The launch of an e-toolkit to help hotels improve energy efficiency, with the aim of moving towards the EU's nearly-zero energy consumption standards member states must meet by 2020, was announced by the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) on Tuesday.

The neZEH e-toolkit allows hotels to evaluate their energy performance through a questionnaire and then shows options for increasing energy efficiency.

"This unprecedented initiative shows not only the concerns, but also the high level of commitment of the tourism sector in addressing one of the worldwide preoccupations: climate change," said UNWTO Secretary-General Taleb Rifai.

The e-toolkit has been launched in the wake of 16 hotels in seven EU countries participating in a pilot scheme as part of the neZEH project which is co-funded by the European Commission as part of its Intelligent Energy Europe Program.

One of its aims is to encourage the renovation of hotels into nearly-zero energy buildings, by giving technical advice and also showing examples of successful renovations in the European hotel sector.

The project has 10 partners from institutions, agencies, and associations in Greece, Sweden, France, the Netherlands, Romania, Italy, Croatia and Spain. Endit

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