our goal for 2023 was to reduce our baseline emissions by 30% from 2.27kg in 2022. We have exceeded this target and reduced emissions in 2023 by 58%

• Our goal for 2023 was to reduce our energy consumption from 5.89 kWh/person by 35%. We exceeded this by nearly 30% with consumption established at 2.17 kWh/person in 2023 - a 62% reduction

• Our heating source is an Air to Water heat pump, with zoned heating with individual thermostats in each room - these are set at an ambient temperature recommended of 20 degrees

• Use of Energy Saving bulbs and LED, including outdoor motion activated lighting

• Encourage a “switch off policy” with ourselves and guests

• Monitoring our energy usage on a monthly basis

• In periods of low occupancy, appropriate sections within the B&B are isolated so heating can be turned off

• In 2023 we aimed to reduce our landfill waste from 0.21kg/person by 10%. Unfortunately we saw an increase of 1.8% in our landfill

• For 2024, we are aiming to reduce this figure by 5% through:

Encouraging our guests to minimise the amount of waste brought on site through information sent in our welcome email in advance, e.g. bring your reusable water cup!

Irish drinking water is safe to drink - download the Refill.ie ‘Tap map’ and reduce your plastic consumption.

• Promoting proper waste segregation on site to our customers and our children, family and friends

• Continuing to promote and recommend local shops and suppliers who are making efforts to reduce packaging

• Add an information blackboard for guests with local activity/music session updates etc. to further encourage reduction of leaflets/flyers being brought on site

• We don’t provide individual single use toiletries, instead an Irish brand Homemade Soap Company supplies our guest refillable toiletries

• We don’t use disposable napkins instead linen ones for our breakfast room

• We fill reusable glass bottles for our guests as our tap water is safe to drink, significantly reducing our glass and plastic bottle wastage

• We don’t use single use items such as sugar sachets, salt and pepper sachets or mini milk pots

• We don’t print business cards or flyers and have reduced the volume of leaflets and flyers in our guest lounge area

• In 2023 we aimed to reduce our food waste from 0.19kg/person by 10%. We exceeded this target significantly by reducing this figure to 0.053kg/person

• We achieved the above reduction through food waste management and 

• Updating our breakfast offerings and food portions accordingly based on feedback and waste appearing daily

• We practice strict waste segregation on site and provide a food compost bin in the guest lounge area and our own home

• We compost our food scraps (weighing the waste first before going out)

• Promoting proper waste segregation amongsts our guests

• We make use of local food suppliers wherever possible, reducing food miles - we aim to increase our local suppliers in 2024 by 2%

• In 2023 we increased our local suppliers by 4 and out of a total of 34 suppliers here is the breakdown:

• 56% local

• 33% regional

• 5.8% regional

• 5.5% international

• We make our own granola and fruit compote to avoid harmful additives 

• We bring our used lighting and electrical waste as well as used batteries to local recycling drop off points in Ennistymon and Inagh, to ensure the proper disposal of batteries and this type of waste from our business and our home. (WeeeIreland.ie) 

• We switched to environmentally friendly cleaning products which are both Irish based companies - Dr. Bonner and Lilly’s Eco Clean. This switch benefits both our environment, but also our team and our guests due to the removal of toxic chemicals from site which are major irritants

• Laundry, by reducing the quantity of towels we wash through encouraging our guests to reuse their towels where possible during their stay

• Full loads in washing machines and dishwashers

• In 2022 we organised a biodiversity consultant to create a report on the land the b&b is on and surrounding land to ensure we are supporting local biodiversity in the best possible way

• Planting continued in 2023 of over 100 native trees in  including  apple trees, willow and birch to balance and support local biodiversity and rewild land surrounding our B&B through engaging with conservationist group BurrenBeo

• In 2023 we built two large planters and grew strawberries and rhubarb for our breakfast compote, along with other root vegetables for our family’s consumption

  Our future aims

  • Continue to establish and expand our own vegetable garden.

  • Continue with our native tree planting efforts creating more diversity choosing all native heritage fruit trees.

  • Installing an electric vehicle charge point on site.

  • Switch to an electric vehicle ourselves to further reduce our emissions.

  • Install a rainwater harvesting system to flush our toilets and to provide water for our garden and plants.

  • Aim to have chickens to provide our own eggs.

  
  

  We appreciate your support with our efforts to reduce our impact on the environment.

  ​​Jonny &  Éimhín - 02.02.2024