HILLSBORO, ORE.—Caroma, a leader in dual flush toilets, urinals, and stylish bathroom sinks, has introduced a new section of its website with AutoDesk Revit files available (.RFA) for all Caroma products. Revit is a building information modeling tool enabling architects to design and document projects, visualize the appearance, and simulate real-world performance. Architects can review the specifications of Caroma products.

BIG CYPRESS, FLA.—Developers including Florida Everglades Resort, LLC and the Seminole Tribe of Florida are in discussion with potential investors who would help raise $23 million for a unique eco-resort within the Florida Everglades. The Florida Everglades Resort will be built on a 15-acre site (formerly a citrus grove) and within the 72,000-acre Seminole Reservation near Big Cypress. The site is located adjacent to Billie Swamp Safari, a 2,200-acre nature and wildlife park that already attracts more than 135,000 visitors per year. Jupiter, Fla.-based Florida Everglades Resort, LLC is the result of a multi-year collaboration between EcoExperience Development, Inc. (EDI) and several hospitality and sustainability experts. EDI will serve as the general partner. Calibre Management Inc. (CMI) will be the operations partner. Targeted travelers will include mid to upscale adventurous, leisure and outdoor travelers with a special emphasis on nature-based tourism.

YOUNTVILLE, CALIF.—Bardessono has just received the highest level of official recognition possible for its sustainable and environmentally friendly design. The hotel has been awarded LEED Platinum certification, an achievement reached by only two other hotels in the world, on the first anniversary of its opening. Phil Sherburne built Bardessono with the intention of creating a hotel that provides guests with a luxurious experience while simultaneously protecting the environment. “I believe it is critical for the development community to be a leader in the effort to preserve a healthy planet,” Sherburne says. “We can’t just continue to talk about environmental problems, we have to begin to act. I hope we have provided an example from which others can benefit.” The hotel’s design, construction and operation followed guidelines of the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Rating System.

SAINT-HYACINTH, QUEBEC—IHG announced that the company’s first sustainable hotel in Canada and the first of its type in Quebec officially opened in Saint-Hyacinthe, Quebec. The Holiday Inn Express and Suites Saint-Hyacinthe has been built to meet the criteria of the LEED Green Building Rating System for its sustainable practices. The Holiday Inn Express and Suites Saint-Hyacinthe features several key amenities that create a green environment, with a high efficiency energy distribution, ultra-insulated building, and LED and low voltage fluorescent lighting. The property has employed several key factors to reduce its overall carbon footprint.

NORFOLK, NEB.—MP Global Products, a leader in the manufacture of underlayment for the flooring industry, announced that FiberBacker, by MP Global Products L.L.C, has earned Indoor Advantage Gold certification from Scientific Certification Systems (SCS), the organization’s highest level of indoor environmental quality certification and the most stringent indoor air quality certification in the country. It is the first underlayment for ceramic and porcelain floors to do so.

GAINESVILLE, FLA.—The National Center for Construction Education and Research (NCCER) “Your Role in the Green Environment” curriculum has been approved by the United States Green Building Council (USGBC) for 15 hours of continuing education under the Green Building Certification Institute’s (GBCI) Credentialing Maintenance Program.

SACRAMENTO—Continuing California’s efforts to fight climate change and protect the environment, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger recently announced that the California Building Standards Commission (BSC) unanimously adopted the first-in-the-nation mandatory Green Building Standards Code (CALGREEN) requiring all new buildings in the state to be more energy efficient and environmentally responsible. Taking effect on January 1, 2011, these comprehensive regulations will achieve major reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, energy consumption and water use to create a greener California. “With this first-in-the nation mandatory green building standards code, California continues to pave the way in energy efficiency and environmental protection,” Governor Schwarzenegger said. “Today’s action lays the foundation for the move to greener buildings constructed with environmentally advanced building practices that decrease waste, reduce energy use and conserve resources.”

MADISON, WIS.—Quarra Stone, the Madison, Wis.-based company that supplies and fabricates natural stone for signature architectural and restoration projects throughout the country, has launched a comprehensive database that identifies dimensional stone quarries throughout the United States, Canada and Mexico. The database is designed to enable architects who are specifying natural stone in their projects to earn points towards LEED.

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Drafters of the International Code Council’s International Green Construction Code (IGCC) are nearing completion of the first-ever integrated green code for traditional and high-performance commercial buildings, set for a public release in March. “This will be the first time code officials, owners and designers will have an integrated regulatory framework to put into practice that meets the goal of greening the construction and design of new and existing buildings,” according to Code Council CEO Richard P. Weiland. “Only a code that is useable, enforceable and adoptable will have the capability of impacting our built environment in dramatic ways.” The IGCC is designed specifically to integrate and coordinate with the other International Codes already being enforced by governmental code officials at all levels. All 50 states and more than 20,000 U.S. jurisdictions use the International Codes developed by the Code Council for safety and sustainability.

SHEFFIELD, MASS.—Cypress Bath, Bed & Spa, a leading designer and manufacturer of luxury bathrobes, towels, slippers, and sheets for the global hospitality and spa industries, announced the appointment of Neil Rastogi to the position of vice president of business development. Among other executive leadership responsibilities, his primary role will be to grow the U.S. market for environmentally-friendly linens.