Next week will mark the nine-year anniversary of Green Lodging News’ launch. It actually took a year to get this publication up and running so I really have spent a decade working on Green Lodging News. I have so many people to thank for their support—the thousands of you who faithfully or even occasionally read the publication, and of course the many suppliers who have purchased advertising over the years. I also have to thank the many folks who have assisted me with circulation efforts since 2006, and Modgility, which provides website technical support. Green Lodging News would also...

SAN FRANCISCO—The Yosemite landscape is preparing to welcome a vibrant addition to the popular region. Rush Creek Lodge, a fresh take on the Yosemite experience, is slated to open at the doorstep of Yosemite National Park, Calif., in spring 2016. The contemporary mountain resort is the first resort to open in the park’s vicinity in more than 25 years, offering Yosemite explorers a new lodging option with 143 rooms, as well as amenities for travelers, such as a dining destination to enjoy California lodge cuisine, a general store for provisions on...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—The American Hotel & Lodging Association (AH&LA) is accepting nominations for its Stars of the Industry Awards program. The AH&LA Stars of the Industry awards program was created to recognize outstanding accomplishments in the lodging industry by employees as well as properties to honor quality of service.Once again, there will be a Good Earthkeeping category this year but AH&LA has trimmed the number of winners to just two. There will be a small property category (250 rooms or less) and a large property category (250 rooms or more). In addition to Good Earthkeeping, awards will be presented for...

MUMBAI—EarthCheck, a provider of environmental benchmarking and certification, last week presented nine Taj hotels with Gold Certification for five years of continuous benchmarking and reporting under the EarthCheck Standard. The hotels are the first of 76 EarthCheck accredited hotels across the Taj portfolio to achieve the five year milestone, with 54 more properties on track to reach the target by 2016.Using the EarthCheck program, the nine honored hotels are proving they can deliver robust environmental savings to complement Taj’s existing CSR programs. In 2013, they collectively reduced energy consumption by enough energy to power 53,940 homes in India and...

To what degree does how a country is governed, and how its people are treated, permeate the process you go through to decide where to build and from where to buy? I thought about that, as I have many times, this past week on the 25th anniversary of China’s Tiananmen Square Massacre. On June 4, 1989, hundreds, possibly thousands died after gathering to voice their displeasure with corruption and their desire for freedoms that they lacked.Today the Chinese government is doing all it can to erase the memory of that event from its history—jailing those who talk about it...

Steam cleaning has been around for a long time, yet it seems that there are many…who don’t use this method. While it may not be something you use every day, there is certainly a need for it in your toolbox. “Steam vapor” is really a more accurate term for this type of cleaning because it involves very little water content and a lot of heat, so there’s little mess or residue left behind. Here are some of the many ways that you can use steam to clean.• Cleans the unreachable—anything with a lot of crevices and/or hard to reach...

According to the OSHA Guide to The Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals (GHS): “The basic goal of hazard communication is to ensure that employers, employees and the public are provided with adequate, practical, reliable and comprehensible information on the hazards of chemicals, so that they can take effective preventive and protective measure for their health and safety.”OSHA states: “The GHS …the importance of training all target audiences to recognize and interpret label and/or SDS information, and to take appropriate action in response to chemical hazards,” and that “training requirements should be appropriate for and...

The American Journal of Infection Control published a peer-reviewed study in October 2011, “Reduction in the Microbial Load on High-Touch Surfaces,” that clearly demonstrates that TANCS® dry steam vapor “is capable of rapid, chemical-free surface disinfection.”The MondoVap with TANCS “consistently reduced total microbial and pathogen loads…to below detection in most instances,” but by more than 90 percent in other cases.The conclusion? “The steam vapor system provides a means to reduce levels of microorganisms on…surfaces without the drawbacks associated with chemicals.”

The MondoVap TANCS® dry steam vapor system opens up carpet fibers for better vacuuming, a process termed “Steam Assisted Vacuuming Intervention” or SAVI (pronounced “savvy”). Vacuuming, then steaming, followed by re-vacuuming, removes a great deal of soil from carpet, much more than without steaming. The experience at the Loden bears this out.

Every now and then, since launching Green Lodging News in the summer of 2006, I would hear from the PGA National Resort & Spa’s Kathy McGuire. She would write with a question or comment. I always appreciated her feedback. I knew she played a significant role in helping to green the resort that is well known for its five championship golf courses and for hosting the PGA Tour’s Honda Classic (February 27 to March 2 this year). I finally had an opportunity to interview Kathy this past week and was pleased to learn that she recently had been promoted...