DAWSONVILLE, GA.—The easiest way to conserve water is to not use it in the first place. That is the message Project Planet Corp. has been pushing for more than 10 years now through its linen and towel re-use program. With approximately 6,000 hotels around the world participating, the venture has been a tremendous success. Project Planet was launched in 1995 by John Stanley, president and owner. The three-employee, Dawsonville, Ga.-based company sells door hangers, table brochures, pillow cards, posters, stickers, training videos and guest response cards. Hotels that participate in the program change bed linens every third...

RED DEER, ALBERTA—The 88-room Comfort Inn & Suites Red Deer in Alberta, Canada, would have a pretty hefty heating bill given its northern location. “Would” is the key word here. It does not have high energy costs thanks to a roof-based solar heating system. The system employs equipment normally used as a ground-source heat pump, designed to exploit the stable ambient temperature of the earth to provide seasonal heating and cooling. The Comfort Inn design, however, does not have an underground loop of liquid-filled tubing for geothermal exchange; the heat pump is connected to 60 roof-based solar collectors and a...

SHARON, MASS.—The Green Restaurant Assn.(GRA), a national nonprofit organization now 250 restaurants strong, is helping restaurant operators around the United States take a big bite out of energy and other costs through its Certified Green Restaurant program. The Sharon, Mass.-based nonprofit provides consulting services to restaurateurs interested in helping the environment while cutting costs at the same time. GRA was first established in 1990. In addition to consulting services, it provides education and public relations support. The core of its operations is its Certified Green Restaurant program. To become certified, participants join GRA and then undergo an assessment to determine...

WATERLOO, IA—Heartland Inns of America, LLC, with 19 locations in Iowa and Wisconsin, announced that it will be the first moderately-priced hotel chain of its size to implement a 100 percent, smoke-free policy. In response to growing guest demand for comfortable, quality accommodations in a healthy, smoke-free environment, effective immediately all 19 Heartland Inn facilities will be 100 percent smoke free, including all guestrooms and public areas. “Now guests can sleep and breathe easier in every room at every Heartland Inn,” says Barb Cullinan, director of operations at Heartland Inns of America. “Our operating philosophy has always been ‘do right’ when...

MIAMI—The 2006 American Express Caribbean Tourism Environmental Awards, presented in late June in Miami during a special awards luncheon as part of the annual Caribbean Hotel Industry Conference (CHIC), paid tribute to the hotels that are models of responsible environmental and social performance in the region. “The relationship between tourism and environment must be intimate and continuous, especially in the Caribbean, where sustainability is indispensable to preserve our tropical paradise” says Dianelys Rodríguez, vice president establishment services, American Express Latin America and Caribbean Division. “Our congratulations to both winners for taking the lead in environmental practices and serving...

NATIONAL REPORT—The road has not been an easy one for green cleaning product entrepreneurs trying to break into the hospitality industry. One company has dominated the lodging sector for years and there has been the perception that green cleaning products are more expensive and less effective than market competitors. While those perceptions may have been true 10 years ago, it is no longer the case. In fact, with the price of petroleum—a primary ingredient in many cleaning fluids—skyrocketing, green cleaning options can be just as affordable. Also, in many cases, they can be more effective than more toxic...

NATIONAL REPORT—Patty Griffin, a nonsmoker, recently found herself staying in a smoking room in a hotel in Texas. It wasn’t her first choice, but it was what was available. The smoking odor didn’t hit her hard, however, until she got home and unpacked. “I took out a cotton nightgown, and I couldn’t believe how much it smelled like smoke,” says Griffin, president and founder of the 300-member Green Hotels Assn., Houston, Texas. Certainly, hotels and motels are becoming more accommodating to nonsmokers such as Griffin who don’t want to smell stale smoke or be exposed to its health risks. In...

NATIONAL REPORT—With baby steps. That is how the lodging industry is approaching the U.S. Green Building Council’s (USGBC) Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) program. Only two hotels have been LEED certified—one in Sri Lanka, and the Marriott-managed Inn & Conference Center at the University of Maryland University College in Adelphi. The Hilton Vancouver, Washington, and other hotels are pursuing LEED certification. What is USGBC? It consists of a coalition of leaders from across the building industry working to promote buildings that are environmentally responsible, profitable and healthy places to live and work. LEED certification distinguishes building...

NATIONAL REPORT—It is a hotel owner’s nightmare—a call from an attorney representing a guest who has been bitten by bedbugs. If accounts found all over the Internet, on blogs and from vendors are true, it happens often. In fact, the news media recently reported that a woman is suing a Catskills resort for $20 million due to the approximately 500 bedbug bites she received while staying at the property in summer 2005. Traditionally, hotels have resorted to chemical treatments from some of the pest control industry’s leading companies to fight the problem. This medicine can be as bad as the...

LAS VEGAS—Cala Corp. has completed its plans to build a $400 million destination casino three miles off the Miami coast. The UnderSea Resort will feature 600 luxurious suites, a 50,000-square-foot casino, a 50,000-square-foot spa, six food and beverage outlets, an on-site golf driving range, approximately 100,000 square feet of meeting space, on-site helicopter service and approximately 50,000 square feet of undersea aquarium observatory space. The company intends to become both the largest offshore casino operator as well as the largest offshore timeshare developer. For more information, visit www.UnderSeaResort.com.