Going Green! The Future of Casinos
Casinos pay for a lot of things. Apart from electricity costs, casinos shell out money for food, water, interior design, staff’s salary, etc. Keeping a casino operational is difficult, and not everyone can keep up with its high upkeep costs.
According to an article by the Business Week, several casinos in the U.S. have been in the decline since 2007. Perhaps a lot of people have caught up with the times and would rather play at the comfort of their own home than visit an actual casino. The world’s first online casino gaming website, InterCasino, opened in 1996. Since then, there have been a lot of improvements in online casino services including deposit bonuses and hourly bonus credit giveaways – features that aren’t present in all casino establishments. With brick-and-mortar casino sales going down, operators should look at green energy to defray the high costs of electricity.
The Rivers Casino in Illinois is the first casino to ever implement in its system green energy. Today, around 70% of the casino’s facilities are run with recyclable energy.
Here are several ways on how casinos can use renewable energy to their benefit.
Anaerobic Digestion – This is a technique where biodegradable materials such as food are broken down in order to be used as a fuel source. Suffolks Downs, the world’s second green casino, uses this method in order to offset its high costs for electricity. Suffolks Downs’ management said that around 3,000 tons of food is wasted annually in its establishment. But thanks to anaerobic digestion, the casino is able to convert its wasted food to 850,000 kWh of power, which is strong enough to give energy to more than 250 households.
Rainwater recycling – Thousands of dollars are spent every month in order to flush down wastes from the toilet. However, did you know that fresh water for flushing can be substituted with rainwater reserves? Imagine how much a casino establishment can save by collecting thousands of gallons of water for flushing toilets.
Solar energy – this is perhaps the most popular way to harness renewable energy. With solar panels installed on the rooftop, casinos can produce around 5% – 10% of an establishment’s electricity. That’s a big help considering that the Sun is always there to provide a free source of energy.
With green technology, not only can casinos defray high operational costs but save the environment as well. It’s a win-win scenario so there’s no real reason why operators shouldn’t invest in renewable energy.