Adelaide Convention Centre goes for gold

The Adelaide Convention Centre (ACC) could be just a year away from turning green into gold and becoming the first convention centre in the world to achieve Gold Certification under the globally recognised EarthCheck environmental program.

The Centre has just received its annual EarthCheck Benchmarking Assessment Report and has been EarthCheck Certified Silver for a fourth year in a row.

The Centre now has to retain Silver for a fifth year and it will be awarded Gold and become the country’s greenest convention and meetings venue and place it among the world leaders in terms of sustainability.

Adelaide Convention Centre Chief Executive Alec Gilbert said the Centre continues to reduce its environmental impact alongside increasing business levels and this indicates we’ve got the right formula for success. 

“We’ve created a culture within the organisation that empowers everyone to make a contribution. This culture will be invaluable in maintaining our environmental credentials as the Centre’s capacity is nearly doubled following a $350 million expansion over the next 5 years.

“The Adelaide Convention Centre has led the way in Australia in many ways and is committed to maintaining its environmental leadership position.”

In order to achieve EarthCheck accreditation, the Centre is required to submit a year’s worth of operational data across eight key areas, which is then benchmarked against industry best practice. These areas include environmental policy, energy and water use, waste and community engagement.

Highlights of the latest report show Adelaide Convention Centre has achieved a 16% annual reduction in energy consumption, 26% reduction in water use and 90% of the Centre’s waste being recycled, reused or composted.

A worm farm which processes  up to 5,500 kilograms of organic waste each year, BioBin composter and water sensor taps that save more than three Olympic size swimming pools of water every year are among the measures adopted by the Centre to reduce its environmental impact.

The Centre also runs a world-leading carbon offset program backed by an on-line carbon calculator which allows conference organisers to accurately measure their emissions and offset them through a partnership with Trees for Life.

Internally, the Centre’s environmental innovation is driven by the ‘Green Team’ - a group of volunteers who formed a committee to research and develop ideas and mentor other employees in environmentally responsible practices.

The Green Team has now been formalised and steer’s the Centre’s environmental initiatives under the direction of the Executive Team and EarthCheck coordinator.

Stewart Moore, CEO of EC3 Global, congratulated ACC on its commitment to sustainability and the centres achievements.

"For over half a decade, we have worked with the Adelaide Convention Centre to help them to address the twin challenges of climate change and reducing their environmental footprint. 

The Centre is one of EarthCheck’s standout sustainability heroes in the Asian region and we are amazed every day by the innovative solutions our clients are achieving.”

To follow the progress of the Centre, follow:
Twitter: @AdelaideCC
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/AdelaideConventionCentre
Blog www.offcentre.com.au
Web: www.adelaidecc.com.au

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION: Please contact Adelaide Convention Centre Market Development Manager Giovanna Toldi on (08) 8212 4099

ISSUED BY HUGHES PUBLIC RELATIONS: Please contact Simon Hatcher on (08) 8412 4105 or simon@hughespr.com.au 

About Adelaide Convention Centre

Green' Commitment
The Adelaide Convention Centre combines Gold Service with Green Attitude by offering Sustainable Meeting events packages and Carbon Emission offset options for organisers and delegates. The Adelaide Convention Centre is the first centre in Australia to achieve Green Globe Silver Certification for its commitment to environmental sustainability.

Reputation
The multi award winning Adelaide Convention Centre enjoys a global reputation for excellence and is consistently ranked among the world's top convention centres for its superior product, world-class facilities, exceptional standards and the superb conduct of their dedicated staff.
For more information please visit the Adelaide Convention Centre’s www.adelaidecc.com.au where you can see a bird’s eye view of Adelaide, keep up to date with ’What’s On’ at the venue, access material to plan your next event, and even calculate and offset the projected carbon emissions with the specially-designed Carbon Calculator.

About EC3 Global
EC3 Global is an international tourism and environmental management and advisory group which was developed by the Sustainable Tourism Cooperative Research Centre (STCRC), the world's largest dedicated research centre specialising in sustainable tourism and research. EC3 Global work with clients to plan, manage and achieve business, development and marketing objectives; Set and achieve sustainability goals with a triple bottom line focus and implement programs to achieve these objectives. Its global community of clients have access to experienced project managers and allied professionals, as well as global tourism best practice and research.

About EarthCheck
EarthCheck, managed and owned by EC3 Global, is an internationally recognised environmental management and certification program with members in over 70 countries. The program improves operational performance of member organisations and reduces costs. Recent studies show that 6 million people a week are impacted by EarthCheck's branded solutions. The company takes a scientific and systematic approach to risk mitigation and legislative requirements and is regarded as one of the world's best-practice environmental sustainability leaders.

EC3 Global - Communication Department
Tel: +61 7 3238 1900 | info@ec3global.com | www.earthcheck.org and www.ec3global.com