Sustainability
Surrounded by soaring mountain peaks, the majestic Victoria Glacier and a glistening emerald lake, the iconic Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise hotel is located in Alberta’s Banff National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, where the hotel is recognized globally for its progressive environmental stewardship and responsible tourism. Lake Louise is one of the most famous natural destinations in Canada, therefore protecting this landscape is crucial to the identity of the hotel. That is why environmental stewardship has been integrated into the hotel’s operation so closely that it has become part of the hotel’s DNA.
Learn more about Our Commitment to Sustainable Development, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion.
As environmental stewards, our initiatives align with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals as outlined below, reflecting our commitment to global sustainability.
What began as a mandatory compliance measure embedded in the lease agreement with Parks Canada to ensure that there is no detrimental impacts on the surrounding landscape, Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise embraced environmental stewardship as part of its identity. The hotel tracks and reports a number of environmental metrics to Parks Canada annually, including water quality & consumption, hiking trail usage, climate & precipitation, hotel occupancy, staff education, fertilizer use, energy consumption, and more!
For over 20 years, the Chateau has incorporated “No Net Negative Environmental Impact” practices into all hotel operations.
Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise has had a Renewable Energy Certificate since 2003, which supplies 5,500,000Kwh of the hotel’s energy supply from renewable energy sources. As the hotel continues to reduce energy consumption, the percentage of energy covered by the certificate increases. In 2023, renewable energy represented 52% of the hotel’s supply.
Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise is proud to have some of the cleanest drinking water in the entire world. The hotel’s drinking water starts its journey in Victoria Glacier. As it melts, it travels down the mountainside, bringing salt and minerals with it into Lake Louise. This process is what gives Lake Louise its unique turquoise colour! The hotel has a dedicated on-site water treatment plant, which draws the water directly from the lake, purifies it through 72 filter membranes and two high-powered UV lights, lightly chlorinates it, and pumps it across the property for guests and staff to enjoy. The hotel encourages guests to fill their reusable bottles with this pristine water at bottle refill stations or even straight from the tap in their room.
Leftover soap & hygiene products that would otherwise be discarded from guest rooms are donated to Clean the World. A global organization that distributes recycled soaps and hygiene products to vulnerable communities in over 120 countries. The Chateau is proud to be a member of Clean the World’s global hygiene revolution.
Our culinary team is delighted to serve local, organic and/or sustainable menu items whenever possible. Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise also participates in the Ocean Wise sustainability food program.
We have teamed up with ecoSpirits, marking a milestone as one of the pioneering hotels in Canada to embrace their eco-friendly practices. We’re not just reducing our carbon footprint, but actively tackling single-use glass waste prevalent in the spirits and wine industry. Through innovative circular economy technology, ecoSpirits revolutionizes packaging, significantly minimizing waste in the supply chain while boasting a low carbon footprint – a global first! To learn more about the program, please visit their website.
The Fairmont CAREs Program – Westslope Cutthroat Trout Restoration Project aims to preserve one of the few naturally occurring wild trout in western Canada. Provincially listed as threatened in Alberta, they now occupy less than 10% of their historic range. Since 2012, The Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise has donated over $12,000 to fund Parks Canada’s Westslope Cutthroat Trout Restoration project in Banff National Park. Additionally, Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise conducts periodic fish habitat assessment of local waterways surrounding the hotel to ensure species biodiversity and reproductive health.
Our parkade is equipped with electric vehicle charging stations and have committed to switching all property fleets to energy efficient & electric vehicles during lifecycle replacements.
We are continuously upgrading product offerings and infrastructure to improve guest experience and reduce environmental impacts. For example, we have converted 95%-100% of electrical fixtures to energy efficient bulbs and retrofitted many areas with sensor activated lights to reduce unnecessary energy use. We have also installed low-flow plumbing fixtures (sinks, toilets, and shower heads) in guest rooms to reduce water consumption and preserve precious glacier water.
Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise has a 5 Green Key Rating from Green Key Global, a leading international environmental certification body designed specifically for the hotel and meetings industries. The hotel first received this certification in 2000 and was the second hotel in Canada to receive the 5 Green Key rating in 2005, the highest rating a hotel can achieve. The hotel has successfully renewed and maintained this third party environmental certification for 24 consecutive years! To learn more about the program, please visit their website.
Accor encourages all hotels to participate in an annual cleanup of their property and surrounding community. As Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise is located in one of the most popular tourist destinations in Canada, our teams work passionately to ensure they sparkle like mother nature intended.
In an effort to increase waste diversion, our waste & recycling program covers all standard waste streams as well as innovative partnerships for a variety of specialty items including used wine corks (to be made in to yoga blocks), batteries and bear spray for safe recycling, used soap (to help vulnerable communities), used cooking oil (for biodiesel) and much more!
Accor is proud to be the first hotel company to partner with Whole Hearted to provide Meetings with Purpose. This program infuses meaningful experiences into organizational programming & events by incorporating social & environmental care, connection, and fun. Clients and partners that visit our property are able to sign up to and gain access to unique activities lead by experienced facilitators from across Canada. Learn More.
Plastic is a major issue in the hospitality industry. Accor acknowledged this issue and all properties have eliminated all non-essential single-use plastic items from the guest experience in 2022. Now, any guest staying at an Accor property can be at ease knowing that their stay does not generate unnecessary plastic waste. All hotels are continuing to phase out single-use plastic items from internal operations until all properties are plastic-free by 2030.
Learn More.
We have a dedicated Sustainability Committee chaired by a sustainability champion who leads the implementation of the various initiatives across the property. The sustainability committees identify areas of improvement, discuss strategies to solve issues, and engages the hotel in sustainability through innovative events and programming.
