On Saturday, 25 March, from 8.30pm to 9.30pm, Royal Plaza on Scotts (RP) will be participating in Earth Hour in its 10th year of raising awareness of climate change to the world since its first lights-off event in 2007.     

The hotel will be supporting the movement by switching off its non-essential lights around the hotel and the award-winning buffet restaurant, Carousel, will be serving Garden to Table dishes with greens grown on the rooftop of hotel’s premises. By reducing the farm to table distance, the carbon footprint declines with the elimination of carbon emissions from transportation, thus lowering the negative impact on the environment. Guests can have a taste of fresh hydroponic vegetables such as butterhead lettuce and micro cress and organic herbs like thyme, rosemary, oregano and basil. The herbs will be infused into Italian dressing and garlic and herbs dressing at the salad station. These home-grown herbs will also be used in the preparation of dishes such as baked fillet of sole with thyme and basil, orange salsa and capers butter sauce, and slow-roasted O.P beef ribs with rosemary at the rotisserie station.

At Carousel, guests will also be invited to light up soy candles, a more environmentally-conscious alternative to the usual paraffin wax candles, on their tables as a gesture of support for the initiative.

RP has received the Singapore Green Hotel Award for 2015-2016 in recognition of its eco-friendly practices. Being green and environmentally-friendly is a consistent effort at Royal Plaza on Scotts which goes beyond the hour.

Messages about Earth Hour will be shared on the televisions screens around the hotel to inform guests about the event and they are encouraged to take part by switching off their unused electronic devices and lights in their rooms.

Guest supplies, which account for a big portion of the hotel’s usage of resources, are being reviewed continuously. The hotel has opted for soap and shampoo dispensers for Superior, Deluxe and Premiere rooms instead of bottled amenities that result in high amount of wastage. The hotel’s pens have also been replaced with those that are biodegradable and made from recycled fibre. Nespresso coffee capsules which are provided in all guestrooms and meeting rooms are collected for recycling daily. A notice is placed in the hotel rooms to encourage guests to reduce water usage by reusing towels and linens if they are staying with the hotel for more than one night. Bed sheets in the guestrooms are changed every two days, unless upon guests’ requests. The hotel has also made the switch from bottled water to water jugs for meetings and functions.

 The hotel has signed up for the water efficiency management plan by Public Utilities Board (PUB) in 2016. Submeters have been installed in various areas of the hotel to alert the engineering team to irregularities spotted in the water consumption of specific areas due to hardware malfunctions which help monitor and reduce water usage, and reports are submitted annually as part of the exercise. Regular checks are also scheduled to ensure that there is no leakage in the hotel to avoid water wastage. After being part of the water efficiency management plan, the hotel has saved 13% of water in 2016 as compared to 2015.