USGBC Site Highlights LEED & Hospitality

If you are interested in keeping up with the progress of the U.S. Green Building Council's LEED rating system as it relates to hospitality, be sure to bookmark the Hospitality section of the USGBC website. The page includes a list of LEED certified hotels (most recent list is as of May 24 and includes 96 hotels), and other resources including two publications: Practical Strategies in Green Building-Hotels, and Green Venue Selection Guide. Practical Strategies in Green Building-Hotels is organized the same way the LEED rating systems are structured, with sections on the six credit categories within LEED and four different hotel examples of LEED strategies within each section. The Green Venue Selection Guide includes a questionnaire that can be used by meeting planners seeking out green facilities.

The Guide addresses topics ranging from energy and water use to purchasing, indoor air quality and waste management. Also on the website are links to five hotel case studies--Proximity Hotel, Fairfield Inn Baltimore, Courtyard Portland, The Nines, Hotel Skyler--and frequently asked questions about Hospitality and LEED. One example of a frequently asked question: "Will there be a LEED certification program (rating system) specific to Hospitality?" The answer: "Due to features such as on-site amenities, food and beverage operations, pool and laundry operations, convention facilities, frequent renovation cycles, and transient guest populations, hospitality properties can present unique challenges and opportunities in certain areas of environmental performance. The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) brought together a group of hospitality industry leaders in 2008 in order to identify the areas of LEED that need further attention in light of hospitality-specific circumstances. From this work, USGBC produced a needs assessment outlining technical and nontechnical changes that would allow LEED to better address lodging facilities. Through its established committee structure, USGBC then formed a formal Hospitality Adaptations Working Group comprised of industry experts from USGBC member companies. This group worked with the LEED Steering Committee, USGBC staff, and the LEED Technical Advisory Groups to modify certain LEED credits in order to better capture the environmental impacts and opportunities associated with lodging properties. The clarifications and modifications to LEED credits produced by this process and the work of the Hospitality Adaptations Working Group will be released in mid-2011."

Finally, the Hospitality section includes a link to studies and statistics that strengthen the case for green building.

Yes, the Hospitality page is not quite up to date but it at least provides a good introduction for those interested in learning more about LEED and Hospitality.