NASHVILLE, TENN.—A year and three months after its launch, the Tennessee Hospitality Association’s Tennessee Green Hospitality Program now has 42 certified establishments. The businesses range from the Chattanooga Choo Choo resort in Chattanooga to the Doubletree Hotel Jackson in Jackson, Tenn. While most of the certified destinations are hotels, some like the Knoxville Convention Center in Knoxville and Tennessee Aquarium in Chattanooga are non-lodging businesses.
“The program is going very well,” says Dobbin Callahan, president of Skye Con, the company that audits businesses pursuing Tennessee Green Hospitality certification. “An increasing number of meeting planners, tour guides and travelers are looking for establishments that are green. Being Tennessee Green Hospitality certified, businesses can more easily meet requests for documentation showing how they operate sustainably.”
The Tennessee Green Hospitality Program is an offshoot of the Chattanooga Green Lodging program that was launched a little more than two years ago. Lodging establishments seeking certification must meet minimum requirements in six core activity areas: Optional Linen Service; Recycling & Reducing Waste; Water Conservation; Energy Conservation; Offer a “Green Events” Package; and have a Written Plan for Continued Environmental Improvement. In the program’s application, there are checklists of steps a property can take in each of the six activity areas. Under “Water Conservation,” for example, a property may pledge to use water-flow metering to discover leaks and areas of high use.
Continuous Improvement Required
Callahan says certification lasts two years, at which point a property must re-apply for certification. Continuous improvement is a requirement for recertification. “They have to be doing all the things they were doing before, and more,” Callahan says. “They can’t just be where they were two years ago.”
Lodging establishments of all sizes are eligible for the program. The audit fee ranges from $275 to $600 for Tennessee Hospitality Association members. Non-members pay an additional $100. The fee varies depending on facility size. “They are paying for the audit, not the certification,” Callahan emphasizes.
Callahan says Hospitality Program leaders recently have been putting more emphasis on energy management. “We are encouraging all facilities to use the EPA’s Portfolio Manager to benchmark and track energy performance,” he says.
Restaurants Also Eligible
Restaurants are also eligible to be certified under the Tennessee Green Hospitality Program. A hotel with a restaurant needs to fill out just one application to apply for property certification. Core activity requirements for restaurants include: Minimizing the Use of Disposables; Recycling Grease; Recycling & Reducing Waste; Water Conservation; Energy Conservation; and Written Plan for Continued Environmental Improvement.
To learn more about the Tennessee Green Hospitality Program, click here. To access a list of certified establishments, click here.
Glenn Hasek can be reached at editor@greenlodgingnews.com.
