The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently released its list of the U.S. Metropolitan areas with the most Energy Star certified buildings for 2011. The list of 25 cities is headed by Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., Atlanta, Chicago, San Francisco, New York, Houston, Dallas, Riverside, Calif. and Boston. I went through the EPA’s list for 2011 to check to see where it added Energy Star rated hotels in 2011. There were just 28 hotels that achieved the Energy Star rating that year. Five were in California. Four were in Hawaii. Three were in Minnesota. Three were in Massachusetts. Two were in New York. Eleven states added one Energy Star hotel. For those of you not familiar with the Energy Star rating program for hotels, it allows you to measure the energy efficiency of your hotel properties and compare them to others across the United States.

Using data that you provide online, the system produces a baseline rating from 1 to 100. Once you have established this baseline, you can use Energy Star’s tools and resources to prioritize your investments, set goals, and track your management success. You can access the national rating system online through Energy Star’s Portfolio Manager.

I have written about the challenges of the Energy Star program in the past. While many hotels use the Portfolio Manager, few actually qualify for and achieve the Energy Star rating. This year so far there have been 18 hotels that have earned the rating—a pace that should result in there being more this year than last year.

What has your experience been with the EPA’s Portfolio Manager? Have you found it too difficult to reach the EPA’s required 75 points—the amount needed to earn the Energy Star?

I would love to hear from you. Please leave your comments here.

I am currently attending the Hospitality Design Expo & Conference in Las Vegas. In previous years there was a "Green Day" event that preceded the conference and expo. There was no Green Day this year because Hospitality Design magazine, the publication behind the conference and expo, lost a couple of key people who were behind the planning of the event. The employees moved on to better positions in other companies. Replacing Green Day this year were four "Green Conversations" organized by NEWH Inc.—the Hospitality Industry Network. I participated in the first Green Conversation as an interviewer of Jeanne Varney, lecturer faculty, School of Hotel Administration, Cornell University. The topic of our conversation was “What Are We Teaching Our Students, and What Can They Teach Us?” There were about 15 to 20 people at the booth where our conversation took place.

While the Green Conversations were a great idea, and I was happy to participate, they did not come close to attracting the crowd that Green Day once drew.

Unfortunately, Green Day is just the first of several green events that have fallen off our industry calendar. Another is the Annual Green Lodging & Hospitality Conference in Orlando. Last I heard is that the event is not coming back this year because it failed to make money last year. Another event not returning this summer is the West Coast Green Lodging Conference. While I did not attend that event last year, I heard that attendance was down significantly from the inaugural year in 2010. Each event has its own reasons for not coming back or failing but the bottom line is that our industry now has no national annual event--whether a conference, trade show or summit--focused on green lodging.

Why do we need one? Education is important in keeping the green movement progressing. So too are networking opportunities. It is also important to have the opportunity to interact with vendors invested in green products and services, and to hear success stories from those who have successfully transformed their properties into more profitable, sustainable ones. A green conference is also an opportunity to catch up on the latest green trends from experts who best understand them. Yes, there are small pockets of people who meet annually as part of larger organizations but there is no one event that shines as the "go to" event for those with a stake in green lodging. I wish I had the funds and the manpower to create one. What do you think? Should our industry have an annual green lodging event for hoteliers, designers, architects, etc.? If so, what should it look like? Where should it be held? What should its primary goal be? I would love to hear from you.

In an article on Green Lodging News and in my recent weekly column I referenced a study by Brighter Planet entitled, "Hotel Energy & Carbon Efficiency." In the study Brighter Planet ranked 75 different hotel brands based on their carbon and energy efficiency. Brighter Planet did not look at efforts at the individual property level but larger picture items such as where a hotel is located and whether its electricity comes from clean or dirty energy sources. If the majority of a hotel company's hotels happen to be located in a state where electricity is generated from renewable energy sources, it fared very well in the ranking. In reading the results of the Brighter Planet study I became curious to know exactly what states have the cleanest energy.

By chance this past week I received a press release from the Arlington, Va.-based Lexington Institute that highlights the leading states in the United States for renewable energy. You can find the information at the website EnergyTrends.org by mousing over the U.S. map at the top of the page and then by clicking on the state that interests you. The top three states are California, Colorado and Massachusetts. California, for example, is given a renewable energy grade of a "B." It ranks first thanks to its investments in hydro, geothermal and solar energy technologies.

On the EnergyTrends.org site you can also see how a state ranks based on energy consumed per capita. As you review the information, keep in mind that the scoring is based on data from 2003 to 2010, the most recent years for which confirmed information is available. According to the Lexington Institute, the grading system takes into account both the amount of energy generated from renewable sources and the growth rate over a three-year period, as well as savings achieved in electricity use, state incentive programs for renewable energy, and other factors. Extra bonus points were awarded for categories such as grid-connected renewable installations, dynamic pricing for power utility consumers, and integration of electric vehicles. The Lexington Institute drew much of its data from the federal Department of Energy.

Burger King Corp. announced last week that it will transition to using only cage-free hens for its U.S. egg supply. The changeover is expected to take five years. According to Burger King, it was the first major quick-serve restaurant chain to implement a set of animal welfare policies aimed at reducing cage confinement of egg-laying hens. Since 2007, Burger King has been incorporating cage-free eggs into its supply chain. What exactly is meant by a cage-free hen? Most egg-laying hens exist in what are called battery cages--cages so small the hens can barely move. The floor area can be as small as a piece of letter-size paper. Hens are so cramped that most are unable to stretch their wings or engage in other natural behaviors, such as nesting, perching and dust-bathing.

They don't have access to natural light, and as many as 100,000 birds may be grouped together under a single roof. Sometimes, cages are stacked on top of other cages and hens in lower cages get pelted with waste from the hens above them. In general, cage-free hens are free to roam. According to Eggland's Best, its cage-free hens are provided with sunlight, shade, shelter, an exercise area, fresh air, and are protected from predators. The hens are fed an all-natural, all-vegetarian feed that contains no added hormones, antibiotics or steroids, and no animal by-products, recycled or processed foods.

To be considered cage-free, the U.S. Department of Agriculture requires only that a bird spend part of its time outside. Wikipedia does a good job explaining the variations of free-range practices. Click here to see them. For more information on cage-free eggs, click here.

Do you have any idea at all what conditions the hens that supply your property's eggs are in? Be sure to ask your supplier. What you feed your guests for breakfast may not be as healthy for them as you think. The eggs may in fact run counter to your green story and your commitment to corporate social responsibility. In my time with Green Lodging News I have seen few hotels or hotel companies commit to cage-free eggs. (See Hyatt article to learn about its commitment.) I am sure cost is one reason. Your thoughts?

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) just released its updated list of the Top 50 Green Power Partnership organizations voluntarily using clean, renewable electricity from resources such as solar, wind, and low-impact hydropower. In the top 50 is just one lodging organization: Hilton Worldwide at No. 10. Hilton's annual green power usage is currently 315,000,000 kWh. Topping the list is Intel Corp., followed by Kohl's Department Stores. EPA’s Green Power Partnership works with more than 1,300 partner organizations, over half of which are small businesses and nonprofit organizations, to voluntarily use green power. Green power resources produce electricity with an environmental profile superior to conventional power technologies, and produce significantly fewer greenhouse gas emissions. Organizations can meet EPA Partnership requirements using any combination of three different product options: (1) renewable energy certificates, (2) on-site generation, and (3) utility green power products.

According to the EPA, Hilton utilizes various green power resources. Hilton is among the lodging industry's leading green organizations with its LightStay sustainability measurement system. In fact, sustainability measurement is a brand standard for Hilton properties.

The Green Power Partnership also updated the rankings of the 100 Percent Green Power Users list, which highlights close to 700 partners using green power for their entire electricity load. Hospitality businesses on that list include Powdr Resorts, Stevens Pass Resort, The Talbott Hotel, and others. To view that entire list, click here.

Those of you considering a college or university for yourself or your child should check out The Princeton Review's Guide to 322 Green Colleges. The guide profiles 320 institutions of higher education in the United States and two in Canada that demonstrate a strong commitment to sustainability in their academic offerings, campus infrastructure, activities, and career preparation. There are numerous schools listed that have hospitality programs. The guide lists schools that have LEED certified buildings, STARS rated institutions, and schools that are ACUPCC signatories. For those of you not familiar with the STARS (Sustainability Tracking, Assessment & Rating System) rating system, it is a transparent, self-reporting framework for colleges and universities to gauge relative progress toward sustainability. More than 300 institutions are participating in STARS and more than 150 have earned a rating.

STARS was developed by the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education. ACUPCC signatories are signatories of the American College & University Presidents’ Climate Commitment (ACUPCC). The ACUPCC is a high-visibility effort to address global climate disruption undertaken by a network of colleges and universities that have made institutional commitments to eliminate net greenhouse gas emissions from specified campus operations.

The guide includes summaries of each of the 322 schools and what they are doing from a sustainability standpoint. Arizona State University's summary, for example, explains how there are now more than six megawatts of photovoltaic power installations on campus rooftops and parking structures. Cornell University's summary mentions how the university is aiming to be carbon neutral by 2050. Michigan State University's summary highlights the university's success at reducing the impact of transportation on the 5,200-acre campus. The Capital Area Transit Authority currently operates seven 40-foot hybrid buses and three 60-foot articulating hybrid buses. To access the guide to green colleges, click here.

In case you missed it, Fodor's recently released its list of North America's 5 Greenest Hotels. It is a pretty good list and includes properties that have all been featured on the Green Lodging News website at one time or another. Their five hotels include: Proximity Hotel, Greensboro, N.C.; Bardessono, Yountville, Calif.; Seaport Boston Hotel; The Venetian, The Palazzo & The Sands Exposition and Convention Center; and The Planet Traveler in Toronto. Two of the Fodor's properties have earned LEED Platinum certification--the Proximity Hotel and the Bardessono. Interestingly, Fodor's left the Hotel Skyler off the list. It is also a LEED Platinum property and located in Syracuse, N.Y. What makes each property uniquely green? At the Proximity, geothermal energy is used to run refrigeration equipment in the on-site restaurant, and energy from the sun heats nearly 60 percent of the hot water needed for the hotel.

At the Bardessono, a 200-kilowatt, 947-panal solar system provides most of the electricity needed at the property. Guestrooms have been constructed to minimize solar heat gain with wide overhangs and specially designed motor-controlled exterior Venetian blinds. At the Seaport Boston, as part of the hotel's Seaport Saves program, toilets have been retrofitted from 1.6 gallons per flush (gpf) to 1.28 gpf saving an estimated 200,000 gallons of water a year. The old toilets were reused in Jamaica, Nicaragua and Haiti. The Seaport Boston's Seaport Water Taxi is a zero emissions fully-electric water taxi, the city's only such vessel.

At the Venetian, The Palazzo & The Sands Exposition and Convention Center, one of the largest green campuses in the world, a special "nano" filtration system turns wastewater into irrigation water for plants, while more than 75 percent of food waste is reused as compost or animal feed at a local farm. At The Planet Traveler in Toronto, the entire three-story building requires only 1,500 watts of electricity to operate—less energy than most four-slice toasters—with most of the power coming from an extensive photovoltaic array. The hostel has a geothermal system as well, pulling heat up from the earth in the winter and pushing it back down in the summer.

Be sure to do a search on all of these properties on the Green Lodging News website to learn more. And, if you believe your property deserves to be among the top five and is not, leave a comment here.

Earth Day is this Sunday. How will you be marking the day at your property? Each year I receive press releases from companies and individual properties detailing how they will be celebrating Earth Day. At the Golden Arrow Lakeside Resort in Lake Placid, N.Y., a Celebrate Earth Day Locally Festival has been planned from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Featured will be activities for children, families and people of all ages on the grounds of the Golden Arrow, a green farmers market showcasing locally grown produce and products, live entertainment, children’s activities, barbeque and more. Generation’s restaurant will feature a “Local Dinner,” introduce the new spring menu along with Earth Day specials featuring Campbell's greenhouse greens, local free-range chicken and Atlas Hoofed It Pasture raised beef and special Earth Day dessert.

“Our goal for Earth Day is to create an opportunity for local merchants, farms, community members and business owners alike to celebrate our home, our area, and our Earth,” said Jill Schweizer, director of marketing for the Golden Arrow and organizer of the event.

At the Inn at Laurel Point in Victoria, B.C., an Eco Package will be offered that includes overnight accommodation; luxury hemp linens on the bed; a complimentary bottle of local wine, organic chocolates and a potted plant (opposed to cut flowers); and parking. To make Earth Day a memorable one, staff at Inn at Laurel Point have teamed up with Harbour Air Seaplanes (North America’s first carbon-neutral airline) and Eagle Wing Whale Watching (North America’s first carbon neutral whale watching company) and issued an April 20, 2012 garbage pick-up challenge to local businesses. The winner of the competition (the team that picks up the most garbage in a one-hour window) will be crowned at a 1:30 p.m. ceremony (to be held on the grounds of the Inn) and awarded with a coveted Golden Garbage Award.

On Earth Day, Calistoga Ranch, Napa Valley, Calif., will invite guests to help support the health of the planet with the gift of an olive tree sapling. The Olea Europa is a hardy plant that can be planted in winter climates down to 10 degrees. At Encantado, Santa Fe, N.M., guests can join Taos Pueblo tribe member Robert Evan Trujillo for a special Earth Day blessing and drumming ceremony at 6 p.m.

These are just a few examples of how properties around North America will be celebrating Earth Day. If you would like to share what your property will be doing for Earth Day, contact editor@greenlodgingnews.com or leave a comment here.

A "soft" announcement was made in February but the N.C. Division of Environmental Assistance and Outreach and the Center for Sustainable Tourism at East Carolina University are just now beginning to talk more aggressively about their new NC GreenTravel Initiative. The Initiative is a program that recognizes state travel-related businesses that employ healthy environmental practices. Unlike many other state certification programs that are open only to lodging establishments, the NC GreenTravel Initiative is open to all types of travel-related businesses--hotels, restaurants, museums, parks, attractions, etc. From a marketing standpoint, participants are recognized by the NC GreenTravel Initiative with a wall certificate and door decal identifying them as members of the NC GreenTravel community. They will also be listed as a sustainable travel business on the NC GreenTravel website.

I read through the application for lodging establishments. Participants are required to have an environmental policy statement, green team, and are awarded points in the following categories: waste reduction and recycling, energy conservation, water efficiency, groundskeeping, kitchen, air quality, environmental measurements, housekeeping, green meetings and catering, and green purchasing. Properties can also earn points for being LEED certified, having an environmental management system, and by being green certified by another agency. There are three levels of certification: One Dogwood Blossom, Two Dogwood Blossoms, and Three Dogwood Blossoms. Limited service and full service properties have slightly different point scales.

The organizers of the program have done a very good job putting together the application. I always check to see whether or not a property gets credit for being 100 percent nonsmoking. In this application, it does not. The green meetings and catering section should have included points for tablecloth-less tables. I am just being picky here. Overall, the application is a great start. To see the lodging application, click here. If you run a green lodging establishment or other green tourism-related business in North Carolina, I strongly encourage you to participate in the NC GreenTravel Initiative.

We have all heard of the urban heat island effect--how buildings, concrete, black roofs, etc. all help cities retain heat. That may be good in the winter time during sunny days but in the hot summer heat retention can lead to a significant rise in cooling-related energy costs. You may not be able to do anything about most of the shell of your building and how it retains heat but you can do something about how your rooftop retains or reflects heat. It is as simple as black and white. Put a white coating on your roof and it will have a major impact on the rooftop temperature when the sun is beating down on it. A NASA study in New York City last summer compared white-covered roofs against black-colored roofs.

The study found that the dark, sunlight-absorbing surfaces of some New York City roofs reached 170 degrees Fahrenheit on July 22, 2011, a day that set a city record for electricity usage during the peak of a heat wave. But in the largest discrepancy of that day, a white roofing material was measured at about 42 degrees cooler. The white roof being tested was a low-cost covering promoted as part of Mayor Michael Bloomberg's effort to reduce the city's greenhouse gas emissions 30 percent by 2030. On average through the summer of 2011, the pilot white roof surface reduced peak rooftop temperature compared to a typical black roof by 43 degrees Fahrenheit, according to the study, which was the first long-term effort in New York to test how specific white roof materials held up and performed over several years.

The next time you sit down with your management and ownership team to talk about ways to reduce costs, start with the roof. The white membrane coverings tested by NASA cost from $15 to $28 per square foot--certainly low hanging fruit. If you would like to know more about how reflective roofing material can reduce costs, check out the Energy Star website. You should also do a search on "white roof" on the Green Lodging News website. There are numerous examples of hotels and even a hotel company headquarters with white roofs.