Yesterday was a big day at San Francisco International Airport. Effective yesterday, August 20, water is no longer allowed to be sold in plastic bottles. The rule requires all airport retailers, restaurants, airline lounges, and vending machines to sell or provide water in recyclable aluminum, glass or BPI-certified compostable bottles. The policy applies to purified water, mineral water, carbonated or sparkling water, and electrolyte-enhanced water, but does not include flavored beverages such as sodas, teas, or juices. “SFO continues to lead the way in airport sustainability initiatives,” said Airport Director Ivar C. Satero. “With this move, we take a giant...

A little more than a year after breaking ground on its LEED Silver CAESARS FORUM conference center in Las Vegas, Caesars Entertainment says its 550,000 square-foot facility is on pace to open in March 2020. Green Lodging News asked Caesars some questions about the $375 million complex that will feature two of the largest pillarless ballrooms in the world. 1. Please provide a few examples of what has been sourced locally for the construction of the center. At Caesars Entertainment we help local communities flourish through economic contributions, in the form of employee wages and benefits, payments to vendors for...

Back in May I published an article about treehouses—specifically a group of treehouses found in The Mohicans in North Central Ohio. The treehouses are unique, luxurious and available for overnight stays. Along with my family, I was invited to stay at one of the treehouses—the Old Pine Treehouse—this past Monday evening. We were the guests of Kevin and Laura Mooney, the owners of the getaway that includes six treehouses, five cabins, a Grand Barn Wedding Center, and four additional treehouses either close to opening or to open later this year. (If I would have paid for Old Pine, it...

According to The Nature Conservancy, approximately 41 million trees are cut down every day—far faster than we are currently replanting them. The consequences of deforestation and other types of land degradation are severe, exacerbating climate change, biodiversity loss, and declines in ecosystem services that hundreds of millions of people depend on. In response, governments around the world have committed to restore 160 million hectares—an area larger than South Africa. But it will take more than government action to execute on these commitments; the private sector has an important role to play, too. That is why I tip my hat today...

Unfortunately, I have written about carbon monoxide deaths in hotels far too often—most recently last November. The past few weeks I have read about two more incidents at hotels. First, in late June, two men were found dead by a third guest staying in the room at the Best Western Hotel in Asheville, N.C. Police suspect the cause of the deaths to be carbon monoxide poisoning. According to an unsealed warrant, Asheville fire chief Shane Mackey suspects a utility room behind the room was the source of the carbon monoxide. The utility room contained two water heaters and two...

Earlier this year in March, Hilton’s Hilton Garden Inn, Hampton by Hilton and All Suites brands launched the Clean the World Challenge in partnership with Clean the World, a global health leader dedicated to sustainability and water, sanitization and health. Embassy Suites by Hilton, Hilton Garden Inn, Hampton by Hilton, Homewood Suites by Hilton and Home2 Suites by Hilton challenged hotel owners and Team Members to collect bars of soap left behind by guests to be recycled into 1 million bars of new soap by Global Handwashing Day (October 15) for Clean the World to distribute to communities in...

I recently received the latest list of LEED certified hotels from the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC). I will be writing about the list in my upcoming Publisher’s Point of View column but wanted to offer a few highlights from the list. First, there are a total of 767 projects listed as “lodging” in the USGBC database. Seventy-one projects have been left off the list because the participants have opted to have their projects remain confidential. The list is a global list. Countries represented range from China to the United States to Sweden. There are 51 projects listed as LEED...

I just added another hotel to the “Solar” section of the Renewable Energy All Stars portion of the Green Lodging News website—the Home2 Suites by Hilton San Francisco Airport North. The modular-built hotel is meeting about 50 percent of its electricity needs with its solar panels. The Home2 Suites by Hilton San Francisco Airport North joins a very long list of hotels in North America and beyond that have some type of solar configuration. When you check out the Solar section you will notice that many of the listings include links to not only the hotel’s website but also...

A couple of years ago I took my first cruise out of Tampa, Fla. The week-long experience was fun and relaxing and a great way not to have to worry about cooking my own food or searching around for a restaurant or place to drive to. I would much rather be on a hiking trail in a national park but overall it was a pretty good experience. The ship I chose was a Carnival Corp. ship. Every now and then I read about the good things Carnival is doing to reduce its environmental impact. I recommend visiting the Sustainability page...

I do not know how many Best Western Rewards program members there are, and I have no idea if what one of its members told me is typical, but I thought I would share an e-mail I received from a Green Lodging News reader. The reader is clearly passionate about the environment. “Hello. I am an exclusive Best Western guest and participate in the Best Western Rewards programs. I have achieved the highest elite status level of Diamond Select through actual stays instead of through a status match offered by other chains. I have stayed at 40 to 50 separate...