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Fairmont San Francisco Installs Beehives in Hotel’s Culinary Garden
SAN FRANCISCO—In partnership with Marshall’s Farm, cxecutive chef jW Foster of The Fairmont San Francisco has installed honey beehives in the hotel’s new culinary garden in order to help support the bee population, which has decreased in number by 90 percent since the 1980s. Beekeepers established four nascent beehives, each containing approximately 20,000 bees, in the culinary garden that is located outdoors on the hotel’s lobby level. When the beehives mature in four to eight weeks, they will each house up to 50,000 bees.
The United States Department of Agriculture believes a virus is responsible for the collapse of honey...
Norman Hotel & Conference Center Earns ECO Platinum Certification
NORMAN, OKLA.—Oklahoma’s largest hotel and conference center has become the first property to earn the highest sustainable travel certification offered by ECO—Encouraging Conservation in Oklahoma—the state’s premiere sustainable travel program. The National Center for Employee Development (NCED), located off State Highway 9 in Norman, earned the Platinum Travel Standard certification by meeting set criteria and implementing sustainability programs.
Hardy Watkins, Oklahoma Tourism & Recreation Department executive director, said the NCED is a good sustainability practices model for all conference centers.
“Since NCED is the largest conference facility in the state, its environmental impact is significant,” Watkins said. “By implementing sustainability programs...
Wind Turbine is Symbol of Resort’s Green Commitment
WHITEFIELD, N.H.—Visitors to the Mountain View Grand Resort & Spa in New Hampshire’s White Mountains can’t miss the 121-foot wind turbine that stands like a tall white tree behind the 144-room hotel and adjacent to the on-property nine-hole golf course. The 100-kilowatt system has been up and running since late last September. According to Gene Ehlert, marketing manager for the resort and spa which sits on 1,700 acres, it is too soon to know exactly what percentage of the property’s electricity needs it will eventually meet, but he said the $500,000 turbine has been meeting about 15 percent of...
Algonquin Eco-Lodge Relies on Micro-Hydro to Power 17-Room Lodge
MARKHAM, ONT.—The Algonquin Eco-Lodge—located at the southern tip of Algonquin Provincial Park near Bancroft, Ontario—flipped the switch on a unique project that will use the natural power of water to provide electricity for the lodge. Nestled on the shore of picturesque Moffat Pond, about 2.5 kilometers from the lodge’s parking lot, the lodge boasts true tranquillity as guests hike in and regular vehicle traffic is nonexistent. However, this peacefulness comes at the cost of being off the power grid.
With a desire to make the Algonquin Eco-Lodge more comfortable for guests, and to be true to the goal of being...
New Inn Looks to be Green Beacon on Oregon’s Pacific Coast
NEWPORT, ORE.—One of Oregon’s greenest inns—The Viking’s Greenstone Inn—is just days away from its May 21 opening. Located in Newport within steps of the Pacific Ocean, the 20-room inn features solar panels positioned on a recyclable metal roof, a waste water heat recovery system, a series of seven on-demand water heaters, a key card-based guestroom energy management system, and carpeting made from recycled materials. According to Brendan Carmody, who owns the inn along with Bonnie, his wife, there are plans to add a charging station for electric vehicles toward the end of this year. The owners also intend to...
Atmosphere Hospitality Launches New Adoba Eco Hotel & Suites Brand
DENVER—The launch of the new Adoba Eco Hotel & Suites Brand on the anniversary of Earth Day 2010 underscores this new brand concept’s commitment to environmental awareness and social responsibility. The Adoba Eco Hotel & Suites Brand design has taken a proactive approach to environmentally responsible architecture and intends that each new build will achieve Gold or Platinum LEED certification. The development philosophy is based upon the conviction and reality that sustainable business practices are necessary and provide viable long-term profitability when blended with responsible operational systems, a modern day sales approach, superior guest service and a healthy and...
The Ritz-Carlton, Charlotte Celebrates LEED Gold Certification
CHARLOTTE, N.C.—The Ritz-Carlton, Charlotte was recently presented with LEED Gold Certification at a press event in Charlotte. The rare achievement, awarded in the New Construction category, was announced to hotel general manager David Rothwell by Rick Fedrizzi, CEO of the U.S. Green Building Council. It represents the first LEED designation attained by a Ritz-Carlton hotel or resort.
The 146-room Ritz-Carlton, Charlotte opened in October 2009 with a roster of environmental services and features that have ultimately qualified it for LEED Gold certification. LEED, which stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, is a multi-category green building rating system developed...
California’s Barona Resort & Casino Earns LEED Gold from USGBC
SAN DIEGO—Barona Resort & Casino announced that it has achieved Gold certification as part of the U.S. Green Building Council’s (USGBC) Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design for Existing Buildings (LEED-EB) rating system. Barona is the first tribal resort in the nation to earn the internationally recognized certification for the design and operation of high performance green buildings.
“The Barona Resort & Casino”s LEED for Existing Buildings Gold certification demonstrates tremendous green building leadership,” said Rick Fedrizzi, president, CEO & founding chair, USGBC. “The most sustainable way to green the built environment is through retrofitting existing buildings. Barona can...
Westin Westminster Announces Plans to Install Solar System
WESTMINSTER, COLO.—The Westin Westminster announced that it will capitalize on Colorado’s 300-plus days of annual sunshine with the installation of a state-of-the-art solar panel system to help provide power to the 369-room hotel. The solar panels, which are scheduled to be installed next month on the roof of the hotel, will produce 42,576 kilowatt-hours per year—the equivalent to planting more than 192 trees annually. The Westin Westminster has applied to receive a grant from the federal government and a solar rebate from Xcel Energy, making it the first hotel in Colorado to take advantage of these programs.
The 32-kilowatt solar...
Saunders’ Renovation of Comfort Inn Includes Many Green Features
BOSTON—The Comfort Inn & Suites Logan International Airport, a Saunders Group Hotel, is nearing completion of a multi-million dollar eco-driven renovation. Today more than 90 green practices are in place including in-room recycling bins, a food waste composting program that engages guests, a laundry ozone system that eliminates most hot water usage, spa-quality shampoo and soap dispensing systems that eliminate 270 thousand small bottles from entering the waste stream, a pool ionizing system which makes the water sparkling clean without unhealthy chlorine, and a small fleet of CNG (compressed natural gas) shuttles. To promote excellent indoor air quality, the...